Chapter 2

The news that the offer for her house had been accepted was the highlight of Maggie�s month.

After receiving the depression and shell-shocking news that she had leukemia, Maggie noticed that January had become, if possible, grayer and more dull, even after her decision to pick up and move to the west coast. It didn�t take her long to find a house she really liked for a decent price� well, decent for LA anyway. It was a snap, getting a realtor on the phone that was not only friendly and fair, but also honest. It took her a few days to gather up everything she needed to apply for a loan.

With her impeccable credit there was no doubt whatsoever that she would be approved and her offer on the house could be made. Luckily enough, that was made into a reality in late February.

So it was real, all of it was actually going to happen. Maggie felt a mixture of pride and nausea, two very confusing and conflicting feelings. She was actually doing it! It was happening! She�d made an impulsive decision, followed her heart for once instead of her head, and was now about to embark on a new, exciting adventure, a new life, a new identity�

And it scared the shit out of her.

The nausea set in then, and Maggie ran top speed into the bathroom, feeling side effects of the leukemia and the stomach churning fear of leaving everything she knew behind as she hunched over the toilet. Everything was so hectic, fast, a blur, but she preferred to be busy rather than sit and stew about her life circumstances.

Maggie sat back against the wall of her bathroom, her eyes closed and her body drained from the rigor of her every day life. Now with the added activity of packing everything to move, she knew every day would be like a beating on her body.

The silence and emptiness of her place lulled Maggie into a deep fantasy, wherein she was on the bathroom floor, in a different place, sick for a different reason. Not only that, but a new pair of feat came into her view, a tender male voice, sounding like a mixture of Brad and her father came into her ears, asking with the most concerned tone Maggie�s imagination could muster, how she was feeling.

A barrage of frantically but extremely sympathetic dad-to-be questions filled her ears from the voice of this made up man. �Are you okay? Can I get you anything? Do you want a cold washcloth for your forehead? Do you need some water? What do you need?�

Maggie�s voice joined the conversation, a weak and hoarse voice, but laced with a silent elation. �I�m fine, honey. Don�t worry about me.�

That voice, now sounding a little playful, answered, �You are not fine! You�re sick on the floor of the bathroom. How can I not worry?�

She smiled at the phantom of her lover and rubbed her forehead. �You�re so sweet.�

�Can�t help it,� he replied boyishly.

A sense of humor! Beautiful! That�s exactly what he needs to be absolutely perfect! In this fantasy Maggie ran her clammy hand over her face and looked up at her dream man. There was only an outline, no distinct features she could really make out. He was gentle and loving, warm and pure. A very musky, manly smell wafted through the air and filled her nose.

�What can I do for you?� he asked, sounding a little flustered at the fact that there wasn�t much he could do.

Maggie, the fantasy and real one, started to weep silently, heart full of love and hope. Her words, though quiet and nearly inaudible, spoke volumes.

�Will you hold me?�

And even in the whirlwind of this luxurious daydream, Maggie could feel someone bend down close to her, wrap his arms protectively around her, and hold her close.

Oh how nice it felt to be held! To have someone care so deeply about you that all they want is to just make you feel good, made Maggie nostalgic for the days when Brad would hold her in his arms, stroking her long blonde hair while she cried, or vented, or just needed him to be there.

Maggie regretfully opened her eyes, realizing she was all by herself, in her bathroom, throwing up not because of morning sickness, but because she had a terminal illness.

A fresh wave of tears came, spilling down her cold, pale face and drenching her hands. What was so wrong with wanting a life, a new identity? Why did commitment scare her to no end? If it was this bad, why did she dream about a long-term serious relationship with someone? Why did she fantasize about meeting the perfect man and having a family when the actually thought of intimacy and being close to someone unnerved her?

Two answers. One, she was simply lonely, longing for a male to hold her in pair of strong arms and lull her into soothing reassurance. Two, the disease was always on her mind, plaguing her with every step she took, every move she made, and it wouldn�t go away. The fact that she wanted to bring someone into her life for a long-term relationship was extremely selfish. How dare she expect someone to offer her affection, love, and utter devotion, all with this underlying consequence of death hanging over what they would have?

�Damned if you do, damned if you don�t,� Maggie whispered bitterly through her tears. All she wanted was a resolution, and the longer she racked her brain trying to find, the more fatigued she became. Without realizing it, Maggie drifted off into a fitful sleep, racked with distressing thoughts all through her slumber.

The month of March brought about paperwork for the house in California and a great number of interested buyers for her small, one bedroom cottage. That, in fact, amazed her. It was looking like she might be out by mid-April. She had definitely not anticipated that.

Her house was in complete disarray most of the time, all of her stuff shoved into boxes, crammed a mile high in almost every room of the small house. The realtor she was working with for her house in Michigan called while she was wrapping her dishes to let her know an offer had been made.

Maggie�s head was spinning. Everything was moving so quickly. She�d felt sure that upon making her decision to move out of state, it would have taken a year at the least. But at this fast pace, it was slightly panic worthy.

After hanging up with the realtor, a thought suddenly struck her, one that she could not believe she�d never thought of. She needed a job!

Hopping on the computer, Maggie spent countless hours posting her resumes on job websites, looking around for the right kind of job to suit her qualifications. A little more web surfing showed her that the Microsoft office based in Los Angeles was looking for new employees and she jumped at the chance to work somewhere as prestigious and well known as Microsoft. She immediately sent a resume, took down phone numbers, and felt much better after having done so.

Maggie�s life was so up and down that it made her circumstance seem that much worse. All she really wanted was to have it all be over, no suffering, no pain, no feeling� if it really had to happen at all. She didn�t want to just sit around and wait for it. She would have preferred a healthy body, a normal world, a family with someone who loved her with all the passion inside of him�

But all of that was impossible. The harsh reality was she DID have leukemia, her life was completely abnormal, and she was far too afraid of getting her heart broken again to even bother with another relationship. Besides, she refused to break someone�s heart as well, falling in love and then turning around to say, �Oh yeah, I�m probably going to die because I have cancer.�

She was tired of feeling sorry for herself. It was time to focus on the move, get her ass in gear, and quit losing it to her daydreams. With everything looking like it was all set and ready to go. Maggie started making her arrangements to pick up her life and move it all the way across the country.

It was mid-April, just as predicted, that Maggie was ready to throw everything together and leave her hometown.

The house was empty and sold. She�d sent all of her boxes, furniture, and other odds and ends ahead of her to a storage facility conveniently located about three blocks away from her house. The only things she had in her car for the trip were her clothes, toiletries, work stuff, and laptop. She�d booked a suite at a hotel until her house was ready to move into. All she needed to do now as drive from Michigan to California, and she�d allotted herself a week to see the country, stay in hotels, and finally arrive in her new home.

She stepped outside of the house and took one last, long breath of the crisp Michigan spring air. She knew she�d miss it all, the frost, the snowfall, icy ponds, the bright, vibrant colors of fall, and all those chilly days in between. It would be hard, trying to deal with constant summer heat and coming across people who didn�t know what snow as.

Maggie chuckled to herself. She�d also have to prepare for possible earthquakes, something that never even registered as a remote concern in the Midwest. It was so funny, the way your entire plane of concern, worries and fears varied depending on your location. She couldn�t imagine that residents of Tuscan needed to worry about flood insurance, and she doubted Seattle citizens were concerning themselves with dust storms.

A cool spring breeze drifted by Maggie then and brought the faint scent of pine, grass, and apple blossoms to her nose. Tears filled her eyes and she was overcome with the realization that this may be the last time she would stand outside in the gentle Michigan air.

Shaking off the sudden onset of depression washing over her, Maggie turned around and headed back into the house, grabbed everything that was left on the floor of the barren place and left it behind her. She didn�t dare look back.

A week later, as planned, Maggie pulled into the driveway of the hotel she was staying at. Traveling cross-country had really been a joyful experience, but she was glad to be out of the car for more than one night.

California was extreme. That was the only word she could think of to describe it. There were people all over the place, the likes of which Maggie had never laid eyes on, even in Detroit. It was all going to be so hard to get used to.

Maggie dragged all of her stuff to the hotel suite after checking in and threw herself on the long comfortable sofa set up in the living room area. She flung her bags onto the floor and stared out the large picture window at a very sensitive California sunset. She was tired from the trip, the change in time zones, and no doubt, the disease that plagued her existence. All she wanted to do was allow her eyes to close and finally let the fact that she was in California sink in. It didn�t feel comfortable yet, but she knew with time, it was going to feel like Michigan all over again. Warm and inviting.

Maggie fell asleep staring out the window and didn�t wake up until noon the next day. She felt ten times better than she�d felt since that dismal afternoon in January. All she wanted to do was laze around, drinking in the feel of being a Californian. She soaked in a hot bath, ordered room service, and bought a movie. She only left her suite once to fill a bucket of ice. She felt a sense of new self worth, a beaming light of confidence. She was happily basking in the glow of radiance, becoming a completely different person, having lost her memories of loneliness, failure, and loss. Now all that was ahead of her was triumph, victory, glorious living� everything she ever dreamed of having.

Cold crept into her chest. How untrue that sentiment was. What were her true dreams? Success and wealth, of course. An adventure, sure. She had all of that, but the true dreams she could never have were that of a more domestic nature. Like she�d told herself, no man should have to bear the burden of a wife with cancer. Her future children certainly did not deserve to be born into a life where they would have no mother.

Besides, love was such a heavy weight on your shoulders. Sometimes it was pleasurable, but most of the time it hurt and was excruciatingly painful. Why lead a life full of pain? No. All Maggie every needed in her life was her wonderful MASH reruns, a cold glass of rum and Coke, and her work. Things would smooth over from there.

But even though she was sure she had everything figured out, those disturbing thoughts about falling love all over again crept in and out of her head. Sometimes it scared her at the most inopportune times, appearing when her guard was down. She always answered this beckoning by turning her nose up at the notion, giving herself a dozen why she couldn�t.

A few more lazy, bored, do-nothing days later, Maggie was finally sick and tired of being copped up in the hotel suite and spent the entire day out in the sun.

It had never been a better day. It had also never been hotter. Maggie went through bottles and bottles of Aquafina, fanned herself frequently, and found that she noticeably sighed whenever she hit a patch of shade.

She had never seen so many little stores in her life. Everything she could have ever imagined was categorized into a little shop on the street. She sat at an outdoor coffee shop and sipped on a nice iced vanilla cappuccino as she watched crowds of interesting yet busy people bustling by on their way to the next big adventure in all of their unique lives. Maggie envied them. They were all so neutral, carefully hidden away inside their own worlds. She felt so naked, so open, like there was a neon sign, pointing at her, screaming, �I have cancer! I�m not from here! I�m scared, lonely, and quite vulnerable!� These strong, stony-faced Californians could have been CIA agents working undercover with area 51 cover up intelligence. No one would have known, especially this seemingly innocent wide-eyed Midwestern.

Maggie walked her way down the hot sidewalks of the city, taking in the surroundings, admiring the place with a little more than just a tourist�s eye. Her stomach fluttered at the thought of seeing Noelle walking down the street. Would she recognize her out of all the other tall dark beauties? Would Noelle even recognize her? It had been nearly fifteen years, after all.

Noelle was probably living the good life, a power successful writer with the kind of life Maggie had always dreamt of. She was most likely too important and/or busy to consort with old friends from high school.

Sighing heavily, Maggie wandered into a music store, smiling nostalgically at the cascade of memories clouding her mind. She and Noelle had many memorable excursions to the music store. Noelle was always in the Top 40 section or researching comedy CDs for inspiration, whereas Maggie found herself stuck in the rock genre. Her father, as rare and far between as their visits had been, was a huge influence when it came to her love of music. She was a child of rock, gunning for bands like Rush, Van Halen, and Deep Purple. Noelle didn�t quite understand what Maggie found so appealing about rock n roll, calling it �noise� and referring to rock bands as �hairy dudes who snort coke.�

Maggie smirked at the memory, thumbing through the multitude of Kiss albums lined in the K section. She glanced at the title, noting whether or not she already owned the particular CD she was eyeing. When she was finished with this band, she moved over to see what other albums she needed to complete her Metallica collection.

Lost in a world of music and laughter inside the store, Maggie delighted in scanning the titles of some of the best bands on earth, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Lynyrd Skynyrd� She�d forgotten everything it felt like. Her mind had been so preoccupied with the move, her life, and all of the deep thoughts filling her in the past months. Maggie realized, humming the tune to �Stairway to Heaven� under her breath that she�d lost herself along the way.

Once upon a time, Maggie Fisher was a person who loved a party and lived for a full social calendar. Boyfriends in high school were like Kleenex, good for a one-time use only. It wasn�t ever serious, and hardly ever made a real impact on her when they came or went. Of course, she always wondered about meeting the man of her dreams, but by her sophomore year, she�d finally gained the sense that her knight in shining armor probably wouldn�t come to her during high school. She was able to love em and leave em, knowing her attitude about them was only nonchalant.

Maggie wasn�t a bad kid, but she knew how to have a good time. School dances, small get-togethers, and raves at teen clubs were mostly what she involved herself in. It was good clean fun and got her out into the open air of life whereas now, she�d done the exact opposite.

And where had that brought her?

Shaking it off, Maggie returned to the present, where she was actually aware of someone watching her. She turned away, digging through a rack of Black Sabbath when the feeling returned. She tried not to glance over her shoulder at the person standing eerily close to her. A cold tingling sensation spread up her back, causing her to noticeably shiver. A concerned clerk frowned at her.

�Everything all right?�

Maggie�s eyes slightly widened and she gave a short nod. Embarrassed by her obvious show of emotion, Maggie stepped away from the desk and disappeared into the CDs again. Determined not to let this get the best of her, she looked around quickly and then hurried out of the store.

Whatever had just come over her in the store, the eerie uncomfortable feeling, definitely did not prepare her for what happened next.

�Magpie?�

Her body ran cold. She hadn�t been called that since high school. She knew that voice, she knew who called her that, and she knew the only person who would dare scream out her childhood nickname in public.

Maggie didn�t know exactly what to make of the moment. She turned toward the sound of the voice, expecting to remain casual as possible. However, laying eyes on her old friend after so long could not keep her demeanor cool and polite.

Noelle looked exactly the same, only her skin was a few shades darker. Life had obviously been good to her friend. She looked happy, elated with the joy of being alive. She didn�t appear to be snooty or snobbish, so she was exactly the same person she�d left years ago. A mist covered Maggie�s eyes as memories toppled all over themselves inside her head.

Noelle was tearing up as well. She made no hesitation in running to her friend, flinging her arms around her neck, and squeezing her tight. Maggie was startled at first, but it didn�t stop her from responding, squeezing as tightly as she knew she wanted to.

An entire new world was opening up at that moment. Maggie felt life inside of her start to waken as she let the tears seep out of her eyes. Noelle felt familiar, warm, and loving. Everything was going to be all right now. Maggie could just feel it.

Noelle pulled away then, wiping furiously at her well made up eyes, miraculously not smearing anything. �I can�t believe it! What are you doing here?�

Maggie glanced down, noticing her friend still had a firm grasp on her hand, like she never wanted to let her go. �I moved here,� she answered shakily, her voice suddenly hoarse with emotion.

�Are you serious?� Noelle exclaimed excitedly. A huge smile spread across her face, the same grin Maggie saw countless times when Noelle had something dirty or evil on her mind. �Why? I mean, not that I don�t LOVE that you did, I just�� She stopped mid sentence and just stared at Maggie. �I can�t believe you�re here!�

Maggie�s eyes filled with tears again as she and her old friend exchanged another big hug before Noelle pulled away and put her arm around Maggie�s shoulder. �Why don�t we go have lunch and we�ll talk? On me.�

�I�d like that,� Maggie told her, feeling like, finally, she was home.

Three hours later, Noelle knew almost everything about Maggie�s move, her past, and her life up until that point. Maggie very carefully omitted her leukemia, fearing that once Noelle knew, she�d shrug her shoulders and move on so as not to face it. Either that or Noelle would think the only reason Maggie had moved to LA was to find someone to feel sorry for her. All throughout her explanation of what she�d been doing, Noelle listened with rapt attention, laughing and gasping in all the right places. She even let out, �Bastard!� when Maggie explained the whole Brad situation. Noelle was caught up when Maggie finally took a breath to ask Noelle what she was doing.

Proudly, Noelle took a deep breath and told Maggie all about how she�d excelled tremendously in comedy writing and had an internship at Comedy Central upon the insistence of her professors. Within three months, her writing was being passed around among the Comedy Central heads, analyzed for potential and then thoroughly critiqued. Noelle explained her excitement when she heard back from the network, asking if she�d be interested in starting a part time position in the company until graduation, when her position would be bumped up to full time and she would be a permanent writer for Comedy Central.

Now, after eleven years happily working as a writer for Comedy Central, she was among a group of senior writers. Four years prior, they�d moved her to a higher place for writing. Instead of her normal routine of writing bits for comedians and sketches for shows, she was given the opportunity to work with writers from other shows exclusively. Noelle jumped on the idea of working with the shows. She offered to work more with reality shows and the game shows. It seemed better than writing cheesy plot lines just for a cheap laugh. Besides, most of the original shows had the creators doing all the writing.

�So,� Noelle said, finishing the story, �for about four years now I�ve been working with shows like Distraction, Draw Together, and I did a little work on Straight Plan for the Gay Man. Mostly I help with The Daily Show because it�s one of CC�s biggest shows. But that�s my life in a nutshell. Nothing more, nothing less.�

Maggie had the distinct impression that Noelle was hiding something, but she disregarded it. It was a little too soon to pick fun like old times.

�So what�s new in your love life?� she blurted next.

Maggie choked on her cappuccino and drove down the negative responses flooding her thoughts. She only set the drink aside and shrugged absently.

�Not much. A bang here, a boyfriend there. Nothing serious.�

Noelle nodded, peering at her friend quizzically with her deep, knowledgeable seeking brown eyes. She set her cappuccino down, folded her arms, and leaned over. �You�ve been like that since high school, you know? You�re not still hung up on Brad are you?�

The question startled Maggie, but that was Noelle�s way. Blunt, straightforward, and brutally honest. Maggie appreciated it, even after going so many years without her big mouth and opinionated ways.

After absorbing the real shock of the words, Maggie let the words sink in. Was she doing that? Avoiding relationships because she was still trying to cling to what she had with Brad?

Maggie knew as soon as she asked herself the question what the answer was. She knew her fear of true serious commitment did not stem from the relationship she�d had with Brad. Of course, that hadn�t helped, but it had been a lot farther off. It was deeper, and the fact that she had cancer now wasn�t going to push her to search for Mr. Right. Besides, how would she handle that when she did? After all, her deep commitment phobia was not going to help her woo the man she wanted to marry.

Maggie blinked and shook her head a little. She was on big walking contradiction.

Noelle, waiting patiently for an answer, sighed heavily and took a drink of her coffee. Maggie let her mouth spill out the truth.

�No. Brad and I were over a long time ago,� Maggie said, waving her hand to show she didn�t care about it.

Noelle nodded in a sincere way, showing she definitely believed her friend. But much like Noelle, as Maggie fondly remembered, she refused to drop the subject at hand.

�Are you looking for any type of guy in particular?� she inquired, a mischievous wiggle to her eyebrows. �I work at Comedy Central. The place is positively oozing testosterone! There are millions of single, eligible men that I deal with every day!�

Maggie�s heart beat gloriously at the prospect, but her head screamed, �ABSOLUTELY NOT!� So of course, Maggie foolishly heeded the advice of the latter, shook her head at Noelle and answered, �No. No blind dates. I think that is a very bad idea.�

Noelle rolled her eyes. �Why?�

�Because I remember what happened the last time you tried that,� Maggie said, narrowing her eyes in an accusing manner.

�Get over it! That was forever ago!� Noelle exclaimed.

Maggie couldn�t, however. It was a night she knew she�d never forget. Noelle, extremely anxious to go out with her long time �crush� Andy Stockard, was completely crushed when the night before their big date, Andy called her, apologizing up and down because her older brother had just been dumped and needed someone to cry to. Andy had been just as anxious about the date as Noelle had, insisting that if he could find a way to be with her and comfort his brother at the same time, he�d do it.

That was when Noelle�s brilliant idea of a double date had come along. Noelle practically had to kiss the soles of Maggie�s dirtiest shoes to get her to agree. But only out of love for her friend (and a secret desire that maybe this older guy could be her other half) did Maggie agree to do it.

Maggie knew, however, the moment Andy and his brother Dennis arrived, that the night was going to be a complete flop. When Maggie happily tried to shake his hand and flash a warm smile, he scowled at her and mumbled something about her looking nothing like someone named Jenny.

That was the set up for the entire night. While Andy and Noelle had a great time together, Maggie was stuck with the King of Self Pity, the Lord of Whining, the Duke of Feel Sorry For Myself. It was all Maggie could do not to wring his wimpy little neck. Every time she tried to change the subject, he somehow managed to revert it back to his ex-girlfriend Jenny, who by the end of the night, Maggie knew so much about it felt like SHE�D dated her. If not for her respect for her friend and the prospective relationship she had with Andy, she would have let Dennis have it.

It was a night that haunted her still to this day.

�So much for getting my hopes up about that one,� Maggie added ruefully after recounting the memory.

�It wasn�t THAT bad,� Noelle said, rolling her eyes at Maggie. �He�s a nice guy.�

�Yeah, if he�d been talking to me through a plate glass window!� she said, picking up her cappuccino to sip delicately. �Oh, by the way, whatever happened to those two?�

Noelle giggled somewhat, flashing a smirk that made Maggie seriously wonder. She had already scanned Noelle�s fingers for a wedding ring, but knew that if Noelle was married or engaged, Maggie would have either been at the wedding, or have received an engagement announcement. It was in the way she was smiling that tipped Maggie off.

�WHAT?� Maggie demanded, pounding her small fist on the Formica.

�You�ll never believe it,� Noelle giggled, tantalizingly sipping her coffee. She was killing Maggie and she knew it.

�Just fucking tell me,� Maggie said, almost losing restraint. She was dangerously close to smacking the Starbucks cup out of Noelle�s hand.

�I got a letter from Andy a few years back, asking how I was, what I was doing, you know all of that. He wanted to tell me that he was getting married and instead of sending me just a plain invitation, he wanted it to be more personal. Then he told me who he was marrying.�

At this, Noelle started laughing. Maggie finally understood the joke, recalling that horrid night forever ago. Maggie sputtered between her laughter, �He married Jenny? THE Jenny?�

Noelle nodded, laughing now. �Yes. He explained how after we broke up when I came out to LA, he and Jenny found out they were going to the same school. They started hanging out, got to be good friends, and it tapered off from there.�

Maggie was baffled. She sat back in her chair, chuckling quietly. �That is too damn funny. So did you go?�

�Of course. Andy and I had a good relationship, I was very glad he was happy. Just jealous that I can�t find a decent man to marry,� she said, sighing again, this time in a remorseful, longing way.

Maggie raised her eyebrows. It was now Noelle�s turn for scrutiny, and she had given her friend the perfect lead in, whether she knew it or not. Judging by the far of look in her eyes, she had no clue.

�Oh?� Maggie prodded, her tone playful. �I thought you worked with a million eligible men? I thought the place was oozing testosterone!� she teased. �How come you haven�t found a man in that huge mess?�

Suddenly, Maggie wasn�t sure if it was the lighting outside or just her imagination, but it looked as though Noelle had turned a light shade of pink. She mumbled something inaudible and averted her eyes. Her behavior was a little strange, but no more than usual. In an attempt to pick on her friend even more, Maggie giggled and said, �So what�s his name?�

Noelle glared at her. �You are not funny!�

�What?� she asked innocently.

�Anyway,� Noelle said, eager to change the subject. �Where are you planning going after lunch today?�

Maggie found it strange that Noelle didn�t want to discuss her romantic life when she had been more than willing to share hers. But she wasn�t going to press, after all, they weren�t best friends anymore.

�Oh, I�d actually planned on going into the Microsoft offices to see if they�d received my resume,� Maggie reported, finishing off her drink.

Noelle blinked. �Microsoft?�

Maggie, slightly frowning, nodded. �Yes. So?�

Noelle wrinkled her nose and cleared her trash off the table. �I don�t know. It just seems like Microsoft would be really� I don�t know� stuffy.�

Again, Maggie frowned. �Your point?�

Her friend just sat there, staring at her incredulously. �What do you mean �your point?� Come on, Magpie! You don�t want to work somewhere like that! It wouldn�t be any fun.�

�It pays well.�

�Well,� Noelle said, flinging her hair in a brassy way. �It just so happens that I know of a few open positions at Comedy Central for technical personnel. They are wonderful paying jobs. You�d probably get paid better than me, working with computers.�

Maggie grimaced. Not that the idea of working with Noelle didn�t sound great, but working at a place like Comedy Central, with so much nonsense, didn�t sound like such a great idea. Those years at MIT were very serous to her, and she was proud of her degree. Why did she need to waster God-given talents at a TV network based solely on sex and fart jokes. Hell, she deserved a lot better than all of this, right? After all, she was cursed with a terminal illness, the least she could do for herself was work at a job that would full utilize her skills.

�Don�t make that face,� Noelle barked. �It�s a very professional workplace. Why do you think it�s been a high rated network for so long? It�s not because a bunch of hairy football fans with beer guts run around, thinking of ways to piss people off.�

Maggie smiled in spite of herself. The idea that the network wasn�t a professional workplace was just being ignorant. Of course they ran their offices like any network. Just because it was a comedy network didn�t mean the integrity of the workplace was any lower than a place like Microsoft.

Then again�

�I don�t think so, Noelle,� Maggie said. She wanted to stick to a technical company and that only.

�Quit being an ass!� she shouted, causing several close by restaurant patrons to glance over curiously. �What�s the harm in just checking out your options?�

Maggie squirmed uncomfortably. The more Noelle said, the more she made sense. It was starting to settle. Well why not? It couldn�t hurt to just take a look.

�Maybe,� she finally said. Something very deep inside of her was screaming to take the jump. It was a new, unfamiliar voice that Maggie didn�t know or quite trust yet.

�The people there are great,� Noelle began, sounding exactly like a car salesman trying to sell a product. �The hours are flexible, the pay is amazing, and depending on the show you work at, the stress is minimal. Oh, and the benefits� wow!�

Maggie only thought the same thing about Microsoft, but kept her mouth shut. She wasn�t sincerely sure where her heart really was, with Microsoft and a prestigious career to aspire to, or this other option, working at a place like Comedy Central, thought not as esteemed, probably a fun place to work. What could it hurt to have a fall back?

�What shows would I be working on?�

Noelle bit her lip. �I have no clue. I think the network in general is looking for tech people. You know� what time is it?� she asked, searching through her purse. Without waiting for an answer, she pulled out her cell and whispered to herself. �Three. Not too late.� She pressed a number on the phone and looked back at Maggie. �I�m calling a friend. He�ll know what�s going on.�

Again, a trick of the light made Maggie blink a couple of times. She was sure Noelle was red again, flushed with something more than just a heat wave as she focused her attention solely on the call.

�Hello?� Maggie heard a male voice on the other end. Whoever it was on the other end was just as loud, if not louder, than Noelle. That was quite a feat to accomplish. �Are you at work?� a pause. �Okay, good. Listen, a friend of mine just moved here from Michigan and she needs a job,� another pause. �Dammit, she�s not gonna clean your bathroom! Fucker. I mean on the show, she�s a techie,� Maggie blinked, never having heard that phrase used outside of the MIT walls. �Well, I�ll tell her, but I want to give her some options,� she said with a laugh. She frowned. �You ass, I don�t write for you, quit asking! I�ll tell her. Bye.�

Maggie, waiting quietly, only sat there quietly, anticipating the news Noelle would give her. She didn�t even really care about who had been on the other line. She just wanted the options. Noelle shoved her phone back in her purse.

�That was one of the South Park creators. He said to tell you they are looking for technical directors and he wants you to come in. He said what I said, Comedy Central is generally looking for tech people, but he seemed insistent on having you come in,� Noelle said, rolling her eyes dramatically.

Thoughts filled Maggie�s head. South Park? Wasn�t that the idiotic adult cartoon that looked like a construction paper project gone bad? What a ridiculous idea for a show! She�d been previews, but never took the time to actually suffer through an episode. She�d stick to a REAL show like MASH, thank you very much. What was the purpose of this show?

�They really need technical directors,� Noelle hinted obviously, packing her things away, standing up, and pushing the seat in.

Maggie followed suit and just ignored the comment. She walked behind Noelle out of the restaurant and tried not to think about the cons in her friend�s offer. It wasn�t fair to just write it off because it didn�t meet her standards. Finally giving in, just to give Noelle the benefit of the doubt, she said, �So what does the technical director do?�

Noelle, happy that Maggie was giving her a chance to explain, told Noelle�s friend at the studio had days beforehand, in a pitiful attempt (as Noelle so loving put it) to start a conversation. To say the all sounded like work she could handle. She was familiar with a lot of programs used for computer graphics animation, which she had specialized in when she was an undergrad. Her mind had always been fascinated when it came to cartoons and animation, something that, for so long, had only been accomplished by the hands of illustrators.

�Sounds interesting enough, but I still don�t know,� she answered. She definitely did not want to commit to it before knowing what she was really getting herself into.

�Maggie,� Noelle sighed, pulling out her car keys. �Don�t be a hypocrite. I remember back so many years ago, you were the same girl who bugged me about following my heart to LA where I wanted to be, as opposed to staying in Michigan where I thought I should be.�

Maggie coughed, having forgotten that incident Noelle was so good at remembers details she could whip back at you when she needed to make her point known. This was another thing about Noelle that had slipped her mind.

�I�m not a hypocrite,� she insisted.

Noelle walked to where her car was parked, automatically unlocking the door. �Then you�re a stodgy old woman, the kind we swore we were never going to turn into.�

Maggie stopped dead before getting in the car. It took only that one statement to make her she was being a bit of an idiot. Maybe not just �a bit,� but she knew Noelle was right. It was dumb of her to turn down any kind of job offer, considering she didn�t even have one yet.

A lot ran through her head, but finally she decided she had to give in and at least let Noelle take her on a tour of the place. She didn�t necessarily have to make up her mind right away, but at least it would stop Noelle from asking repeatedly or throwing memories in her face to use as a backlash.

Maggie got into the car, heaved a dramatic exasperated sigh, and said, �Fine. I�ll do a tour. But that�s all I�ll swear to.�

�Good,� Noelle said, starting her car and having the air of someone who knew they were going to get what they want all along. She pulled out, not saying a word until finally driving back out into traffic.

Maggie looked out the window, longing for the college days, where the future was bright, her prospects many, her dreams alive. She had Brad, she had her hopes, and she had life.

But now, she felt like there was nothing but a death sentence just looming impatiently, waiting for her to show any sing of weakness before lunging hungrily at her. What did she have to live for?

�Magpie,� Noelle said softly upon reaching her hotel.

�Yeah?�

�I�m glad you�re here.�

Noelle leaned over and held her close. Maggie closed her eyes, feeling tears tingle underneath her shut lids. This was right and she knew that now. LA was where she was supposed to be and this was only one of the reasons. There were deeper, secret reasons behind her move, but as of yet, she didn�t know those.

�Butt crack of dawn, babe!� Noelle yelled after their tearful hug.

Maggie rolled her eyes, laughed, and stepped into the hotel lobby. She turned just in time to watch Noelle pull away from the curb. For the first time in several years, she felt a wave of peace take her over. Things were good.