The Rose of Anthacena

Chapter 5

          "Dereck!" Rose's voice was mad as she shouted furiously at him. "Give it back!" Dereck grinned, looking at the phone he held in his hand.

"Why should I?" he asked mischievously. "You know how much fun I could have with this thing?" He held it behind his back, away from Rose, and grinned at her. Suddenly, he felt the phone slip from his grasp and Kaysey walked across the room to Rose.

"You know how much fun I had taking it from you?" Kaysey said coolly as she handed the phone to Rose. Then she smiled. "Because it was a lot." Dereck pulled a face at her.

"Aww, Kaysey, why'd you have have to ruin it?" he complained. Kaysey shrugged.

"Probably because of what 'fun' you could've had with it," she replied, "and because Rose is my best friend." Dereck laughed good-naturedly.

"Well, I suppose that's a good enough reason," he said, then left the room. Kaysey sat down on the couch next to Rose and sighed.

"How do you ever put up with him, Rose?" she asked. Rose laughed.

"I've had a lot more practice, for one thing," she began.

"Yeah, and watching you two, sometimes I'm glad I'm an only child!" Kaysey interrupted, laughing. Rose started laughing, too, at Kaysey's words.

"I'll bet you do," Rose agreed. Kaysey pulled out her phone and looked at it.

"Oh, Rose, I've got to go, or I'll be late for work," she said, getting up from her seat. Rose stood as well and hugged her friend goodbye.

"See ya later, Kase," she said.

"See ya, Rose," Kaysey said as she walked out of the room.

After she was gone, Rose spread herself out on the couch and sighed happily. Life was going well for her at this point. She got to see her best friend every day, as well as her best friend's mother, she had a loving father, an awesome little brother (even if he was pretty annoying sometimes), and her family was well off...she was content with her lot in life.

* * *

Five months passed, during which Rose and Kaysey had many more fun times. Throughout this period, each of them wondered the same thing about the other.

Every time Rose looked at Kaysey, she thought to herself, I wonder why Kaysey isn't engaged yet. I mean, I get why I'm not, but her?! She's beautiful, with her red hair, green eyes, and all. I wonder why she's not engaged...

Meanwhile, when Kaysey saw Rose, she thought, Oh, wow. Rose is...breathtaking. I wish I looked like her. But-I don't understand why she's not engaged. I mean, I've had several chances, but she's never even been asked, and she's waaay more beautiful than I am. Boys are stupid!

Eventually, Rose and Kaysey somehow started talking on the subject.

"If you don't mind my asking, Kase," Rose said hesitantly, "why aren't you engaged? I mean, you're so pretty, but yet...why don't the boys like you?" Rose asked. Kaysey just laughed.

"You mean I haven't told you?" she said. Rose slowly shook her head.

"Apparently not," she replied. Kaysey laughed again.

"Rose, I have been proposed to probably about five times!" she said. Rose's jaw dropped.

"What?!?! Five times?!?!" she yelled before lowering her voice. "And-you haven't accepted even one?!" Kaysey looked at her.

"No," she replied quietly. "No, I haven't." Rose struggled to understand.

"But-why not?" she asked. "I-I just don't get it." Kaysey sighed before trying to explain.

"Rose, I-I don't even like any of the boys around in the boy-girl kind of way-especially not the ones who proposed to me-much less love them. And I will never marry rather than marry without loving." Rose was quiet for a moment or two.

"But-eventually, Kaysey, you're not going to have another chance. So why not just go with what you can get?" Rose said. Kaysey's eyes narrowed.

"I said it once, and I'll say it again-I. WILL. NEVER. MARRY. IF. I. DON'T LOVE," she repeated forcefully. Rose's eyes widened.

"Okay, okay. Calm down," she said, surprised by Kaysey's tone of voice. Then her expression turned thoughtful. "I-I never thought of it that way," she admitted. "Marrying for-love and all that. But then," with a little laugh that didn't sound natural, "I-I've never thought that-someone could-fall in love with me, so I-thought I would just-have to go with whoever came along first. If anybody ever came, that is," she added.

"Rose, why in the world do you think nobody would fall in love with you?" Kaysey asked. Rose just gave her a look.

"Why do you think?" she said. "I know the way people work. You've gotten so many proposals because you're beautiful. But me? I'll be lucky if I get one by the time I'm 60, because I am not anywhere close to you in looks." Kaysey looked shocked.

"Rose, you-you seriously think you're not pretty?"

"No. I know I'm not pretty." Kaysey took hold of Rose's shoulders and shook her.

"Then you are dumber than I thought! Rose, you are so correct in saying that you're not anywhere close to me in looks. You're WAY beyond me. In fact, I bet the reason you haven't gotten any proposals is because the boys are too scared to ask you, for fear you'll tell them no." Rose stared at her in astonishment.

"No, Kaysey, you're wrong. Say what you will to-make me feel better, I am not pretty, and I never will be." Kaysey started to argue, but Rose threw a pillow at her, and the discussion ended in a pillow fight.

* * *

That evening, Rose had a sudden thought. on her 18th birthday, her father had told her that one of the two memories Rose had of her long-dead mother--a beautiful smell--was roses. During the eight months that followed, he told her more.

The scent was a perfume made from the petals of the floer kind of rose. When Mrs. O'Reilly was still living, roses were very common, and the perfume was inexpensive. Over the years, however-particularly Rose's childhood years-they had decreased greatly in number and were now grown in very few places. They had gone down in popularity as well as number, and were still inexpensive(though they cost more than they did several years ago because of their rarity).

She had never seen a real rose, because any place they grew was too far away for even a family as well off as her own to travel to. She had seen pictures in the encyclopedia. Rose liked the way the petals looked so soft and...silky.

She knew she was being weird for thinking like that, but she didn't care. Rose decided suddenly that she wanted to someday hold a rose in her hand, and it became the second wish of her heart. Her first wish was that she would someday marry the one she loved. (She, like Kaysey, had decided to never marry unless she could marry for love.)

Rose also wanted to see her true namesake, violets, but nowadays, unfortunately, it was far too cold and rainy for them to grow.