Free Roses in the Sand by CS Patra Page A

know if I can stay,” Johanna whispered, looking down at the badly drawn roses in the sand. She decided to add something in the sand as well. She drew a heart in it and put ‘LB + JV R GAY’ in the middle of it. Lily laughed when she saw that.
     
    “Well, you didn’t tell a single lie.”
     
    “I spill nothing but the truth,” Johanna promised, also trying to draw some roses in the sand. At least Lily’s roses looked like flowers. Hers were just holes in the middle of the sand. “Oh, shit, I give up. This is why I’m a musician and not an artist.”
     
    “I’m not artist either. I write about things, I don’t draw them.”
     
    “Same. I make music, not art,” she laughed at her roses. “They look like shit.”
     
    “They’re no shittier than mine are,” Lily lay back down on the sand again. “Ah, I’m going to need to take a nice long shower after this.”
     
    “I’ll join you,” Johanna said. “I know you want that too.”
     
    “Yeah, I do,” Lily leaned over and gave Johanna a kiss. “I want so much with you. It just makes me sad that tonight is our last night together.”
     
    “It doesn’t have to be,” Johanna said. “Think about it. You can come with me and travel the world. It would be way better than waiting tables for shitty customers.”
     
    “I know. The worst part about going home is knowing you won’t be there,” she murmured. “Still, I have to do it. I have to go back because I promised that I would return.”
     
    “I understand,” Johanna didn’t want to understand this, but she knew she was asking too much. She couldn’t expect Lily to drop everything just for her. “I want you to know that these last few days have been great. I wish they could last longer.”
     
    “So do I,” Lily looked over at the new heart that Johanna had drawn. “LB and JV are gay. Hopefully, no one ever figures out who LB and JV are.”
     
    “If they do, who cares? I love you, baby. I don’t think I’m ever going to stop loving you. It’ll be hard without you, but I think I’ll be okay.”
     
    They looked over at the roses they had drawn in the sand and sat there as they watched the waves come and go. They stayed out on the sand until the waves washed away all their hard work. It was sad to see the roses disappear, but they had been there. There were still markings of what they had drawn. Nothing in the world was ever going to wash those away.
     
    Nothing.

 
     
    Chapter 13
     
    The day had finally come for the two of them to leave each other. Lily had her bags packed and she made sure to clean the suite before she left. Everything looked as good as new and Darlene was going to be pleased with her. She was coming back from this vacation completely refreshed, recharged...and sad. Leaving the beautiful Oceanside meant leaving Johanna behind as well. Not that they were going to be together. Johanna was also leaving today because the band was ready for their next show. This time, they were headed up north to play a few shows there. Lily wished she could follow them, but it was time to go back to work. It was time to go back to reality where there was no Johanna and no time to spend walking down beaches.
     
    Lily sighed as she looked down at her luggage. She didn’t bring very much on this trip, but she was leaving with so much more. She was leaving with memories that she didn’t think she would ever get. Her heart was breaking, but this was something that needed to be done. She had to leave Johanna behind. She had to give up on love for now because there would never be another Johanna for her.
     
    “I don’t think I could live a life in the limelight,” Lily said. “I’m not sure I’m meant for that type of life. I’m a writer and I like the quiet nights to the loud ones.”
     
    “I figured you would say that,” Johanna nodded. “I shouldn’t have tried to force you to change your lifestyle for me. You were perfect and beautiful, but I can’t change you. I