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A branch of thorns with a single leaf bud was all that identified the dark soil patch at the front of the house as a rose garden. Large, earth-toned bricks lay in piles on the lawn, temporarily browning the indomitable Kentucky bluegrass beneath them. Elsa glanced up at the balcony above the garage. \u201cWhen do you think you\u2019ll work on the rose garden?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Flora answered, and then stretched out her legs elegantly on the lounger. Her dark sunglasses disappeared inside the rim of her mug as she took a sip. She reminded Elsa of a Hollywood star, in the new cherry-patterned summer dress that she\u2019d recently ordered online. Elsa worried about Flora\u2019s sudden interest in online shopping. The summer job that Flora had been hired for might not materialize. Though, Elsa hadn\u2019t discouraged Flora\u2019s purchasing, just yet. She didn\u2019t want the children to be more alarmed than they already were. Wyatt, Flora\u2019s boyfriend, tossed his shaggy blonde mane to the side and took a swig from his mug. He was still in pajama pants, his hair long, after months of remaining uncut in quarantine.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cAll you have to do is level the first row of bricks, I\u2019ll do the rest.\u201d After receiving no response from the balcony, Elsa added, \u201cI\u2019m going to take Leroy for a walk. There are two sets of garden gloves in the garage, on the shelf beside the freezer.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Leroy required double harnessing. Elsa attached one lead to his leather neck collar and then another to the harness around his chest, which, in theory, was to keep him from pulling on the lead. Oscar, was in the kitchen, filling a water bottle. \u201cWhere are you going?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cMy friends are going biking, they want to know if I can go.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cUp here.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWhere are you meeting?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cAt Will\u2019s.\u201d Oscar shut off the water and turned toward his mother. Elsa unconsciously scrunched her brow. \u201cOutside, in his driveway,\u201d he added.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cRemember to social distance. Six feet apart at all times, no sharing drinks or snacks.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cYeah, yeah,\u201d he said as he screwed on the water bottle\u2019s lid.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cYeah, yeah?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cYes, I\u2019ll social distance, okay?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Elsa studied his thirteen-year-old face: large eyes, peeking from behind long, dark bangs\u2014that he refused to let her trim\u2014reminding her of the little boy who used to like biking the trails with her not so long ago. \u201cOkay\u2026did you have breakfast?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cNo. I\u2019m not hungry I\u2019ll eat when I get back,\u201d he said, as he thumped down the stairs that led to the garage.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cBe safe. Bring some hand-sani\u2014and wear your helmet!\u201d she shouted.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Leroy and Elsa entered the forest through the yard\u2019s back gate, slipping through spikey Oregon grape leaves and then prickly thorns from the wild rose bushes that crowded the narrow dirt path. It was later than she liked to walk Leroy. She preferred to get up and outside with him no later than seven, to avoid other hikers and their off-leash dogs. Though ever since the pandemic, she\u2019d be unable to rise with the six AM alarm and recently hadn\u2019t bothered to set it at all. Up ahead, on the trail, she spotted a hiker with an off lead dog. \u201cExcuse me, can you put your dog on leash?\u201d she shouted in an encouraging voice, the one she used on students who had a problem with authority.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cShe\u2019s friendly,\u201d he shouted back.<\/p>\r\n
Elsa stopped and told Leroy to sit. \u201cMy guy\u2019s aggressive. He\u2019ll view an off lead dog coming towards him as a threat.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
The man made no attempt to leash the dog. \u201cShe\u2019s okay,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n
Leroy\u2019s spine bristled. Elsa picked up the thirty-five-pound dog and stepped from the trail as the man passed. The border collie trotted off the path toward Elsa. Leroy squirmed. He was solid muscle. Elsa held him firmly. The man held his gaze as he passed by as if daring Elsa to speak. Elsa didn\u2019t even bother reminding the man that it was illegal to have unleashed dogs in the park. She knew aggression. Leroy\u2019s breed had been bred for pit fighting; although Leroy was born into a house of affection, and trained to be a lover, he was a fighter. A thousand dollars, and weeks of specialized training\u2026and Leroy was Leroy. Leroy loved humans and hated other dogs. The money wasn\u2019t wasted though, Elsa had been trained too\u2014she learned how to deal with aggressives\u2014dog and human.<\/p>\r\n
They headed up the hill, weaving through pine and fir trees, and along craggy rock cliffs, towards the mountain top and then over to the other side, toward a tree that was visually startling in size and colour, with deeply grooved bark striped brilliant sienna and black. The tree had an imperial quality to it, towering meters above the other trees; its base so thick, Elsa\u2019s arms remained ruler-straight as she embraced the trunk and then put her nose into a groove and inhaled. The fragrant bark smelled of warmed vanilla beans. She sat at the tree\u2019s base, on long, rust-colored pine needles, and leaned her spine against its massive trunk. The pine was ancient. One of only a few old-growth trees remaining on the mountain, and Rosa\u2014as Elsa called her\u2014was the oldest of them all. Who knew why Rosa had been spared the loggers saw. She\u2019d been on the mountain longer than Europeans had been in the West. The Catholic mission\u2014the first Europeans to step foot in the region\u2014was established in 1858. By that time, Rosa was over 200 years old. Leroy sniffed Rosa\u2019s base and then sat down beside Elsa. Rosa\u2019s base was black, proof of her strength: her naturally fire-retardant bark had withstood the many natural forest fires that had ravaged the mountain in her lifetime.<\/p>\r\n
It was late April and already the grasses were turning gold, and the sun\u2019s rays hot enough to fill the air with the delicious scent of toasty pine needles and subtly sweet ponderosa bark. Elsa placed her hand on Leroy\u2019s back. He laid his head on her bare leg. \u201cYou are a lover,\u201d she said and then bent to kiss the top of his smooth head. He sat still and subdued as Elsa took in the lake view and scanned the forest for potential threats: deer, coyote, or human. She closed her eyes for a short morning meditation. The heaviness of life left her for a few moments. A raven cawed and then she heard the swoop-swoop of its wings as it flew near the tree. Elsa opened the thermos and took a swig of iced tea.<\/p>\r\n
The rose garden remained as she\u2019d left it. Flora was in the kitchen, pouring a bag of kettle chips into a bowl. \u201cIs that your breakfast?\u201d Elsa asked as she unstrapped Leroy from his harness.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cBrunch,\u201d Flora answered and then headed down the hall towards her bedroom.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWhen do you think you and Wyatt will finish the first row of\u00a0 bricks?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll do it when we do it,\u201d Flora said, her voice rising and falling with annoyance and slight caution.<\/p>\r\n
It was the caution that kept Elsa calm in her response. \u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWyatt\u2019s online. His exam started at ten.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWhen\u2019s your next exam? Do you have one today?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cYeah\u2014not until three,\u201d Flora said and then turned down the hall and walked toward her bedroom.<\/p>\r\n
The pots and pans from last night\u2019s supper sat in a pile beside the sink. Elsa opened the dishwasher and took out a steaming-hot, clean mug. Someone, probably Hugo, had shoved all last night\u2019s dirty supper dishes into the dishwasher this morning and turned it on. Hugo would rather tidy the kitchen in the morning\u2014by himself\u2014than supervise the children begrudgingly cleaning a post-supper kitchen. Elsa had been too exhausted to argue with Hugo. She\u2019d spent the entire late-afternoon in the kitchen making cabbage rolls\u2014that Flora and Oscar refused to eat and instead, filled themselves with the mashed potatoes. Wyatt had eaten the cabbage rolls and even had seconds. For his short-comings as a guest, at least he appreciated her cooking efforts.<\/p>\r\n
Elsa filled the kettle with water and then selected a tea bag from her cupboard stash and popped it into the empty mug. She sat on a stool at the kitchen island and waited for the water to boil. It was hard to keep up with everyone\u2019s schedules. The house had become an online university campus, a middle school, and Elsa\u2019s High School councilor\u2019s office. Though so far, her teenage clients’ concerns focused on graduation credits, and even those online meetings were becoming few and far between.<\/p>\r\n
Leroy ran out the partially-open patio door and onto the deck. His tail shook vigorously and he yelped in excitement. Oscar was returning from the bike ride. Elsa completely forgot to check if he had school today. Sink or swim, she thought. She was aware of how pathetic her efforts were at policing the kids\u2019 online studies. Since COVID hit, it was all she could do to keep the house semi-clean and stocked with basic groceries. Leroy trotted inside and noisily lapped up water from his dish. \u201cDid anyone feed Leroy this morning?\u201d she shouted and then regretted it\u2014Wyatt was writing a first-year Engineering exam. Leroy\u2019s ears stood tall, his eyes penetrating Elsa\u2019s. \u201cI swear you understand the entire English language,\u201d she said to him. He looked thin in the area just under his ribs. After a meal, his belly was usually more rounded. Elsa dropped a scoop of kibble in his aluminum dish. \u201cJust in case we forgot your breakfast,\u201d she said.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWhere\u2019s Dad?\u201d Oscar said as he ascended the stairs. Leroy ran to the top of his stairs, his bottom swayed as fast as his tail. Oscar patted his head, and then Leroy darted back to his food.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cAt the university\u2014why?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI thought it was closed.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cIt is. That\u2019s why he\u2019s there. There\u2019s no one else around\u2014did you have fun? What did the fab-four get up to?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI nearly wiped out, coming down a hill that I\u2019d never been on before. It was so steep\u2026but I jumped off my bike before it crashed.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cDid you hurt yourself?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cNo. I jumped right off into a standing position. Isn\u2019t that great?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cDid you social distance the entire time?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Oscar\u2019s gaze fell to the ceramic tile floor. \u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWhat about the other guys, did they social distance?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Elsa felt the turn in his demeanor. He walked with heavy feet down the hall, towards his bedroom. \u201cWhat about your friends, did they wipe out on the hill?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Oscar stopped. Lockdown had only increased Oscar\u2019s thirst for adventure and, as a sensitive soul, Elsa knew that talking about the adventures, once they were over, was his favourite part. Oscar turned to face his mother. His eyes were wide with excitement. \u201cOnly James. He got a mouth full of blood\u2014but he\u2019s okay.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cAre you sure he\u2019s okay, did you guys check him over?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cNo! He said it was cool\u2014he broke a tooth though.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWell, that\u2019s not cool. Was he upset\u2014did he cry?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI guess\u2014a little.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cDid he go home, do his parents know? Is there someone to look after him?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cHis mom\u2019s a doctor, Mom. I think he\u2019s gonna be okay.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Elsa nodded. Sometimes she had to remind herself that she wasn\u2019t at work. Not every child\u2019s health issue was her burden to bear. \u201cWhat did you want Dad for?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI need help getting my chain back on.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI can help you,\u201d Elsa said, realizing there was probably more to his bike acrobatics than he was admitting.<\/p>\r\n
Elsa\u2019s feet danced a slow salsa in front of the wall-length dining room mirror, as one hand adjusted her lap top on the sideboard.<\/p>\r\n
The garage door ground slowly open. Heavy feet walked up the stairs. \u201cOnline Zumba?\u201d Hugo asked. His computer bag was slung across his shoulders, and he was holding an empty Pyrex dish, that contained remnants of last night\u2019s cabbage rolls.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cYup, starts in eight minutes.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWhere\u2019s Flora?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cOut with Wyatt, why?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI printed out the sheets she sent me,\u201d he said as slipped a manila folder from his computer case and placed it on the granite counter. \u201cWhere\u2019d they go?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u00a0\u201cWalking Leroy, downtown.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cIs that safe?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cThey\u2019re outside. They like to walk along the boardwalk by the lake. They\u2019re 19, it\u2019s the closest thing they can find to socialization\u2014was there anyone at the university?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI literally saw no one\u2014I didn\u2019t touch anything until I entered my office.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cHow is that possible? Did you wear gloves?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cNo.\u201d Hugo\u2019s face lit up with excitement. Like his son, he enjoyed talking about adventure. Though, Hugo\u2019s idea of adventure and Elsa\u2019s differed; she doubted the story would satisfy her interest. She\u2019d been disappointed many times before, not sharing his excitement for things that Elsa found ordinary and predictable. His goofy smile was not going anywhere.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cOkay, how\u2019d you do it?\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI held the fob above the port and then used my knee to hit the door button.\u201d Hugo demonstrated in pantomime, leaning forward to scan his imaginary fob and then swinging his knee up. \u201cI used my hip to open the handle to the staircase\u2014and then again to exit the stairs.\u201d Hugo swung hips from side to side abruptly. \u201cThen, I used the fob and my knee to get into the office.\u201d His movements were a dance, his energy captivating. Elsa held her face neutral. This was the greatest story Hugo had ever told. She was not going to let the moment pass by too quickly.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cShow me again, how you did it? It\u2019s fascinating,\u201d she said, with skillfully muted excitement.<\/p>\r\n
Hugo launched into the dance once again, this time it was smoother, without breaks between each step. His knee raised and lowered gracefully, followed by a sexy hip swivel and then abrupt hip bumps. Elsa\u2019s smile escaped. Hugo stopped. His face fell. \u201cYou\u2019re making fun of me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cNo, I love it. Seriously, it\u2019s the best thing that\u2019s come out of COVID\u2014I think you just invented the COVID jig. Do it again, please.\u201d Then she shouted, \u201cOscar, get your phone and film this\u2014it will go viral!\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Hugo shook his head and then walked down the hall to the master bedroom, where he would stay, watching the news or streaming a movie on his laptop, until Elsa demanded that he emerge and join the family in supper preparation.<\/p>\r\n
\u00a9 Mix Hart 2020<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"