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Rose entered the shop, a loud sigh escaping her full lips. The costumers were already looking at the colorful flowers, smelling the nice sent. They all appeared to be happy, a smile plastered on their faces. They tried their best to choose the most beautiful bouquet and had a bit of a hard time deciding. An older woman who worked in the shop named Elodie, helped them with their choices. She told them about the different kinds of flowers, what made each of them unique.
Elodie was a nice lady who worked at the shop, she sold the bouquets the girls made. She and Rose got along very well. They both shared an interest in the students plans, they both wanted to fight for equality in France and to break free from the rich who judged their opinions. Elodie was like a grandmother to the young lady, replacing the one she never knew.
Rose waved at her, Elodie smiled in response but was too busy for a chat since another costumer was asking for a special made bouquet. She fastly pointed at the freshly washed apron that rested over the chair behind the dark curtain. Rose thanked her for helping and strapped the white fabric around her waist, ready to walk in the workplace and start another day.
She entered the large place, the earthy smell filling her nostrils. The sun shined bright through the windows, lighting up the shop. Pieces of paint were flaking off the walls, giving it an antique look. The wooden desks fitting into that type of style. The large cabinets against the walls were made out of the same wood, making it look a bit monotone.
Rose always thought the workplace looked beautiful on the inside. She loved the large windows on, she loved the light blue color paint plastered on the walls, every flowers looking gorgeous against it. The pink dresses the girls were demanded to wear brought life in the shop, since the color was so playful yet feminine.
Rose knew that if she had a different boss and nicer people to work with, she would have loved her job and the thought of quitting wouldn't be running in her mind. She wanted to like it more in here, she wanted to enjoy her days with the flowers, but she couldn't. The environment was just too bad and destroying for a woman like her.
When the boss walked in, she could feel the tension rising. He was in a bad mood that day and Rose knew it was her fault. She tried to hide herself behind one of the younger workers, a girl that actually didn't dislike her. The person didn't do anything, she didn't help her but also didn't give her away to the boss. Yet he had seen Rose hiding, took her by the shoulder and placed her behind her desk.
He brushed some hairs behind her ear, looking at the bruise he himself had given her and laughed silently, seeing how easily hurt she was. He spoke to her in a deep and intimidating voice, whispering his threats to her. He didn't want the costumers to hear him, he didn't need them to know.
"Monsieur Dubois came here last night, do you have any idea why?"
"Because he loves the shop, Sir?", Rose asked.
"Stop acting like you don't know, Bruneau! He was here to complain about the service, saying that you were late and that flowers he got were destroyed! I don't like it when people complain about my shop!"
The man's spit landed on Rose's face, she was disgusted by his saliva on her cheek. Her fingers brushed it away, she closed her eyes when her skin touched the blue mark.
"It wasn't my fault. The streets were crowded and I couldn't get through it. Someone bumped into me and everything fell on the ground. The police was pushing them out of the streets, so I had to go a different way since they didn't know the difference between me and the protestors." Rose's voice was soft, she didn't dare to raise it, scared for his reaction and his actions in the future. She couldn't be disrespectful towards him, he would hurt her if she tried.
"You really believe that I am falling for that story, dear? I've seen you staring at them, you probably stayed there to see them protest, you might have joined them in their stupid plans," the boss screamed in her face, the fabric of Rose's collar in a tight grip. The young lady started shaking with her head, trying to tell him she didn't do anything wrong. The tears stood in her eyes, she was terrified. Her hands stopped him from closing his grip around her neck, scared he'll do something very bad to her.
"I'll give you one more chance, tomorrow you will bring him new flowers and you'll excuse yourself for the bad service. You'll tell him that it was all your fault and not the shop's. Do something stupid and I'll fire you. We both know that mommy and daddy won't like that!"
The boss grabbed Rose's face between his thumb and his index finger, demanding the girl to look at him. When she tried to turn her face away, he forced her eyes brutally back on him, having no patience whatsoever. He wasn't gentle with her, he was mad and reflected those emotions on Rose. He gave her more stress in her life than she already had, making her heartbeat go incredibly high.
She couldn't risk losing her job, she couldn't risk facing her parents with that, so Rose nodded with her head and thanked him for giving her a change. The boss let go of her and looked around to see everyone staring at the two, he demanded them to get back to their work and walked out the shop, his loud steps revealing how furious he was.
Rose fell to her knees, hiding her face in her hands. She felt so scared, it was crushing every thought in her head. She was unable to breath, her lungs didn't work like they should be working. It was as if someone placed a heavy object on her chest, crushing her with its weight. It had no mercy, it destroyed her. Rose was broken and she didn't know a way to become herself again.
