All I Want Is This

5

Mark continued to stare at the door. Meredith had stormed out nervously minutes ago and he was in the same spot. "Did she just say that?" Mark shook his head in disbelief. His fist hit the edge of the couch. He was definitely offended.

He was offended because Meredith called him an idiot, told him straight that he was a nobody and he was offended because she had the gut to tell him the truth. The fact that Meredith hit him so straight with the truth, offended him the most.

Different women called him names during the past years, but none of them had done it before she visited his sheets first.

"Stupid woman" he grumbled and shook his head again as if he was looking to forget her.

With an angry sighed, Mark turned around and headed to Alicia's bedroom. Her door was half-open so Mark pushed it wider and through the ray of light coming from hall, he leaned against the doorframe and watched her sleeping. Her small body looked lost in that big bed and between sheets and big pillows; but her body was breathing slowly, raising a small bump through blanket. Mark needed to calm down and forget about Meredith and about reality. He needed to watch his angel sleeping; only she could calm him down and help him relax. Or maybe not?

Mark stirred as he heard Alicia's sleepy voice muttering from her bed. He walked over to her, thinking she might had woken up.

He went to her bedside and leaned down to watch her closer. She was still asleep and looked as if she was dreaming at something very nice. "Butterflies" She muttered again in her sleep and giggled.

Mark chuckled, imagining her innocent dream, but his smile faded away as Alicia muttered another word. "Meredith"

At that moment, that was the word he hated the most. "Seriously," he muttered silently through a sigh. He leaned down to Alicia and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Her curtains were still open and surprisingly, the sky was no longer cloudy and the full moon lighted over the dark town. Alicia used to wake up during the night and each time she saw the big moon outside her childish imagination frightened her. Mark grabbed the curtains to close them, but not before he gave one more look over the quiet street. They were living at the 4th floor, so it was impossible for him not to recognize the silhouette waiting outside on the sidewalk. She was pacing around checking her watch every 2 seconds, nervous waiting for something.

Mark closed the curtains and sighed. As he looked back at Alicia, he met her happy dream again. Her happy dream with... Meredith.

Quietly, Mark closed the door from her bedroom and without any second thought, he headed straight to the main door.

"You can at least wait for it inside the building." Mark stated with his voice trembling from the chil night of September.

Meredith jumped scared at the sudden appearance and sighed as she looked back and saw Mark. "It should get here any minute now," she replied as she looked ahead down the alley and tucked the jacket tighter around her waist.

"You are stubborn," he replied coldly. "And stubborn is stupid."

Meredith jerked her head to him with a deadly glare. "You..." she gritted her teeth nervously wanting to say something back. "And you... you are an idiot."

"I know; you already told me." Mark replied in annoyance. The cold wind was roughly brushing his body. He snuggled his arms to his chest, pacing the spot of sidewalk he was sitting on. "But I am not stupid." he added, shivering. "At least I'm an idiot who prefers the warmth."

Meredith turned to him, nervous. "What exactly do you want now?" She asked him. "Did you leave your 4 year old daughter alone in there just to come down and call me stupid?"