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“Mayor Juliana, the East Downtown District has plans to petition tonight’s city council meeting. They want to ask for the new sidewalk project to be only taxed and given to the West Side. They say they don’t need the sidewalks and they don’t want to pay for anyone else’s,” her assistant said as they marched along the halls of the Public Works Department.

Speaking of pay, Juliana Humesier felt she wasn’t paid enough. Being the mayor of her city meant she was also the Chief Administrator. And it seemed, Chief Officer of Every Problem.

“That meeting is not until seven. Call their representative and see if he can make a counter argument for them.”

“I tried. He already met with them. When he said that if someday, they need infrastructure the West Side will help pay for theirs, he was booed out of the room.”

Closing her eyes, Juliana tried to suppress the headache she felt coming. She loved East Downtown, she really did. The community had the type of people driven to work hard to become successful. But because of that, they also felt that each person was responsible for their own and that charity must be a choice. She respected them, but if the city didn’t solve the west problem soon, they’d have more pedestrians hit by cars. This year alone two accidents occurred. The rapid development in the area meant more suburbs, but the developers wouldn’t build sidewalks in between the new neighborhoods. It was hard to try to make everyone somewhat happy. But that is what compromise is.

Mayor Juliana opened the outside door where Robbie waited in idling Public Works truck.

“Just try to hold the fort. I’ll meet you there tonight. I’m going with Robbie here to look at Gibson Park.”

“Have fun!”

Juliana heard the sarcasm in her assistant’s voice. It was a dry task. Juliana would review the results of their landscaping plan and whether it would disrupt rain runoff.

Robbie drove slowly. He had folk music playing and proudly spoke about what he and his crew created. When he mentioned roses, Juliana perked up. They rarely planted flowers in the city. People and pets would trample them, they were expensive to maintain, there were complaints about allergies. The list went on. As they pulled into the park, Juliana saw what he described. Yellow roses opened themselves in soft colorful pops. They decorated the entrance of the park and made it feel welcoming. She felt herself smile.

Juliana needed color in her life. She always felt that the City Hall was too brown, too square, too austere. Yes, she understood it was a government building, but it was as though the previous council years past wouldn’t afford even the slightest bit of beauty. Only a bronze statue of the City’s founder was in the entryway. There were no murals. The few paintings they had were generalized sepia colored 1970s landscapes whose subject could have been any open field. Even her office was stuck with black electronics and neutral furniture. She had the state flag in her office, her degrees, her nameplate. Tall filing cabinets took up most of the wall space.

Robbie guided her around this park. Well-worn dirt paths worn into the short, trimmed grass. Old play equipment was showing signs of paint peel and rust. Robbie pointed out the newly planted trees along a ditch.

“They’re too close together and too close to the cement. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to replant them.”

He frowned. “That may kill them.”

“If we don’t do it, we’ll have busted up equipment in a few years. The roots will destroy them,” Juliana tried to say something positive, “but the bushes you planted over there are a good choice. Same with what’s planted in the drainage. They will absorb a lot of water and help slow flooding in the neighborhood backing this park.”

He nodded. Juliana might have been strict, but she did recognize good work whenever she saw it.

“I’m going to take a walk around. Let’s meet up in ten.”

Strolling along the trodden paths, Juliana wondered if they should lay cement on any of them. She sighed. Even if she wanted to, it would be yet another thing the city would struggle to afford.

She breathed in the air. It had a slight taint from the nearby factories. The smell was unmistakable. She breathed in deep again and enjoyed the sun on her skin. Even if it was imperfect, she needed a moment to stop and find peace from the busy office. That moment was too short and gone before long.

Turning, she looked back to find Robbie.

As she stepped around, she found that she only stepped down into air.

A sensation of falling terrified her. Her body tilted face-forwards to the earth, but her step wasn’t finished. She’d stepped past the earth and passed a thin, light barrier. Disoriented, she lost consciousness.