Disclaimer: Ever and always, Maureen, Benny, and the rest of the characters of Rent are not mine.
A/N: This was written as a Christmas present for my Alex-dear. Not related to Christmas so much, except really vaguely, but whatever.
Maureen wears a ring on the third finger of her right hand. Mark knows where it came from, and had always ignored it when the two of them were dating. Joanne never asked about it, probably assuming that it was just another of Maureen's idiosyncrasies, and Maureen never saw a reason to tell her why she only ever took off that ring when she absolutely had to. Joanne probably wouldn't understand anyway.
It's a simple ring, just a slender gold band, elegant. Maureen's one of the two people who knows about the inscription on the inside in miniscule letters.
Love you, babe. Yours forever, Benny.
She didn't notice the inscription when he'd first given it to her. It had been a Christmas present, when he was still living in the loft. She'd grinned and hugged him and slipped it on his finger almost immediately. Maureen didn't even notice Mark's jealous look when she snuggled up next to Benny on the couch, positively beaming, and kissed his cheek.
After that, she wore the ring almost constantly. Mark pretended it didn't exist. Maureen was Maureen - if he said anything about it, she'd simply laugh it off.
The day Benny left the loft to live with Alison, Maureen almost couldn't believe he'd betrayed them - her. She yanked off the ring, started to throw it across the room - and stopped as she noticed the words on the inside, something she'd somehow never seen before. Reading the words inscribed there, it was all she could do not to sit down and cry.
Benny noticed she was still wearing it on Christmas Eve, the night of her performance. When she threw her arms out in one of those characteristic overdramatic gestures, light glinted on the ring, and he knew it was the one he had given her. Seeing her at the restaurant later that night confirmed it. He asked her about it on New Year's, when he saw her again.
"I can't believe you're still wearing that."
The look she gave him was enough to make him wince, those beautiful dark eyes full of quiet anger and resentment. "You gave it to me, Benny. Why shouldn't I wear it?"
"It's just that... when I gave it to you, we were... You still..." He shook his head, finding no tactful way to explain himself.
Maureen watched him for a second, expression unreadable, and slipped the ring off her finger, pressing it into his palm before he could protest. "You want it back? Take it. It's a lie anyway." She said the last part so quietly he almost didn't hear it.
"No, I don't want - What?"
She looked up into his face, eyes shining. He'd have thought she was going to cry, but it was Maureen. He'd never seen her cry. "It wasn't forever, was it?"
Benny could only stand there for a second, and finally sighed and held the ring out to her. "Take it back."
"Why?"
"Maureen, just... please. I gave it to you, and I want you to keep it. Isn't that enough?"
She just stared at him, wordless, and finally he gently took her hand and put the ring on before she could pull her hand back. For a moment Benny looked as if he meant to say something more to her, his guilt plain on his face, but he didn't, just turned and walked away.
Maureen hasn't taken the ring off since.