where flowers bloom [Scherzo & Itzal]

[kap]

"The flower that follows the sun"

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Last night was a busy night at the shop. I had to stay open late so as to accommodate all of the customers that were coming in. As a florist, busy days are rare for me, but when I get them, they can be both a blessing and a little bit of a curse.

The blessings that come with it are that I don't have to stand around all day doing nothing, I make some extra money, and I get some social interaction with the people of the District who decide to come in.

The curse, or perhaps the better word to use would be the 'cons' of having a busy day as a florist, are that some people complain when you're busy. You get rude customers who aren't happy with the wait, and there's no one else to help them but me, so it can get kind of stressful. Another con of it would be that I sometimes have to stay open extra hours, missing out on my social life and other things that I want to do.

Last night, by staying open late, I was also rather tired, and had to get up early to open the shop this morning. It was about seven o'clock in the morning when I opened the shop, meaning I had to be awake quite some time before that. Luckily, the first hour or so of the florist shop being open was relatively quiet, so I had some time to myself and didn't have to be too attentive to people or things while I was as tired as I was.

Around eight thirty in the morning, an hour and a half after opening, the bell on the door jingled for the first time that day. Someone entered, and I greeted them kindly.

"Welcome to Sinclair and Saxon," I said cheerily. The shop used to just be called Sinclair's, but when I started doing most of the work for Lady Sinclair, she renamed the shop to include my name. That made me feel quite good about myself.

"How can I help you today?" I offered to the customer who'd decided to stop in.

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"does so even in cloudy days."

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quote by Robert Leighton

table by Kaplan

In this thread:
marguerite harvard d2a (zori) as Itzal Usoa
kap as Scherzo Saxon

[marguerite harvard d2a (zori)]

"Don’t wait for someone to bring you flowers."

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I had gotten up early that morning to put the coffee on and to make sure that I got the porridge boiled before my mother or sister had come into the kitchen. This time of year always weighed on all of us, and I’d found that by doing little things for both of them made the mornings easier.

It often felt hard to wake from the sound of the chirping alarm clock, especially as dark as it was. Sleep still sat on my eyes, and it felt easier to turn over under warm sheets and sleep through to the afternoon. And so it was for my mother and sister, too, that they felt rousing only when some of the heaviness had lifted from the night before. But each morning felt like a slog, with all the days starting to run up against one another.

Even as I lit the blue flame on the stove with a match and put the tin atop, I dreamed of catching another hour or so of sleep. Thankfully a good cup of coffee and a list of to-do’s would keep the thought at bay. It was a trick that I’d learned a few years ago, that by listing out all the things that I had to do that day, I could keep myself pressing forward. That way I could break apart what stood in my way with a tic against every part of my list that got accomplished. I know it sounded silly, but there was a bit of satisfaction in checking off each piece.

I finished off a cup of coffee strong enough to chew and tucked my coat over my shoulders, readying to meet the day. Today I wasn’t working in the processing plant, which meant that I could spend it doing all the little chores that needing doing. The first of which was something for my mother and sister (and I suppose myself, too). I stepped out onto the gravel path and out toward the street into town.

As I approached the shop with fancy lettering along the side, I couldn’t help but smile. Flowers were a luxury that richer families in the district could splurge on. For us, they were reserved for special occasions – of which my mother would say there were none – and so I’d spent more time gazing into the shop than actually ever having set foot. Today, though, I’d scrounged together a savings from pinching pennies and socking away unspent lunch money.

‘Welcome to Sinclair and Saxon. How can I help you today?’ I stared over at the young man with a smile. How nice it must’ve been to be able to work in a flower shop. I spent my days separating fat from the remnants in a giant vat that helped to make soaps.

“Thank you. Yes. I’m looking for something for my mother and sister.” I turned to look at a set of peonies and stared off at a collection of red roses. “You have a lovely shop. I’m sorry I haven’t been in here sooner.”

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"Plant your own garden and decorate your own soul."

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quote by Luther Burbank

table by Kaplan