Categories > Theatre > Rent > The Emotions of Mark Cohen
It wasn't so much that she was different than him. It was that she was so different from him. Everything about her, from the well-tailored suits, to the vocabulary of choice, hell, even to the profession was just about the opposite of who Mark was, and what he stood for. Or, at least, that's what he thought walking up to the stage. Standing, awkwardly staring at Joanne, this woman who Maureen found so interesting, a million things ran through his mind. Things that, well, even he didn't really want to put into words. He'd told himself that he wouldn't be jealous. It wasn't productive. However, seeing her there, watching her fiddle with what should be a simple patch, Mark allowed himself a private smirk, which faded as she addressed him. Yeah, this was fuckin' wierd.
He got over the awkward fairly quickly, looking at the equipment. It was simple, a quick change of two leads. He fiddled with it a bit longer, for heaven only knows what reason. Looking up at a frustrated and ranting Joanne, he smirked. Perhaps this would be interesting after all. Grinning, he launched into a litany of Maureen's failings, which rankly turned into various reasons why people couldn't help but fall for her. It was a dance, really, a passionate tango that everyone who loved her was pulled into. With a raised eyebrow, he grabbed Joanne's hand, pulling her into a dance. Somewhere in his mind, it was a test, to see if she could do it, to see if she was really capable of handling Maureen.
It was perhaps more of a surprise than it should have been that she tangoed just as well as he did, if not better. Perhaps there was more to her than met the eye. He watched her over the next weeks, watched her with Maureen, watched how she interacted with the rest of the familiy. That which he'd originally taken as different, was really just another iteration of the same. She was just as passionate about what she did as Mark was about film. She had principles, strong ones, that she clung to, just as much as he clung to his Bohemian ideals. It was only the things on the surface, the habits, the personality quirks that separated them.
Valentine's day, Mark watched from the sidelines as Joanne and Maureen broke up. Noisily. He almost felt sorry for her. It was clear that she loved Maureen, in just about the same way he did, but she was too strung up. One thing years of being with Maureen had taught him was that you couldn't have too many stuck up your arse to be with her. Things just had to slide. Joanne wasn't like that, she couldn't handle that. Inevitable really.
After the first breakup, Mark actually looked up Joanne, pulling her back into the group. Maureen was surprised to see Joanne, but no one complained. She had found her way into everyone's heart, on her own volition. mark didn't begrudge her the place. Even when she got back with Maureen. And broke up again. And got back with Maureen.
He formed what really only could be considered an alliance with her. They'd have coffee in the Loft, when Roger was out with Mimi, and re-hash everything that Maureen did. He tried to help her, to point out things that she could do, perhaps to loosen up, but it never really worked. Joanne was who she was, and Maureen was who she was. Nothing could change either of those.
Secretly, every time Joanne and Maureen broke up, he hoped that Maureen would come back to him. And every time they got back together, he tried to tell himself he was better off that way. It didn't work. Sure, every so often, he felt like telling Joanne the exact opposite thing, to make Maureen break up with her for the last time, but that wasn't right. He couldn't do that. It was hard to think of someone he actually liked as a sort of competition. Then again, she wasn't really competition. Friends aren't competition. And she was a friend. No, she was family. Whether or not she was with Maureen. Besides, it's good to have a lawyer around. You never know when you'll need it.
He got over the awkward fairly quickly, looking at the equipment. It was simple, a quick change of two leads. He fiddled with it a bit longer, for heaven only knows what reason. Looking up at a frustrated and ranting Joanne, he smirked. Perhaps this would be interesting after all. Grinning, he launched into a litany of Maureen's failings, which rankly turned into various reasons why people couldn't help but fall for her. It was a dance, really, a passionate tango that everyone who loved her was pulled into. With a raised eyebrow, he grabbed Joanne's hand, pulling her into a dance. Somewhere in his mind, it was a test, to see if she could do it, to see if she was really capable of handling Maureen.
It was perhaps more of a surprise than it should have been that she tangoed just as well as he did, if not better. Perhaps there was more to her than met the eye. He watched her over the next weeks, watched her with Maureen, watched how she interacted with the rest of the familiy. That which he'd originally taken as different, was really just another iteration of the same. She was just as passionate about what she did as Mark was about film. She had principles, strong ones, that she clung to, just as much as he clung to his Bohemian ideals. It was only the things on the surface, the habits, the personality quirks that separated them.
Valentine's day, Mark watched from the sidelines as Joanne and Maureen broke up. Noisily. He almost felt sorry for her. It was clear that she loved Maureen, in just about the same way he did, but she was too strung up. One thing years of being with Maureen had taught him was that you couldn't have too many stuck up your arse to be with her. Things just had to slide. Joanne wasn't like that, she couldn't handle that. Inevitable really.
After the first breakup, Mark actually looked up Joanne, pulling her back into the group. Maureen was surprised to see Joanne, but no one complained. She had found her way into everyone's heart, on her own volition. mark didn't begrudge her the place. Even when she got back with Maureen. And broke up again. And got back with Maureen.
He formed what really only could be considered an alliance with her. They'd have coffee in the Loft, when Roger was out with Mimi, and re-hash everything that Maureen did. He tried to help her, to point out things that she could do, perhaps to loosen up, but it never really worked. Joanne was who she was, and Maureen was who she was. Nothing could change either of those.
Secretly, every time Joanne and Maureen broke up, he hoped that Maureen would come back to him. And every time they got back together, he tried to tell himself he was better off that way. It didn't work. Sure, every so often, he felt like telling Joanne the exact opposite thing, to make Maureen break up with her for the last time, but that wasn't right. He couldn't do that. It was hard to think of someone he actually liked as a sort of competition. Then again, she wasn't really competition. Friends aren't competition. And she was a friend. No, she was family. Whether or not she was with Maureen. Besides, it's good to have a lawyer around. You never know when you'll need it.
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