Aurora | H.S.

1. costal schmooze

The warm sun pools over me as I walk down the narrow sidewalks, crossing roads, walking around a woman with her baby carriage and past Jack's coffee shop, making note to stop there on my way home. Early mornings in Faycoast are slow as the tides that roll in at the shoreline. Most of the population consists of the elderly-retired people who prefer the quiet. And while there are a few schools, almost everyone in town knows each other, which could either be bad or good.

The cool sea breeze that blows over my sun burnt cheeks and through my hair always smells like home. The sandals on my feet clap on the concrete until I make my way to the large white door. A door that leads to my fate, it seems.

A fate I don't mind, however. Working in a flower shop hasn't been on The World's Top Worst Jobs television program that I (may or may not) watch late at night after Eliana goes to sleep. There's something peaceful about being one with nature-yeah, that totally sounds boring and pretentious. This flower shop has been my home since I was a baby, passed down each generation from my great grandfather to my grandmother and then to my mother.

But I still get stuck with early morning shifts.

The routine is as followed: head into the small shop, unpack my things; jacket, purse, water bottle, then realize I forgot my water bottle-again...turn on the old style register, recount the money, check the orders for today in the large book mom's had for years. Lastly, turn the closed sign around to have it reading open in the window. When my fatigue washes away and I get some sort of energy bubbling in me I put out the flower stands outside the store windows and soon enough this place looks like a magical garden.

The flowers that seem to grow from every angle of this store are of every color possible. I spend the first ten minutes watering what I can, spraying the cold water over them with the long hose and managing (thankfully) to not trip on it. The bells from the front door ring and I step to the side at the end of the isle and glance down to see Mrs. Winters, a lovely older woman with plush white hair smiling like always.

"Hello, Mrs. Winters. You look great today," I called out to her, considering her hearing loss as I make my voice a bit louder.

"Oh hello, dear!" The woman strides down, glancing over the flowers before looking back at me with her pale blue eyes. Her milky skin has a thick layer of blush on it like usual, giving her a rather lively flush. "Don't you ever get a break!"

I chuckled, "not typically."

"How's Eliana? It's been some time since I've seen her."

Just the thought of my little girl made my heart swell in my chest. It seemed she was the talk of the store, customers gushing about her adorable chubby cheeks every time she's here.

I reply as I wrap the hose back up, "she's with Ruby, you know, the babysitter. Then she'll head off to daycare at about," I glance down at my watch, "eleven. You're here for your order of Hydrangeas right, Mrs. Winters?"

"It's that time of the year," the woman gushed as we walked through the store, her walking behind me until I rounded the tall counter. I scratched her name off the order book page and headed to the back room, gathering her flowers and coming back to give them to her. She even had her basket ready.

"Thanks so much, dear."

"You're good to go, Mrs. Winters, my mom got your check last week."

"You know..." The impending doom was approaching. Here we go again. "My son just recently got divorced and I really think you should give him a call-"

I interject softly, "you know better," I scolded jokingly, "I am not looking for a man. We've gone over this so many times."

"You need a good bachelor, someone who can ruffle your feathers-if you know what I mean," she winked, smiling widely. I feel my cheek flush wildly as I shake my head and laugh.