The Elopement of Atticus & NEON

A cozy post-post-apocalyptic novella inspired by the song (Nothing But) Flowers by the Talking Heads.

In a world slowly unraveling under a gentle apocalypse, NEON—a flower merchant with a brain more AI than human—and Atticus—a shy farmer with fantasies of romance and freedom—are in love. In order to escape Atticus’s controlling stepfather and a community steeped in prejudice, they elope under the cover of night, determined to find a better future.

But the road ahead is as uncertain as their plan. Their love and the reluctant blessings of NEON’s eccentric robot family won’t be enough in the face of reality: they’ll need money, they’ll need jobs, and they’ll need a place to call home that accepts the couple’s union. As doubts and fears threaten to ruin their honeymoon before it’s even begun, NEON and Atticus must learn to trust not just each other but the rhythm of a world that may still hold a place for two unlikely lovers.