S.S.

Tears streaming down her face,
She is happy.
Grateful.

He lays a hand upon her shoulder
Gently
Kissing the droplets away;
She smiles.

From the basement to the room,
The changes.

It's not often for Mariya to smile in such a way.  When she does, you know there is pure happiness beaming out from her like the sun shines out from behind the moon during a solar eclipse.  Mariya is a quiet girl, a knowledgable girl.  She is beautiful, but you wouldn't notice her in a crowd for she oftentimes has her head in the clouds and does not stand out against other girls clad in tight clothes and makeup.  Her beauty is soft and natural; her hair flows in the wind when she walks through fields, brushing her hands along the tall grasses.  She is a dream, and you can only hope to meet her in your deepest sleep.

The months have passed for Mariya since that day, the day she walked through the rose garden.  It was her favorite place to go to relax and be surrounded by the beauty that God had given the Earth.  The way He bestowed such a gift upon the humans to be able to bring all of the flowers together amazed her, and walking through the rows of roses made her feel like she was in heaven.  She'd close her eyes and breathe the scent of the air, misted with a rose perfume, and soak it all in.  Maybe that was her mistake.  Maybe that was her blessing.

She remembers the roses.  She remembers the rose garden.  She remembers that day.  But one can't help but wonder what parts are missing, what parts have faded in her delicate mind.

She didn't know his name before they met.  He tells her that his name is Tomi, and she believes him. When you see them together, you can see how she is falling in love with him.  He gives her flowers and holds her hand, his icy eyes looking like deep oceans to her.  His face is charming; his jaw is straight with just the right angles, and he has soft, dark hair that she likes to run her fingers through.

Years from now, they'll be just another couple in the city.  They'll move there together and start a family.  Mariya will have roses on the terrace of their fifth-floor apartment.  Tomi will work at a big office, keeping his secrets in a locked box in his desk.  Their children will run and play in the park, pet border collie herding them up once in a while.  Mariya will smile, happy.  Other mothers will envy her, but they will wonder about her quiet disposition and beautiful but lifeless eyes.

Mariya dreams of the future.  She sits on her bed, a small twin, and dreams of it while she waits for Tomi to visit her.  He brings her food and keeps her company.  She looks into his eyes when he speaks, smiling gently, listening to every word.  When he leaves, she is saddened.  He is her only friend now.  The rest have all left.  It didn't mean much, since she was such a quiet girl, and having Tomi was enough.  It was as if he knew...he knew that this was meant to be like this.  As if God had told him to find her in the rose garden that day.

She won't tell you much.  She'll just explain how they met in the rose garden and saved her life.  You'll wonder about it, but her soft words are so convincing that you'll believe her, too.  What was lost might be gone forever.  To dig it up would only lead to tragedy in her world, and one must wonder if that would be worth the trouble.