A Thorny Black Rose

Viggo woke as the sun already shone brightly through the curtains, filling the room with a soft, red-golden light. Instinctively he reached for his lover but his hand only encountered an empty space beside him. He sat up and looked around. The sheets were already cold but his lover’s scent still lingered on them. Inhaling deeply he buried his head in the pillows, relishing in the other’s scent and debating whether to get up or not. It was Sunday –his day off.

Viggo turned and looked around with satisfaction once more. //Done. Finally.// Another glance at the clock lifted his mood even further. 9.50 am and he was done with cleaning. Frowning he sat down on the sofa. //What do I do now?// He had hoped that his lover would be there when he woke but a black rose and a box on the kitchen table were all that remained of the night. He hadn’t opened it yet.

Lifting the box he shook it carefully and then set it down unsure what to do. //It hasn’t exploded yet// he calmed himself //Why should it explode now? Who’d be crazy enough to send you a bomb anyway?// He eyed the box suspiciously, daring it to start ticking.
//I don’t recall locking the door yesterday. Anyone could have walked in and…
oh damn it all to hell!// Impatiently he ripped the paper off. A shoe-box. He opened it and looked inside. There were five little parcels, all of them carefully wrapped into paper with rose-prints. Viggo took the presents out of the box and put them in a row on the table. Only now did he realize that there were numbers written on each of them. Sighing he rearranged them from 1 to 5. Settling down on the sofa he took the parcel number 1 and gently unwrapped it, careful not to damage the paper. Perhaps he could use it for a collage or something later. He stared at the gift in surprise. //Paint?!?// A tube of red acryl-paint lay in his palm. He turned it over and noticed that there was a note fastened to it. His heart beat furiouas has he opened it , staring at the simple sentences within. `Red Paint.` he read,
`Red because I love you. And paint because no matter what you always smell of paint.`
Viggo chuckled and reached for the second present. //Hm… hard… feels like a small book or something…// For a minute he just stared at the small paperback. //Flowers and their meanings? Why would he give me such a book?// He flipped it open and quickly scanned the entry for rose. It seemed every rose had a certain meaning. Really everyone. //Except for the black of course…// He double-checked the book and the wrapping but couldn’t find a note to go with it. Confused he took up the third parcel. Soon four flowers and another note lay in his hands. //So that is what the book was for…// he thought and quickly looked up the flowers which his lover had bestowed on him. `Bouvardia: enthusiasm, Calla Lily: magnificent beauty, Dahlia: dignity and elegance, Daisy: gentleness, innocence, loyalty and romance`. With shaking fingers he opened the note. It was short and simple, just like the first one.
`The way I first saw you` was all it said. Unable to wait he ripped the fourth parcel open, this time reading the note first. `The way I feel`. Still shaken he looked up the flower the present had contained. `Forget-Me-Not: faithful love, undying hope, memory, do not forget`. Viggo put the flowers aside and picked up the last parcel, afraid to open it. He was totally confused. Not knowing what to fell he opened it. One flower, no note. Too soon he had found the entry.
`Striped Carnation: sorry I can’t be with you.`

tbc…