THE SMELL OF LAVENDER

BY SHANE COLE

(Danny is facing sideways and looking into a car window straigtening is tie! He see"s #$ite ner%o$s!

 He &egins to talk as e contin$es to ceck is cloting and ten gi%es is f$ll attention to te a$dience!'

DANNY

It’s hard to believe that the day is finally here. You ait your hole life for this day! and you honestly

don’t thin" it ill a#tually ha$$en! but here e are. %hen &y best friend $ro$osed to his 'irl! I had to sto$

hi& fro& drin"in'. He’d only started in order to #al& his nerves! but I "ne that if he dran" until that

ha$$ened! he’d be so drun" he ouldn’t be able to stand after 'ettin' don on one "nee. But! sur$risin'ly!

I’& #al&. I’ve $layed this out in &y head ti&e and ti&e a'ain. (e! al"in' out into the $ar"! &eetin' her

at our favorite s$ot! so&ethin' I ould have $re)$lanned. I’d have the #ho#olates and the roses*+$i#"s u$roses fro& the ba#"seat of the #ar,*I ould tell her hat she &eans to &e. I ould tell her ho she

#han'ed &y life. -ell her that! before her! I as ready to 'ive u$ on life and love. It’s funny a#tually. Ho

is it that e run into $eo$le that ill #han'e our lives ust by bein' in the ri'ht $la#e at the ri'ht ti&e/

Lyndsay as a 'ift fro& heaven sent to &e at &y loest $oint! and be#ause of her &y entire life is better

All be#ause of a #han#e &eetin'. It’s a&a0in' ho one &o&ent in ti&e #an #han'e your life.

+He $uts the roses don on the ben#h.,

DANNY

It as ri'ht here. Nine &onths a'o. I as sittin' ri'ht there on that ben#h hen this stran'er #a&e u$ to&e and started the &ost rando& #onversation I’ve ever had in &y entire life. I had ust ended a to year

relationshi$ earlier that sa&e day. I asn’t in the &ood for s&all tal". But there she as anyay as"in'

&e if I "ne the ti&e. I as $retty rude! and said I didn’t #arry a at#h! and she al"ed off. I thou'ht that

as it! but she turned around and said! 1Life’s too short to aste ti&e feelin' sad for yourself. Besides!

you’re not very attra#tive hen you #ry.2

%ell I had a very vis#eral &anly res$onse. It ust sounded li"e a third 'rader hen it #a&e out.

1I a& not #ryin'332

She raised an eyebro and ust s&iled. I don’t "no hy but for so&e reason I s&iled ba#". -he hu&or

in &y in#redibly i&&ature res$onse as not lost on &e. -hat’s hen I 'ot her na&e. Lyndsay %alla#e.

Her 'a0e into &y eyes as intense. And she never loo"ed aay. She invited &e to have a #u$ of #offee

ith her and needless to say! I sto$$ed &ournin' the death of &y fallen relationshi$.

I found out that she as a so#ial or"er and or"ed at a lo#al after s#hool $ro'ra& donton. She did&ost of the tal"in'. I enoyed listenin' and at#hin' her. I as &es&eri0ed by the fa#t that she never

sto$$ed s&ilin'. After three hours of tal"in'! I finally 'ot the 'uts to as" for her $hone nu&ber and fro&

that $oint on! it as a $retty ty$i#al relationshi$.

+$ulls a rose out of the #ontainer and s&ells it4 he s&iles,

 No! that’s not true. -here as nothin' ty$i#al about this relationshi$ at all. It as one of a "ind. 5ni6ue.

Li"e nothin' I’d ever e7$erien#ed before. I "no I ust said three thin's that all &ean the sa&e thin' but

the e&$hasis is needed. She ble &e aay. I didn’t "no you #ould feel li"e this. Even the usual

land&ar" evenin's that are alays stress indu#in'! li"e &eetin' the $arents of the other! ere fun. It ill&a"e &e sound li"e a #o&$lete (o&&a’s boy! but after &eetin' Lyndsay &y &o& ust s&iled at &e. I’d

never seen that loo" fro& her after &eetin' any of &y other 'irlfriends. She li"ed her! and I li"ed that she

did. -hat ni'ht I told her I loved her for the first ti&e. +Lon' sole&n $ause,.

It s&ells so 'ood out here. I never noti#ed it &yself! but that’s ust another one of Lyndsay’s 6uir"s.

Alays havin' the ability to e7$erien#e the beauty in thin's that everyone ust ta"es for 'ranted. One of

her favorite thin's to do is to #o&e out to this ben#h in this $ar" after its rained. It really is a re&ar"able

 

s&ell4 a &i7ture of rain and 'rass and floers. -hat as $artially Lyndsay too. She never ore $erfu&e

 but alays ore this lotion that s&elled li"e lavender. She li"ed natural thin's! and su$$osedly lavender

rela7es you. It 'ives you a sense of $ea#e.

+He sees that they are loo"in' $ast hi& to a youn' o&an al"in' in his dire#tion.,

Oh! her/ No! that’s not her. It’s a#tually &y sister. She didn’t ant &e to 'o throu'h this alone. Not the

 $ro$osal! I &ean I #ould do that on &y on! but that’s not hat I’& here for. If you #au'ht that I used $ast

tense a #ou$le of ti&es. It asn’t an a##ident. I still have trouble referrin' to her that ay. If your lost I’&

sorry. I $ro$osed ri'ht here one &onth a'o today. 8ust li"e I i&a'ined it. I 'ot don on one "nee and told

her ho i&$ortant she as to &e and said 1%ill you &arry &e/2 She ust s&iled at &e ith tears in her

eyes and said! 1Yes.2

Do you even "no hat it’s li"e to be truly ha$$y. You only ill if you’ve e7$erien#ed it! but it’s unli"e

anythin' you #ould ever i&a'ine. Every oun#e of your bein' feels it. I felt it for the first ti&e hen she

said yes. And it as then that I reali0ed ho s$e#ial she really as. She felt this ay all the ti&e be#ause

she lived in ha$$iness all the ti&e. In that &o&ent I as &ore a&a0ed by her than ever before. I envied

her be#ause I anted to feel that ay. Constant ha$$iness. And I "ne I #ould as lon' as I as ith her.

About a ee" a'o! I as at or" and I as in this &eetin' and I sa &y sister al" into the lobby. She

didn’t loo" ell! and I thou'ht so&ethin' as ron' ith one of our $arents. I ran u$ to her and she said

she had to 'et &e to the hos$ital. Only! it asn’t one of our $arents. Lyndsay as or"in' in their offi#es

donton and their as a shootin'. Evidently one of the older "ids that hun' out and $layed bas"etball&ade the ron' $eo$le an'ry. Lyndsay as the only one hit.

I arrived at the hos$ital barely in enou'h ti&e. Her &other al"ed &e ba#" to her roo& and I sa her ith

all those tubes and ires and I lost it. I 'rabbed her hand and "issed her forehead. She as #ons#ious but

 barely. She as tryin' to say so&ethin' to &e but she #ouldn’t. I leaned don to hear her. She said!

1Life’s too short to feel sad for yourself.2

+$ause,

Her 'ri$ on &y hand ent li&$! and all these do#tors and nurses rushed into the roo&.

+$ause,

%e’re on our ay to the funeral no! but I had to sto$ and #o&e here. I #an’t thin" of her in a bo7 in the

'round. She ould be here. -hat’s stu$id! ri'ht/ I 'uess it’s true hat they say. Ha$$iness is fleetin'. It

doesn’t last forever. I 'uess #o&in' out here as ust ishful thin"in' on &y $art.

+He turns to leave. -he ne7t voi#e ha$$ens as he al"s off.,

LYNDSAY’s 9OICE

You’re not very attra#tive hen you #ry.

+Danny sto$s. He turns havin' heard the voi#e. He s&ells lavender in the air.,

DANNY

+s&ilin', Do you s&ell that/ Lavender. +He lays floers ba#" on ben#h., O"ay! Lyndsay! I 'et the $i#ture. +to audien#e, I 'uess 1they2 were ron'. Ha$$iness #an be everlastin'. I #an re&e&ber*I ill

re&e&ber the &o&ent she said yes. (y one &o&ent in ti&e of true ha$$iness. I #an relive it. Even after

everythin' that’s ha$$ened. +s&ells the lavender, I #an still have $ea#e.

-HE END