Petal

♬F♬

I was prepping my shop for its opening, hoping for some good business in this tiny area. I water the flowers and fertalize the shrubs, carefully trimming a few here and there. I let out a hefty sigh and turn to the clock. It's only 7:15, about an hour until I open.

"Maybe," I contemplate, taking off my gloves and placing them on the counter, "I'll go get some more sleep."

Though I left the floor, the scent of the flowers followed me up. It calmed me. Thinking of my schedule in the long run, I set a timer for thirty minutes and got in bed. After being rudely interrupted by the alarm I expected, I got a shower out of the way and threw on some comfy, cool clothes.

I throw a quick glance at the clock to realize that I'm running a couple minutes late, "Shit." I mumble to myself.

The rush to the door had me breathing hard, making me regret my choice to stay in bed. But I had to open, and I had to do it now. The window reveals a person, so I prepare a little message.

"Hello, welcome to Flower Artist, please forgive me for the late arrival. I'm Minghao, please call if you need any help." I take a closer look at this person as they pass through. I leave for a second to put up the sign and walk back in, and the person's already standing at the counter with a flower.

He pays, I wait, and soon there's a ring followed by quick feet.

"Haoie!" I hear small shrieks and laughs. I chuckle, scooping one of the kids into my arms. It seems I picked up Liu Qi, an adorable little girl with swirls of hickory hair.

I twirl one of her curls gently on my finger as I listen to all of the children going back and forth, telling of their most recent journey. Flying kites, throwing sticks, and even feeding the strays they find.

"Well that sounds wonderful!" I make sure to emphasize wonderful to cheer them on even more, "Sometimes I wish I could join you guys!"

There's a chorus of "Come with us!" and "Haoie please?" as we all strut to the door. I'm thankful that the lot of 'em have the decency to avoid bumping into the displays.

"Sorry kids, I have to work."

Once again, all of them break into their own little spiels of why I should go. They always manage to get me to the brink of actually leaving with them. My inner child temps me, but I stay strong and herd them out the door.

"You guys can go by yourselves, but be careful." I coo and pat a couple of them on the head, "I really have to work guys. How about I play this weekend, when I'm off?"

That gets them to finally cheer and leave, hopping about and poking at plants. What wonderful kids.

I quickly pivot and head back inside, letting my hands graze a couple of flowers on my way through the shop. I loved it. While it was my personal shop, and that probably made me biased, I loved my flowers most of all. As I make my way behind the counter again, the bell makes a 'ting' sound.

"Welcome!" I call, hearing footsteps walk around, "I'm here if you need anything."

He comes around the corner, staring at the flowers for a few seconds at a time.

I watch him discreetly, thinking to myself "He's kind of cute." as I brush off some dirt from the counter.

"Excuse me?" he asks quietly. His voice is gorgeous and it catches me by surprise.

"Hello," I smile cheerfully, "what can I help you with?"

"Well," he looks at me sheepishly, "What's the best way to say 'I hate you.' in flowers?"