AN - Well, here's # 13. And despite what I said last time, I decided to divide this last part into two chapters...cause I like making you squirm :P. Actually, I'm still just working out the ending. Anyway, you know the drill.

He's soft to the touch
But frayed a the ends, he breaks

"Mark? Mark!" I break away from my thoughts and look down at him.

"Hmm?" I almost sound groggy. I must still be half asleep.

"Where did you go? You've been staring into space for like, five minutes." Wow, was it that long?

"Oh, nowhere. Hey, what time is it?" I ask, remembering today's date.

"A little after midnight."

"Get off" I try to sit up, but he doesn't budge.

"I dun' wanna." He's such a kid sometimes.

I quickly think of an excuse. "I gotta piss." He shoots off of me to the other side of the couch. "Thank you." I make a mad dash toward my room. "Sucker!"

"Hey!" I hear Roger calling after me as I lock my door. I pull out a large package, complete with ribbon and bow, out from under my bed. I balance it in one hand while holding my camera in the other. I smirk as I open the door to find Roger in mid-knock.

"June 14th, 12:11 AM, eastern standard time. Roger's 23rd birthday."

Roger's face scrunches up in a weird combination of embarrassment and exhasperation. Less observant people would miss the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. I know better.

He runs a hand through his hair, (half) feigning frustration. "Ugh, you know I hate this shit." All the same he reaches out and takes the package. "Geez...you didn't have to..."

"Like that's ever stopped me before." I say, peeking out from behind the camera. "Open it."

As he starts tearing at the paper, I carefully set the machine on the table and turn it off. For once, I've decided this is a moment I want just for me.

The paper falls to the ground revealing a large book entitled Unscripted Life. Roger knits his eyebrows in confusion. "The hell?"

I fold my hands and bite my lip. I just remembered there's no telling how Roger will react to sentimental things.

Any apprehension melts away when I see his face as he opens the book. His eyes widen and his jaw drops slightly in awe. "Oh, Mark..these are-"

"Pictures," I finish for him, a quiet smile on my face. "You wouldn't believe how long it took to find all of those. I got a lot of them from Collins and Maureen."

He flips through. Us, Maureen, Benny, Collins, April, Angel, Mimi, Joanne, group shots, singles, any combination thereof, they're all in there. As I look over his shoulder, his eyes fall on a certain photograph over 3 years old. It's the two of us, along with Benny and Collins. Benny and Collins are making faces at the camera, drunk off their asses, while Roger's giving me a noogie. "This was the day we first met."

"When I moved in," I confirm. "I'd only known you 6 hours and already you treated me like someone who had known me his entire life. It made leaving Scarsdale so much easier."

"We all look so young...god, things were different in those days."

"Yeah...everything's changed."

I feel his fingers brush against mine. "Not everything." His eyes slowly raise to meet my own. He sets the photo album down next to my camera and pulls me into an embrace.

"This is the best thing anyone's ever given me. Thank you so much." That's not the sort of thing Roger says unless he means it. Mission accomplished.

"What are friends for?"

I feel his arms slowly move up my body. He pulls back slightly and touches his forehead to mine. I wonder if he can hear my heart pounding as clearly as I can.

Before I know what's happening, I feel his lips brush softly against my own.