Sara's Roses

“You might think that, but this city is anything but lifeless and cold. We humans have managed to forge a paradise on this lifeless planet and no-”, the constant noise of the radio stopped as Elai switched off the device held together by more duct tape than screws.

“Hey, I was listening to that!” the woman sitting on a rickety foldout chair protested. “I was getting into it”, she grinned and Elai sighed rolling his eyes. Thea swayed back and forth; her toes curled against the edge of the table to balance her petite frame. Elai was almost sure that if he tried that, both the chair and the table would give out under him. To Thea the motion seemed effortless. She was wearing yellow socks that looked like they had seen better days. They had been patched multiple times, mostly at her big toe, and every time with a different coloured string. No one threw things away here.

“You know I only did the interview because he would not leave me alone, especially after the mayor bought the cuttings”, Elai noted and sat back down, flipping through a messy folder of papers. His chair was the only good one in the entire communal office, and everyone knew not to sit on it. It had a cushioned seat and armrests but, more importantly, it had wheels that allowed him to wheel from the desk to the storage cabinet and back.

“You could just set them to go to your spam”, Thea noted with a knowing smirk before she let her chair slam back to the ground. The metal legs of the chair dragged on the tiles and for a moment it looked like the chair would finally give out but, like magic, it sprang back up. Thea’s face had disappeared behind a monitor and the only thing Elai could see were the wild black curls that framed her head like a halo.

“I can’t just block the only major reporter on the planet”, Elai protested shaking his head and picked out a sheet of paper covered in coffee stains and messy equations that had been scribbled on with a different pen every time.

“Sure you can, I did”, Thea noted without lifting her head, “and don’t pretend you don’t know how to do it. In fact, I’ll block you until you block him.”

“It’s not that important Thea”, Elai sighed at her threats. “Even if you don’t like him, the science department has to communicate openly. You remember the PR catastrophe a few years back.”

“He’s not even a good reporter”, Thea mumbled and peered over her monitor at Elai. Her brows were furrowed in a scowl and Elai tried to hide his smile. He could picture her lips, pouting, like a small child. “Don’t laugh at me! Now you’re definitely blocked!”, Thea declared and returned to her computer with a devious smirk. Elai couldn’t see it of course, but he knew it was there.

“What a shame”, he said and dropped the folder of papers on the desk. His computer was already on and it wouldn’t take long to send the email he had been holding out on. One line was enough. Thea would know what it was about.

‘It’s you.’

Elai pressed send and stared at the cloud of curls, waiting for her reaction.

“I told you I blocked you, why are you trying to...” Thea started but her voice trailed off. Her metal chair rattled on the floor as she jumped up and stared at Elai in disbelief. She shook her head silently, eyes wide open like a deer in headlights. Her overalls still looked a little bit too big even though she had got them altered. This pair had an old stain at the front that had dried an ugly brown colour. She had complained about it for a week, how it wouldn’t scrub out, not even with hydrogen peroxide.

“You got the job”, Elai explained with a smile, scratching his cheek. He had to dodge her eyes. Maybe it was a bit of embarrassment, both at her reaction, and the fact that Thea would be promoted over him.

“You’re kidding”, Thea whispered but a slow smile was creeping up at the corners of her mouth.

“I’m not, you got the job”, Elai nodded and stared at Thea as she did something that might’ve been called a victory dance but was more so just an awkward shimmy. She looked like one of those inflatable guys back on Earth and Elai snorted in laughter.

“What?” Thea asked, laughing herself. “Why didn’t they tell me?”

“They let me break the news. I asked for it”, Elai smiled. “You’ll get all the official paperwork tomorrow”, he explained, and Thea skipped to him, a wide smile plastered on her face.

“That makes me your boss then, huh?” she asked and leaned on his chair.

“It does”, Elai answered, still smiling. Thea’s smile was infectious. She was leaning over him, so close that he could smell her shampoo. It was always difficult to think straight when she was this close. Elai’s eyes were drawn to her lips.

“So, are we still on for tonight, or is that inappropriate?” Thea asked, her eyes lingering on Elai’s face. He should’ve shaved. He would shave tonight. He probably had an ugly stubble on his face already.

“Technically we’re still colleagues until tomorrow”, Elai replied, and Thea nodded decisively.

“It’s a date then. Six, right?” Thea confirmed backing away from the chair and Elai breathed in heavily. He was grateful for the distance but at the same time, he could not wait for six o’clock.

“You better head to the garden then. The roses are ready, right?”, Thea asked and Elai nodded.

Elai stood in the front room of the cemetery, staring through the glass window at the narrow rows of urns. The building had been made bigger than they had originally planned but it was slowly filling up. Most deaths were natural or tragic accidents. Not many suicides and even fewer homicides. Sara’s urn was on a shelf, tucked neatly into place behind a small pot full of fresh soil. Elai tightened his grip on the handles of the bag he was holding. The woven material was digging into his hands through the gloves. He had had to double back to the office. He had left the key card to the garden in the office, right on his desk no less, and there was no getting in without it. The roses were grown in the big greenhouse that was the most valuable and expensive venture of the colony. When they had started to grow food from actual plants, not just bacterial colonies, it had been revolutionary.

“Mr. Smith? Are you ok?” the male receptionist’s voice nearly startled him. Elai just nodded slowly before he headed inside the room.

Elai hoped the flowers would take. They had been trying to get flowers to grow properly and these were the closest creation to roses they had managed to engineer. It had taken three years to get this far. The small rose plant he had was one of five. The largest rose bush back at the lab was already big enough to take cuttings from and the mayor had bought one for an extortionate amount of money. He had connections back on Earth, but he seemed like a nice man. He performed the duties of a judge when there was a need for it and the new rose plant was growing in the courthouse.

Elai dug up some of the soil and straightened the roots of the rose plant carefully before he planted it down. It looked so small and delicate. They had started with yellow roses. ‘Why not red, red is classic’, Thea had questioned Elai at the start. They had named the roses ‘Rosa Sara’. Sara’s roses.

Elai wiped the dust off the urn. Dust didn’t accumulate as quickly here. The room was well ventilated but some of the red dust from outside found its way everywhere. It was a red cold planet, but they had made it bloom. He just wished Sara could’ve seen it. Elai touched his fingertips to his mouth and placed the kiss on the urn before he left the room.

Elai sat in the reception for a long time. The man, Finn, he didn’t say anything, just offered Elai a box of tissues. It had been five years and it never got easier.

There were two places you could go to eat in the city of Cor: Willa’s or Nox. Willa’s was modeled after a pub and the dim lights would have been great for intimacy if the entire office didn’t go there regularly. Elai had insisted on going to Nox.

Nox had been built in the centre of the city and the round building was lined with white aluminium sheets and stripes of solar panels. It had been a canteen once upon a time in the colony’s early history, but now it had been renovated to provide a more ‘fine dining’ experience to the residents of the city.

Elai was late. The shuttle bus had been full of commuters who were trying to get back to the city from their work-hubs. He hadn’t even changed his overalls. He probably looked terrible anyways, his five o’clock shadow no doubt looked scruffy and his eyes were still red. At least he had managed to wipe off all the snot and mucus.

“There’s a booking under Smith”, Elai mumbled to the waiter, peering over him into the hall.

“Yes, six o’clock for two?” the waiter confirmed. “Ms. Jones is already waiting for you”, she continued with a smile and Elai nodded nervously, checking his watch. How rude was he? Half an hour late. Knowing Thea, she had been here at least fifteen minutes early.

“Hi, sorry I’m late”, Elai sighed as he sat down. He had screwed this up before he even showed up. Thea was sitting down; she had a glass of sparkling wine and a book in front of her. Was he so bad that she had come prepared? And with a physical book as well, not even a digital copy which was the norm. She had done something with her hair, Elai wasn’t sure what, but it suited her, or maybe it was the makeup. She didn’t normally wear makeup. Maybe. Thea closed her book and lifted her eyes up to him. She smiled.

“It’s ok, I haven’t waited for long.” Liar. “And I didn’t have time to change either”, she continued gesturing to her overalls. It was also a lie. This pair fitted her better and were newer. No stains in sight. She even had a small bee embroidered into her front pocket.

“What were you reading?” Elai asked and Thea’s smile grew wider. The laugh lines at the corners of her eyes spread out like spiderwebs.

“It’s Beauty and the Beast, the original French version. Lugged that book all the way from Earth. I left my hamster to my sister but brought the book”, she laughed and sipped the wine. “Are you hungry? I didn’t know what you wanted to drink so I didn’t order anything for you”, she said apologetically and Elai shook his head.

“Just water’s fine. I don’t drink anymore”, he said and looked around to spot one of the waiters dressed in black uniforms.

“Right, I forgot”, Thea whispered, her eyes wide. She looked like she had just said something offensive. Elai furrowed his brows. He didn’t want her to pity him.

“No, don’t worry about it. I’ve been sober for three years now. Today gets a bit easier every year.” Now he was telling lies. “It’s nice to be out. Normally I’d be home, watching sitcoms or something. This is way better company than Frankie and the Martians”, Elai grinned and Thea giggled, smile back on her lips.

“I can’t believe you watch that crap”, she laughed shaking her head. She had earrings on, golden ones. They caught the light from the ceiling lamps and shimmered. She did look beautiful. Maybe it was the lipstick. The maroon red looked nice against her dark skin.

“You don’t have to go. You shouldn’t go”, Elai sighed, laying on his bed watching Thea search for her shirt. The shirt was next to the nightstand but Elai didn’t feel the need to point it out right away. Thea was wearing a sheer, near-transparent bra and thermal pants that she had found under the blankets that had gotten tossed from the bed. He didn’t want her to leave yet. It would spoil the night.

“I know, I just... I sleep better at home”, Thea replied and lifted a pillow from the floor back to the bed.

“Afraid of the office gossip?” Elai asked and Thea glanced at him. He couldn’t make out her expression in the dim light of the desk lamp.

“No”, she denied and laughed hesitantly. “I just need to get some things from home before work.”

“Hmm”, Elai hummed, disappointed. It did look like Thea hadn’t planned on staying for long. “Here”, he said and stood up from the bed. Elai picked up the grey t-shirt from the floor and offered it to Thea.

“How did it get there?” Thea laughed awkwardly and Elai closed the distance between them until Thea was looking up at him. Thea could probably feel his warmth. “Thanks”, she smiled shyly and slid the shirt over her head. Her overalls were still at the front door. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I can walk you home”, Elai offered, and Thea stopped dead in her tracks. For a moment she looked tense. Elai couldn’t make out if it was panic or temptation.

“No”, Thea started, the word sounded rushed. “I couldn’t make you do that. You’ve had a long day”, she refused, not looking back at him.

“You sure?” Elai asked.

“Yeah. I’ll be fine. It’s a five-minute walk”, she said, and Elai nodded slowly this wasn’t exactly how he had planned the night to go.

“Come on, I insist”, Elai said adamantly, he didn’t want her to say no. Thea bit her lip. Right now, in the dark, she looked almost scared.

Elai woke up with a splitting headache. He hadn’t fallen asleep until four o’clock and the alarm was beeping loudly, its fluorescent numbers screaming seven. Elai got up slowly looking around the room. The tv was still on and the half-empty glass of some cheap alcohol was still on the nightstand. For once the headache was probably mostly due to the lack of sleep. He had taken a sleeping pill and washed it down with alcohol. Elai rubbed his face. Why did he feel like death? Yesterday had been good. For once he had done something. Elai slammed the alarm off and staggered to the bathroom. He would feel better with a shower.

There was a knock on the door. Elai turned off the faucet and grabbed a new pair of pants. He looked dreadful. He desperately needed to shave and the bags under his bloodshot eyes looked like fat slugs that had taken up residence. He was greying. He looked more like his father day by day. The wrinkles on his forehead had been like ravines, splitting his dry skin into ridges. Elai had her mother’s complexion, closer to black than brown. For years it had disguised some of his wrinkles, but he couldn’t run away from time forever it seemed. No one could run away forever.

The knock turned to loud banging.

“Elai Smith, open the door, police!”

Elai had never wanted to hear that again.

They buried him. It didn’t matter if he was guilty. There was DNA, he could be placed on the scene, a motive that satisfied the police. He was just an angry drunk who had taken illegal sleeping pills. After two days of no sleep in an interrogation room, even his own story started to change. It was so hard to keep track of facts, what he had already said. Suddenly everyone had an opinion about him.

It was sensational news. A young scientist brutally murdered and raped while walking home. The culprit, her former colleague, a world-famous scientist whose adoptive daughter had been murdered years earlier. They had never caught the person who did it. Elai was living in her old apartment. He was obsessed, alcoholic. It was guilt they said. The murderer had left a yellow rose behind next to Thea. Unlike Sara’s case, she was not forgotten about. No one had remembered Sara as a young bright scientist. They had called her a slut.

Elai swept the corridor between the rows of plants. The lights in the ceiling hummed and crackled, substituting for the short daylight hours this time of the year, but the garden was still full of life, a paradise in the middle of a red, rocky desert. Elai stretched his back and heard a satisfying crack from his spine. He was almost finished for the day. He would have to lock up before returning to his cell.

In the end, it didn’t matter who did it. No woman walked home alone anymore. Now they all felt like Sara had felt alone at night, the feeling they had dismissed so easily before. The sense of dread had settled and attached itself to everyone’s minds, clawed its way in whether they wanted or not. The fear of darkness they had thought they left on Earth.

 The room was warm. Elai looked up at the solar panels that made up almost all exterior structures of the greenhouse, trapping in heat. His jumpsuit was sticking to his back, drenched in sweat. But his roses were in full bloom. Elai touched one of the yellow petals carefully. The roses had taken well. The new ones were almost ready too. Red ones. Classic.

Rosa Thea.