Basket of Roses

November 21, 1924

It was a dimly lit, quiet place. Most people only showed up to wind down after a few hours of wild partying, to listen to the music and make small talk before they went home. A few showed up already drunk, believing that they were being inconspicuous with their alcohol. It was open, and every voice blurred together, echoing in the wide room. It allowed privacy.

The young man turned his attention towards the stage.

A hefty man with a heavily gelled mustache stood center stage. He introduced the next performer, a singer. The light hit her, bathing her in the scarlet color reflecting from the walls. All chatter and conversation seemed to stop. Every man and woman was enraptured by the deep, sultry eyes that were covered by a luscious, chestnut-colored wave just enough to leave her looking mysterious and beautiful. Her lips were red and slightly blurred, as if she had been kissed moments before appearing on stage. She had beauty spots like constellations on her skin. The silk material of her dress looked like blooming flower petals each time she stepped. She looked perfectly lovely. And so terribly young.

The song seemed to end all too soon. The crowd waited a few seconds to applaud her. Conversation didn't start back up until she was completely off stage.

"Excuse me?" Joseph got the attention of the waiter.

"Yessir?" He questioned.

"Do you know the name of that young lady who just performed?"

"Miss Rosetta. Sings here every night." He chuckled.

"I see." He said.

"And she always leaves right after performing. She's bound to walk out the door any minute."

Sure enough, she walked through the crowded room towards the exit, not stopping to exchange words with anyone. She especially avoided the drunken middle-aged men who sat right near the stage, sipping from their poorly-hidden flasks. They turned to look at her, as if in a trance, ending any conversation between them the moment she was in sight.

"Evening, Miss." Joseph gave a curt nod.

"Evening." Rosetta responded in a sort of stand-offish way. She barely turned her head to look at him before going straight out the door.

Joseph showed up again the next night. And the night after that in search of the perfect opportunity to start up a conversation.

As always, Miss Rosetta made her way through the crowded room and headed towards the exit.

"Excuse me, Miss?" He said softly. He turned around in his chair to look at her.

"Yes sir?" She paused and looked at him, flinching ever so slightly, but not enough to notice. For a split second, behind the seductive shimmering eyelids and crimson-stained lips was the expression of a terrified child.

Joseph's warm, cheery tone directly contrasted his hard, unblinking stare. He could have been the very image of attractiveness had it not been that he looked like he had spiraled halfway to madness with dark circles around his sunken eyes and his thin, pale skin littered with veins. The corners of his mouth didn't bother to turn upwards to greet her, but remained flat and emotionless. His chewed, stained fingers tapped anxiously, almost aggressively against his knee

"Your performance tonight was lovely as always."

She showed him a hint of a smile. "Thank you." She said.

"Of course, Miss. You have a good night."

"You as well." She turned and continued walking.

He continued to show up for the next few weeks as the weather gradually became colder. Almost every night, she and Joseph would exchange brief conversation and she would continue on her way. She was sort of a crowd favorite. Occasionally, they would make eye contact while she was on stage. Rosetta would simply smile and Joseph would give his usual stiff nod. It had gotten to the point where, while on her way out, Rosetta would sometimes be the one to look and say "Good evening, sir." They had no relationship outside of this, however. He was simply a regular customer who she had come to recognize.

They had exchanged those simple words one evening. Rosetta had been out of the cabaret for only a few seconds when the sound of thunder boomed in the building. Everyone who attended looked around to see the reactions of others.

"Is it raining?" Joseph turned his attention from the crowd and towards the door. He peered through the glass to see that it had in fact been raining hard for a while now. He jumped up from his seat, grabbed his umbrella and darted out the door.

"Miss! Excuse me, Miss!" He ran along the sidewalk to Rosetta, who hadn't made it very far by now.

She turned around to face him with her fur shawl held close to her chest. "What is it?" She asked.

"There," He held out his umbrella to her. "That fur looks expensive. You wouldn't want it to get ruined by the rain."

She paused for a moment, not sure of how to string her words together. "Thank you, sir. I can return it tomorrow night."

"That's just fine. Lovely performance tonight as always, Miss."

"Thank you." She took one hand off of the umbrella and held it out for him to shake. "It's occurred to me that I haven't introduced myself yet. Rosetta Splitzer."

"Joseph Livingston. Pleasure to make your acquaintance." His stone expression broke as he grinned and gave Rosetta a firm handshake. His smile was genuine, although a bit lopsided and awkward. It caused his eyes to squint and revealed the dimples on the side of his face.

She paused and examined the rain for a moment. "Don't you need to walk home as well?" She asked.

He looked up at the sky and then back down at the ground. "I've got a car parked a short walk away. Pay it no mind." He looked at her and smiled once more. "Unless you'd like me to walk you home. I really don't mind."

She paused for a moment. "I can walk home myself. It's a ways away. Thank you for the offer."

"Of course. I'll see you tomorrow night."

"Have a nice evening, Joseph."

"You as well, Miss Rosetta."

Rosetta watched Joseph through the curtain of water that fell from her umbrella. He gave her one last respectful nod before heading to his car and driving away.

The next night it rained again. Rosetta marched through the crowd, but to Joseph's surprise, she stopped and sat beside him.

"Oh," He said. "Do you need..?"

"Well, the weather looks a bit nasty again tonight. Might as well sit and wait it out." She said, shifting her eyes from the door and back to Joseph.

"I see."

She paused for a moment to examine him. "What do you do during the day?" She asked, not hesitating to start up a conversation.

"I work at a furniture store. There's a furniture repair department as well as upholstery and... such."

"And outside of work ?" Rosetta leaned onto the counter and rested her chin on her palm.

"I paint."

She smiled. "Ah, is that what's on your hands?"

He glanced down and back up. "I suppose so." He cleared his throat. "How did you start singing?"

Rosetta looked at her hands. She was a bit disappointed that she didn't get the chance to ask him more, but she didn't refuse his question. "It's really just a way of making ends meet. I do enjoy it. I especially enjoy the relationships with the other girls who perform here. It's nice."

"How long will you work here?" He asked.

"I'm not entirely sure." She stopped and looked out the door. "The rain has let up."

"So it has," Joseph said. "Could I walk you home?"

Rosetta stopped and looked out at the crowded streets. "Well," She paused, biting the inside of her cheek and furrowing her brows.She sighed. "I live a while away. If it's too much trouble, I can walk alone."

"I don't mind. Really. It's not exactly safe to be out alone this late."

"If you really don't mind, I suppose you can take me."

Joseph got his umbrella from the wall and held open the door for Rosetta. They spent most of the walk in silence, but it was much more comforting than Rosetta's usual walks from the cabaret to her house.