Rose of Sharon

1

"A rose dreams of enjoying the

company of bees, but none appears.

The sun asks: Aren't you tired of

waiting Yes, answers the rose, but if I

close my petals, I will wither and die." -

Paulo Coelho

Katrina gently placed her violin in its case and zipped it up leaving it lying on the white vanity table that stood beside her bed. She walked over to the great window that overlooked the front lawns and watched as a guard escorted Mrs Beufont out of the premises.

The elderly lady was nice enough but her sorrow left her too numb to appreciate it. She pulled the windows shut letting the curtains fall back into place and turned around to survey her room, a great white room devoid of colour and character and that was perfectly suited for her.

Her white phone lay on her bed where she had left it before her lesson. It almost blended with the white comforter apart from the gold work that marked its edges.

The vanity set was adjacent to her bed and next to the bathroom and closet doors. The violin and a purple hairbrush were the only things that lay on its surface, the rest of the contents stored away in its many drawers.

On the far end of the room a few paces from the foot of the bed was a seating area. All white settees and a chaise lounge faced a flat screen television mounted on a granite pilar that supported the fireplace chimney.

A glass coffee table stood on a white fur rug and a magazine, Veterum Vanity, lay open on it. On the the page, the face of a little boy in a white tux grinned back at her.

She moved closer to the table and picked up the magazine staring hard at the boy. Silent tears began to flow once again dripping on the boy's face and down the side of the paper.

Slowly she lowered the magazine back on the table and stretched out on the chaise lounge still crying.

"Katrina?" She sniffed back her tears and wiped the rest with her palms drying them with the skirt of her dress.

"Katrina?"

"Yes grandma," she said turning to face the older Mrs Maracheli." I didn't hear you come in."

"Probably because you were busy sobbing your eyes out, again." The old lady scolded.

"But it hurts so much!" Katrina wailed.

Her grandmother hobbled up to her and pulled her into a comforting hug.

"Shush my child. Don't cry, it's not good for the baby."

Katrina broke into another round of tears weeping bitterly into her grandmother's shoulder.

"He hasn't called yet Nana. Not even once! "

The old lady frowned and pulled the girl into an even tighter hug. She began to hum the tune of an old lullaby and eventually her granddaughter calmed down. The old lady encouraged her to stretch out on the lounge still humming the tune of the lullaby and Katrina's eyes grew heavy with sleep. The crying had worn her out and in no time she dozed off.

The old lady stood up and walked to the bed. She pulled off the white comforter that covered it and hobbled back to her granddaughter using it to cover her up.

She took the settee next to the chaise lounge and shook off her slippers stretching her legs on it still humming the same old tune.

Her gaze wandered over to the coffee table noticing the magazine. She stared at the image of the grinning boy and muttered softly to herself. He was a spitting image of his father.

"Knock! Knock!"

The door was knocked startling her out of her reverie.

She dropped her feet to the ground and slipped the slippers on.

"Knock! Knock!"

The knock came again.

"Hold your horses, i'm coming!"

She hissed shuffling towards the door and pulled it open.

"Are you trying to bring down the entire house!"

She asked glaring at the maid who stood with her hand mid air poised for another knock. She dropped her hand and stared at the floor embarrassed.

"I'm sorry ma'am, i did not mean to be rude."

"You did not mean? You better hope that all your pummelling did not wake my granddaughter up."

"Sorry, ma'am" she apologised once again.

"Are you going to keep apologising the whole day or will tell me what brought you here?"

"Aah sorry ma--" the maid started again then trailed off realising her mistake. The old lady studied her smiled despite herself.

"Go on,tell me." She encouraged.

"Mrs Beufont called. She said something about wanting to speak with Katrina?"

"Mmh! Did she now?"

"Yes ma'am" the maid bopped her head in agreement.

" okay then, go on ahead. I'll be right down to speak to her."

The maid curtseyed and turned to walk quickly down the cream plaster and marble corridor.

Katrina was still fast asleep and did not hear her grandmother gently close her door.

The older Mrs Maracheli shuffled down the corridor and took the lift coming to the hallway where the maid was waiting with the house phone in hand.

"Thank you Immaculate, I'll take it from here ."

She said receiving the proffered handset before speaking into it.

"Nancy!"