Categories > Theatre > Rent > Someone to Live For
Someone to Live For
I Don't Remember Any Closet
------
In which Mark's first college roommate is an ass.
DISCLAIMER: Not mine; just borrowing. Will return when finished.
------
The first weekend after classes, there's a knock at the door, and Mark answers it.
"Angel! How'd your week go?"
"Could've been worse. It was interesting enough, at least. You?"
"Not bad." Mark kisses Angel, and turns to lead him into the room, only to find his roommate staring at them.
"...You have a girlfriend?"
Angel doesn't make any move to correct the misconception, so Mark lets it rest as well. "Yeah. So?"
"You have a /girlfriend/?"
"Don't see why you're so surprised."
"You're too geeky to have a girlfriend!"
"Jeremy!" Mark hadn't realized his roommate was this much of an ass. Then again, this is about the most they've talked since they moved in.
"Well, she's too pretty for you, in any case."
Angel raises an eyebrow. "Why do people keep saying that?"
Jeremy's eyeing Angel appreciatively. "You know, I'm single."
"Congratulations. Let me know how that works out for you." Angel takes Mark's hand and adds, in Spanish, "Let's go find some better company."
"Sounds like a good idea to me." Mark grins at the flabbergasted look on Jeremy's face, and then he and Angel head down to the common room.
"Sorry you have to live with such a jerk."
Mark shrugs. "I'll live. He's some kind of fine arts nut. Hopefully he'll live in a studio more often than not."
*
"Since when is Angel a guy?"
Mark looks up from his homework, and raises an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me. How long has Angel been a guy?"
"The whole time. You sound like my parents." It's been two weeks since he broke the news to his parents, and he's cherishing the lack of phone calls, for all Angel's sure his mother will be calling again by Thanksgiving, if not his birthday. Still, he could really live without Jeremy channeling her.
"You shouldn't be wasting your time on someone like that."
"Someone like what? A guy?"
"No, no, you with a boyfriend makes a lot more sense than you with a girlfriend. Just... why a cross-dresser?"
"Angel wouldn't be Angel if you took away her wardrobe." The pronoun choice isn't entirely conscious, but Mark does mostly think he's straight, despite all evidence to the contrary. Not like Angel's the most masculine of guys anyway.
Jeremy sighs. "Is a little pronoun consistency too much to ask from you people?"
"Why? Angel doesn't care."
"Whatever. My point is, you could at least have someone the world can make heads or tails of."
"Is that an offer?" And that, thank God, shuts Jeremy up long enough for Mark to escape.
When he tells Angel about it, she just shrugs and says, "He's only jealous because he hasn't found himself a nice boy yet."
"Please tell me you're kidding. He's got a girlfriend. He'd die before he went out with a guy."
"Isn't that part of the point of being in the closet?"
"Would you even know from experience?"
"That's not the issue at hand here."
"Fair enough. Closet or not, though, I think his girlfriend's only in it for the fringe benefits of modeling for a painter."
"Quite."
*
"I think he's got a crush on me," Mark notes, not long after Valentine's Day.
"Who, your roommate?"
"Yeah. It's... he keeps saying stuff to me that just smacks of 'alas, my unrequited love.' And then there's the thing where he's been trying to get between us most of the year."
Angel giggles. "Well, if he tries anything, let me know and I'll kick his ass."
"I think he's got enough connected brain cells to keep that from being necessary. He got the message from trying to sweep you off your feet that it won't work, most likely. Besides, why on earth would I want a painter when I've already got a wonderful drummer?"
"Point. Still, people do strange things for crushes."
Jeremy breezes into the room, going for his paint box and hardly paying them any mind. Angel gets a wicked grin, and Mark stays quiet, waiting to see what happens.
"Nice of you to drop in. How was Narnia?"
Mark bursts out laughing, and Jeremy just stares at Angel. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Oh, nothing important. I'm sure you'll figure it out in due time."
"...Whatever. I just. Needed some more green." He grabs a random tube of paint from his box - it's purple, Mark can't help noticing - and all but runs out of the room.
"Well," Angel says, "not only is he an ass, but he hasn't done his reading."
"That was great. I don't think he's that far back anymore, but still."
"So he's made progress?"
"You could call it that, I guess. I mean, I'm pretty sure his girlfriend's caught on, though she doesn't seem to care, and I caught him checking out some guys on TV last night."
Angel grins. "Only a matter of time, then."
*
"Oh, good, you are there. Hide me?"
"Sorry, I was in the middle of something - what happened?"
Mark sighs. "Roommate finally came out. And promptly started hitting on me."
"You poor thing. Am I gonna need to kick his ass?"
"Probably not. He didn't seem to be putting much actual effort into it, if that makes sense. Just enough to weird me out for a long time coming. Can I stay here for the weekend?"
"Of course. I'm not about to turn you away. You need to go back for anything?"
"No. I was, um, kinda banking on you letting me stay."
Angel grins. "You know me well. Come on in."
Mark does so, sets his stuff down, and pulls Angel into a hug. "He hasn't really been helping matters, trying to pry us apart so much. I mean, I've been worried enough I might lose you as it is."
"...Why on earth would you lose me?"
"'Cause. We're in college. And you're amazing, Angel, and I'm just a geek with a camera. It'd be so easy for you to find someone else."
"That would require me looking, silly. See no reason to mess with a winning formula. I don't string people along - if I wanted out of this, I would be, by now. Relax. I'm not going anywhere."
Mark smiles, and kisses Angel. "Neither am I."
I Don't Remember Any Closet
------
In which Mark's first college roommate is an ass.
DISCLAIMER: Not mine; just borrowing. Will return when finished.
------
The first weekend after classes, there's a knock at the door, and Mark answers it.
"Angel! How'd your week go?"
"Could've been worse. It was interesting enough, at least. You?"
"Not bad." Mark kisses Angel, and turns to lead him into the room, only to find his roommate staring at them.
"...You have a girlfriend?"
Angel doesn't make any move to correct the misconception, so Mark lets it rest as well. "Yeah. So?"
"You have a /girlfriend/?"
"Don't see why you're so surprised."
"You're too geeky to have a girlfriend!"
"Jeremy!" Mark hadn't realized his roommate was this much of an ass. Then again, this is about the most they've talked since they moved in.
"Well, she's too pretty for you, in any case."
Angel raises an eyebrow. "Why do people keep saying that?"
Jeremy's eyeing Angel appreciatively. "You know, I'm single."
"Congratulations. Let me know how that works out for you." Angel takes Mark's hand and adds, in Spanish, "Let's go find some better company."
"Sounds like a good idea to me." Mark grins at the flabbergasted look on Jeremy's face, and then he and Angel head down to the common room.
"Sorry you have to live with such a jerk."
Mark shrugs. "I'll live. He's some kind of fine arts nut. Hopefully he'll live in a studio more often than not."
*
"Since when is Angel a guy?"
Mark looks up from his homework, and raises an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me. How long has Angel been a guy?"
"The whole time. You sound like my parents." It's been two weeks since he broke the news to his parents, and he's cherishing the lack of phone calls, for all Angel's sure his mother will be calling again by Thanksgiving, if not his birthday. Still, he could really live without Jeremy channeling her.
"You shouldn't be wasting your time on someone like that."
"Someone like what? A guy?"
"No, no, you with a boyfriend makes a lot more sense than you with a girlfriend. Just... why a cross-dresser?"
"Angel wouldn't be Angel if you took away her wardrobe." The pronoun choice isn't entirely conscious, but Mark does mostly think he's straight, despite all evidence to the contrary. Not like Angel's the most masculine of guys anyway.
Jeremy sighs. "Is a little pronoun consistency too much to ask from you people?"
"Why? Angel doesn't care."
"Whatever. My point is, you could at least have someone the world can make heads or tails of."
"Is that an offer?" And that, thank God, shuts Jeremy up long enough for Mark to escape.
When he tells Angel about it, she just shrugs and says, "He's only jealous because he hasn't found himself a nice boy yet."
"Please tell me you're kidding. He's got a girlfriend. He'd die before he went out with a guy."
"Isn't that part of the point of being in the closet?"
"Would you even know from experience?"
"That's not the issue at hand here."
"Fair enough. Closet or not, though, I think his girlfriend's only in it for the fringe benefits of modeling for a painter."
"Quite."
*
"I think he's got a crush on me," Mark notes, not long after Valentine's Day.
"Who, your roommate?"
"Yeah. It's... he keeps saying stuff to me that just smacks of 'alas, my unrequited love.' And then there's the thing where he's been trying to get between us most of the year."
Angel giggles. "Well, if he tries anything, let me know and I'll kick his ass."
"I think he's got enough connected brain cells to keep that from being necessary. He got the message from trying to sweep you off your feet that it won't work, most likely. Besides, why on earth would I want a painter when I've already got a wonderful drummer?"
"Point. Still, people do strange things for crushes."
Jeremy breezes into the room, going for his paint box and hardly paying them any mind. Angel gets a wicked grin, and Mark stays quiet, waiting to see what happens.
"Nice of you to drop in. How was Narnia?"
Mark bursts out laughing, and Jeremy just stares at Angel. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Oh, nothing important. I'm sure you'll figure it out in due time."
"...Whatever. I just. Needed some more green." He grabs a random tube of paint from his box - it's purple, Mark can't help noticing - and all but runs out of the room.
"Well," Angel says, "not only is he an ass, but he hasn't done his reading."
"That was great. I don't think he's that far back anymore, but still."
"So he's made progress?"
"You could call it that, I guess. I mean, I'm pretty sure his girlfriend's caught on, though she doesn't seem to care, and I caught him checking out some guys on TV last night."
Angel grins. "Only a matter of time, then."
*
"Oh, good, you are there. Hide me?"
"Sorry, I was in the middle of something - what happened?"
Mark sighs. "Roommate finally came out. And promptly started hitting on me."
"You poor thing. Am I gonna need to kick his ass?"
"Probably not. He didn't seem to be putting much actual effort into it, if that makes sense. Just enough to weird me out for a long time coming. Can I stay here for the weekend?"
"Of course. I'm not about to turn you away. You need to go back for anything?"
"No. I was, um, kinda banking on you letting me stay."
Angel grins. "You know me well. Come on in."
Mark does so, sets his stuff down, and pulls Angel into a hug. "He hasn't really been helping matters, trying to pry us apart so much. I mean, I've been worried enough I might lose you as it is."
"...Why on earth would you lose me?"
"'Cause. We're in college. And you're amazing, Angel, and I'm just a geek with a camera. It'd be so easy for you to find someone else."
"That would require me looking, silly. See no reason to mess with a winning formula. I don't string people along - if I wanted out of this, I would be, by now. Relax. I'm not going anywhere."
Mark smiles, and kisses Angel. "Neither am I."
Sign up to rate and review this story