Page 4

“You’re in my light.” Drew rolled their eyes and nudged past who they could only assume must be an amateur photographer.

“Get your own.” Rose shook her head as she continued snapping pictures.

They kept moving around each other, both trying to get the best shot they could at the oblivious love birds. The golden hour sun quickly hit its peak as Ellen and Finley walked through the blooming roses.

As Rose pulled ahead of Drew, they shook their head and picked up their pace. As they passed, they lightly sent an elbow at Rose’s arm, throwing off her shot.

Get out of my light.

4

ROSE

What is their problem?Rose rolled her eyes as she fell behind Drew, keeping left to maintain her frame.

Once the sun fell below the treeline, Rose lowered her camera.

From across the garden, Drew started packing up. “That’s it, I think.”

Finley ran up to them and shook their hand. “Thank you so much, Drew. It was so great meeting you, and I cannot wait to see those shots.”

“Yeah, of course. And congrats again to both of you.” Drew smiled, firmly shaking Finley and Ellen’s hands.

Rose walked up next to them and put an arm around Ellen.

“And you!” Ellen grinned at her. “You beautiful bastard, you kept the secret for so long. Having a friend do this just feels like a dream come true.”

Rose shrugged. “It was my honor, really.”

Ellen clapped her hands. “Maybe you guys could compare shots and send what both of you like?”

Drew stammered, clearly uninterested in working with Rose.

But Rose licked her teeth and nodded, “For sure. We’ll exchange info and figure it out.”

“Really? That would be so cool of you.” Finley looked at Drew, who had yet to confirm anything.

But Drew’s eyes darted to Rose as they clenched their jaw, anger swelling in their chest. “Sure. I’d love to.”

The couple beamed, too caught up in the joy of their special moment to notice Drew's clear reluctance. Finley exclaimed, "Great! How long do you think that will take?”

“A couple of weeks.” Drew cleared their throat.“Film takes a while to develop and process. Especially for digital scans.”

Rose tried not to roll her eyes at Drew’s pretentious attitude.

“Damn, really?” Ellen sucked her teeth as she looked at Finley.

Rose cut in with an eager grin. “I can get you some of mine tomorrow by the end of the day. Then you can post them on socials!”

Finley’s head fell backward, “Rose, you are a lifesaver.”

Rose shrugged, a light blush appearing on her soft cheeks. “You know I’ll do anything for you two.”

The group exited the Rose Garden and headed toward the park’s parking lot. Rose listened in as Finley and Ellen gushed about every detail of how they planned the engagement. But her attention kept getting drawn back to Drew, who was sullenly straggling behind the group.

They can’t even be pleasant.Rose rolled her eyes as she walked faster to match Ellen and Finley’s pace.

Once they exited the quiet gardens and were bombarded with the noise of Flatbush Avenue, Finley brought Rose in for a hug. “Thank you so much for keeping this secret for me.”