A/N: Apologies for not posting yesterday and the day before. I'm not proud of what happened on Saturday, but there was a long-distance phone call involved, and a rather offensive batch of cake-mix involved, the practical result of which is that I ended up unfortunately and absolutely, to be crude, pissed. So, on Friday, I wanted to post this, but I was rather hung over, and, anyways, the document manager wasn't working. Of note: I did not write this. Thank someone known only as TheBroadE for this. More at the bottom.
"Hey," Cory poked his head in the door to Adrian's office. "Remember those tickets I won? Well, the wife doesn't want to go. You in?"
Adrian smiled. Cory was a good friend. "Sorry, buddy. I got a date."
"Wha-" Cory started. "Oh. OOOOh, oh, right. Hey, it's March already?"
"Yep. The second."
"Oh. Ok. Gotcha." He winked and turned to go out the door. "Have a great time."
"You too."
Adrian got up and packed his things into his backpack. He checked to see if there was anything he was leaving behind. There wasn't, so he walked out the door, reaching back in to switch off the light. Never waste electricity, he smiled to himself. Someone special told him that, the first time they met. He let the door swing shut and headed for the elevator. He'd always liked elevators. They were like everyday versions of amusement park rides.
Adrian waved to a few co-workers as he went past their offices. They were all getting ready to leave, too. There was Aaron, and Erin, who by association and necessity spent a lot of time together. There was Hannah, and Jake. Adrian made a point of making eye contact and saying bye to each one.
Eventually, he made it to the parking lot. Some of the spaces were empty, but most were full. His car, a red rundown old Honda with a crack across the windshield, was wedged tightly between two enormous SUVs. He got in, started the engine, and carefully eased her out.
Adrian had once heard that people tend not to notice everyday things. Tourists are the only ones impressed by the Niagara Falls; residents tend not to care. Most of the people in Seattle never set foot in the Space Needle. As he rode home, he smiled at the beauty of the rhododendron bushes beside the road, violent sprays of purple with light tinges of pink. Everything was so green here, like a giant salad, and nobody seemed to notice.
On the way home, he stopped off at a little mini-mall and parked the car. He stuck the backpack in the trunk, locked the car, and walked over to a flower-shop. As he opened the door, a little bell jingled. tingalingalingaling. To Adrian, it sounded uncertain, far off, a little sad, yet strong. Off to the left, the open floral display refrigerator hummed softly. Above it, on the wall, a calendar proclaimed the month. The first was X'd out.
A youngish blonde woman managed to lounge while standing somewhere behind the cash register. "Hiya! What can I do fer ya?"
Adrian smiled widely. "A dozen red roses, please, extra special cauz I love her and I want her to marry me."
"Sure thing!" She turned and flounced into the back. Adrian waited, rapped his fingers lazily on the countertop, and looked over at the refrigerator. Flowers of all sorts in various stages of bloom adorned the fridge, but the roses had a special spot in the middle, near the bottom. There were red, pink, white, yellow and – wait, did roses even come in that color? Sure enough, there were bright purple roses there, off in the left corner, mocking the world in lavender and impossibility. Adrian walked over slowly and fingered the petals. He looked at his hand, but there wasn't any dye on it. Yep, these roses were really purple all right. She'd love that. Diane had always loved the color purple.
The blonde flower girl came back. "Jess you wait a sec. Got us a new delivery out back, an all th' flowers are all wrapped up."
"That's all right. I'd like these, please." He indicated the purple roses and winked.
"Alright." She walked over and wrapped up the flowers in a plastic bouquet, flashed him a mischievous smile, and snatched a few sprigs of tiny purple dots from another display. She arranged them among the roses, then sauntered over to behind the counter and pulled a tiny card and card holder from a drawer. She passed him the card and a pen. "There ya go."
He paused, then drew a simple, single heart on the card and handed it back to her. She glanced at the card, then smiled. "Awww. What's her name?"
"Diane."
"Hold on. Somewhere around here…" She pulled two little cards out from behind the counter. "There. Show 'er a good time."
She passed him the cards. Each was for a Free Cheesecake Factory Slice O' Joy.
"I'm not going to take her out for cheesecake!" he protested
"Well, now ya can!"
"But she isn't-"
"Come on."
"I-"
"Not gonna hear it. Give it to yer friends, then."
He paused, then said softly "Thank you."
Adrian paid for the roses and left. He walked out to his car and hit a button on the key fob. The car chirped in response. He then opened the right hand door and placed the roses on the seat. Water seeped out along the bare stems and out the plastic bouquet sheet. He closed the door and walked around to the other side, opened the driver-side door and got in. He started up the car, and drove off, humming a song under his breath.
Soon, he passed into a quieter part of town, where the buildings were shorter, but richer and more luxurious. The grass looked as if it belonged on a golf course. After a while, even the houses gave way to large gated yards. He stopped the car by one of these, parking on the road by the entrance. Adrian got out and walked around to the passenger side door, then pulled on the handle. The purple roses lay resplendent on the seat. The water made a dark stain on the gray fabric. He paused contemplatively, and then picked up the flowers.
Adrian shut the door and locked the car. Then he walked up the few feet to the big, ornate, iron gate. Ivy climbed up the crumbling stone walls, and black, decorative iron ivy intertwined itself with the gate. He pushed it open and walked in.
There was a path, and on either side of it was more golf course grass, perfectly manicured. Overhead, various flowering trees hung, lending shade and solitude to the path. Adrian paused at a fork. He knew where he wanted to be, but was vaguely unsure of how to get there. After a moment's pause, he turned left.
Eventually he came to it. Really, it couldn't have been a better spot. The smooth lawn lent a soft carpet to the ground. Above, a cherry tree hung softly in full bloom. In the shade of the tree sat a small marble slab, embedded in the ground. Adrian knelt at the slab and laid the roses across it. He traced out the words engraved upon the stone.
Diane Ametrine
1979 – 2008
"Cauz I love you and I want you to marry me," he whispered.
A/N: Ok. So, I think this story is absolute brilliance in its highest form. TheBroadE decided to ask me to edit this for her, and then told me that I could post it - with proper due credit to the real author. It is entitled 'Roses,' and, again, with proper due credit, I intend to utilise this main character in one of my other works, only with the following exceptions:
Firstly, my Adrian shall have a rather artistic bent, and, secondly, and, perhaps, more importantly, my Diane shall be entirely alive. And probably I shall shift the ages (wow. That sounds portentious). Apologies again for failing to post. I would blame my flatmate, but, really, I can't.