Thanks for all the lovely reviews; I hope you'll all continue to enjoy these little bits :).
For iluvcsi4ever who provided the trigger-word.
"What do you think?" Mac turns to face Stella. He sees in her eyes how she's focusing on the installation before her.
A rose, broken and wilting, losing its petals like drops of blood. Two words inscribed on its stem. Carpe diem. Drops of blood on the rose's thorns.
"'Carpere' also means 'to pick', so I guess that's why she chose a flower." Stella begins voicing her thoughts, "And here, when somebody seized the opportunity two got hurt, the rose," she points at the petals, "and the person who wanted to pick it." she points at the thorns. "And it sure looks like real blood."
"Thank you! That is good to hear." a female voice says behind them, "As you may guess from that, I'm the artist. And you have no idea how long I tried to get the 'blood' right, so I'm very happy now that it worked. And you are also right with your other thoughts. But that should not deter you from seizing your opportunity when it comes. If the rose is willing maybe it won't prick." The artist winks at Mac.
"Uh, we are not together." Mac points out.
"Well, I think you should be." the woman says, "I could sense your vibes a mile off!"
"Maybe you sensed somebody else's instead?" Stella tries to deflect the embarrassment she feels this is causing Mac.
"No. But now that you say it, I do sense some real bad vibes coming this way right now."
"You killed my friend!" They all turn around, with the intention to identify the speaker. Identify the speaker's intention. Made clear by a knife. Aimed at Stella. Somebody pushes her, somebody pulls.
Push and pull. A man and a woman. Caught in an embrace that is all wrong. Surroundings blurred by their momentum. Two people on the ground. The blood on the installation is real. Everything comes to a standstill, frozen in midair like the rose's petals.
Time begins again. Two people on the ground, not them. Mac becomes aware that he's still clutching Stella. She suppresses a shiver that nonetheless resonates in him. She's breathing heavily to get a grip on the emotions churning through her so that he will believe it when she tells him that she's okay.
Seize the opportunity. He leans his head against her cheek. She doesn't pull away. Don't let it go. She folds her hand over his. Don't let me go.
Thanks for reading. Reviews (and trigger-words) are very welcome and appreciated any time, and always replied to if logged.