A/n: This new fic came from a dream. Don't ask.

So, basically, it's AU, and teen. Which I tend to do quite often. HOWEVER! I will be attempting something else this time...writing ALL of the bohemians. Yes, even Mimi and Roger (a little bit). So, basically, the bohos all meet on a cruise. Random, but...the point is...none of them can leave! *cackles*

This first chapter is pretty much exclusively Mark/Maureen/Joanne (with a dash of Roger), but the characters will (hopefully) be evenly distributed over several chapters. Enjoy, and reviewww!

________________________________________________

Chapter One

.x.

Sixteen-year-old Mark Cohen watched in fascination as the kid in front of him loaded his plate with tons of food-- mashed potatoes, chicken wings, and other assorted unhealthy grub. The kid in front of him was Roger Davis, Mark's best friend since kindergarten.

He looked behind him, at his mother, who was staring at the entire buffet line like it was something she'd never seen before. She gingerly put a small amount of salad on her plate, shuddering at all of the crap that Roger was planning to eat.

As Mark attempted to grab a piece of pizza, his mother's hand slapped his away. "Now, Mark, darling. Even though we're on a cruise, I still want you to eat your vegetables." He looked at the pizza forlornly, begrudgingly putting lettuce leaves on his plate.

Roger grinned at him menacingly, grabbing a heavenly-looking brownie and throwing it on top of everything on his plate.

"Lucky," Mark muttered as he and Roger found a small booth, placing their trays on the table top. Mark sat down. "Dear, make sure you don't wander too far!" Mrs. Cohen called, causing Mark to cringe. She, his dad, and his little sister, Cindy, sat down at a table on the other side of the room.

"So, pretty sweet that your parents let me come with you," Roger said idly, gnawing on a piece of chicken. Mark nodded, grabbing another piece from Roger's plate.

"Well, Mom felt bad for me. Besides, all of Cindy's friends are here, and they didn't want me to be lonely, or whatever. Not my fault she has to have her stupid Bat Mitzvah party on a boat."

Roger shrugged. "They can afford it."

Mark rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well...My party was at the Jewish Community Center, remember? I'm sure it cost a lot," he said sarcastically. "Cindy's the favorite."

Roger shrugged. "There were some hot chicks there," he said.

Mark looked confused. "Roger, they were just a bunch of twelve and thirteen year old girls. The only girl who really stood out was Nanette..."

His eyes glazed over, and Roger prepared himself for Mark's usual Nanette-rant. He'd been completely in love with her since the seventh grade, and though she'd once taught him to dance, she wouldn't give him the time of day anymore.

Before Mark could go on, however, the band, which was situated at the front of the room, stopped playing. A man in a suit bent down and said something into the piano player's ear, and he nodded.

The man in the suit approached the microphone with a smile. "Okay, ladies and gentlemen. We have a very special surprise for you tonight. A lovely young lady has requested to perform a song with the band. Give it up for Maureen Johnson!"

The diners in the room all clapped lightly, rolling their eyes at yet another teenage girl who probably thought she was all that and a bag of chips. The girl in question, Maureen, stepped to the front of the stage, adjusting the microphone slightly. She looked about his and Roger's age, Mark noted. She wore a casual-looking sundress, and Mark could see the straps of her bathing suit top; which was appropriate for a cruise. She was barefoot, and had curly, disheveled chestnut hair.

Maureen smiled widely, and Mark's jaw dropped. This girl was gorgeous. Nanette who? He took in her curves, the parts of her that were hard to ignore. She turned away from the microphone, faintly asking the pianist if he knew a certain song.

He nodded and started playing a moderate tune, swaying to the bouncy-sounding beat.

"What good is sitting alone in your room?" Maureen sang, and the entire room had her attention. She winked at a random person in the audience, working the stage. "Come hear the music play! Life is a cabaret, old chum! Come to the cabaret."

"I used to have a girlfriend known as Elsie, with whom I shared four sordid rooms in Chelsea. The day she died, the neighbors came to snicker..well, that's what comes of too much pills and liquor!" Mark's jaw dropped open as he heard her unusually mature voice reverberate through the dining hall, and there was complete silence amongst the crowd.

When she finished with a high note, her strong voice belting out the lyrics, she bowed and grinned, her cheeks flushed with exertion. Mark knew just two things: The first was that this girl was going to be famous. The second was that he had to meet her.

.x.

Joanne sat with her elbows resting on the tabletop, bored stiff. Her parents had dragged her on this cruise with them, though they were only going for a convention that would probably turn out to be as boring as the . Her parents were rich lawyers, and Joanne couldn't remember the last time she'd actually spent quality time with them.

She had thought that by going on this cruise, even though she'd be alone most of the time, would help strengthen her and her parents' relationship. Unfortunately, that prospect looked very dim. Joanne's mother stood in a corner, talking to a dressed-up woman. That left Joanne and her father, both of them picking awkwardly at their food, each not knowing what to say to the other.

Before either of them broke the silence, though, Joanne was snapped out of her reverie by a voice. It wasn't just a regular voice, though.

It was the sexiest, most gorgeous, perfectly-trained voice Joanne had ever heard, and it came from the stage at the front of the dining hall.

Joanne looked at the girl in question, who was incredibly beautiful. She had long, brown hair, and Joanne felt a fluttering in her stomach as she smiled at the audience, baring her pearly whites to the audience.

Joanne closed her eyes, picturing herself kissing the girl on the stage. She felt a pang in her lower stomach, and quickly opened her eyes, blushing.

As the girl continued singing, practically baring her soul with the emotion of the song, Joanne gasped. She had to meet this girl.

Joanne didn't know why, or how, but she fell in love with the girl on the spot. Simple as that.

.x.

"Um, hi, I saw you, um, up on stage.." A pale, blonde and slightly geeky teenage boy walked up to Maureen casually, scratching his neck.

Maureen smiled, wanting to put the poor guy at ease. "I'm Maureen," she said, holding her hand out for him to shake. He took it, slipping his sweaty hand into hers.

"I'm Mark."

Maureen grinned, "So what were you saying about me onstage?"

"Oh, right." Mark blushed even darker. "You were so good. Do you...Do you want to sit with me and my friend Roger? I mean...you don't have to if you don't want to. But, um.."

Maureen smiled, glad to be able to sit somewhere that wasn't with her parents, who were arguing at the moment, too wrapped up in themselves to even notice their daughter. "Sure! I'd love to."

Maureen sat with Mark and Roger, fitting in with the boys almost immediately. She learned that Mark and Roger were both sixteen, the same age as her. Mark's sister was having her Bat Mitzvah party in a few days.

"You're Jewish?" She said, surprised.

Mark nodded. "Extremely."

Maureen laughed, nodding her head up and down. "Well, we have a lot in common. I'm from Syosset. It's on Long Island. What about you?"

"We're from Scarsdale," Mark said, gesturing to both himself and Roger.

"Oh, okay..." Maureen said thoughtfully, wondering where the hell that was.

They chattered aimlessly for an hour; Maureen bantering with Roger a bit. Mark, the geeky blond, seemed to have a bit of a crush on her. It was pretty evident-- judging by the way he'd look at her and smile, or blush.

It was flattering.

When Mark's mom walked up and told the boys that they had five minutes until they were going back to their rooms, they all made plans to meet up by the pool the next day.

.x.

__________________________________________________

That was chapter one. Like it? Hate it? Review it. Next chapter, we'll meet both Collins and Angel! :D