apocalypse | charles leclerc ✓

chapter 5 | each unhappy family

«Scattered across my family line, I'm so good at telling lies. That came from my mother's side.»

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The woman placed her gardening tools down as soon as she noticed her standing in front of the shop, wiping the remaining dirt in her hands on the material of her apron. She approached her with a friendly smile, all teeth and niceness, Sloane jolted a little in surprise when the lady stood almost by her side. She'd been too engrossed in staring at the set of flowers in front of her to notice her presence. She did recover quickly and returned the gesture with a polite smile of her own.

The florist shop was a new addition to her street unless she'd been too blind before to catch sight of it in the first place. No, it was definitely a new thing. There were still some pots being unpacked and other things awaiting placement.

"Those are carnations." The lady clarified, motioning with her hand at the flowers she'd been studying mere minutes before.

Her lips parted in a small oh, and she nodded in understanding. "I thought they were marigolds. They look similar." Except the colours should've given away that they weren't marigolds, but she wasn't a flower expert anyway. "On that note, do you happen to have marigolds?"

With pursed lips and an apologetic expression, the florist shook her head. "Not at the moment, I'm afraid. We're in wedding season, and it's very hard to find marigolds around this time."

Her brows were slightly furrowed now. Not upset, but confused. "Marigolds are wedding flowers?" She received a silent nod in response. Her attention drifted back to the carnations. They were similar enough. "Are those wedding flowers as well?"

"They're more popular for funerals, I believe." Oh, okay. Not as romantic as marigolds it seemed. The florist caught her little grimace and softly chuckled. "But they're used in weddings as well. You could give them whatever meaning you want, really. The intention is what matters. Are you looking for flowers to give a boyfriend...or girlfriend?"

She shook her head. "No, no. I spotted the shop when I walked out of my building and maybe was curious to buy myself some flowers. For my flat, that was it. Are jasmines also hard to find during this wedding season?" Her tone was playful, and the lady chuckled.

"They're hard to find around this part of Europe all the time, but let me just," She motioned with her hand for Sloane to wait, and proceeded to wander inside the shop.

It was hard to view anything on the inside from where she was standing, but she made sure to follow the woman with her gaze until she walked back outside, holding something in one of her palms. There was a satisfied smile on her lips. She couldn't be older than Sloane's mother, with a far more sympathetic set of mannerisms and attitude though. Her mother would never smile that way to a stranger. Or anyone for that matter.

The first thing she looked at was the three seeds resting on the florist's palm. "If you're willing to try, these are jasmine seeds. It's not a flower I work with, but I brought them from Spain a few weeks ago for a friend. You might have some luck growing it."

Realistically, she didn't believe herself skilled enough to not kill all plants in existence but she could give it a try. If they died then gardening was definitely not on her list of talents. If they didn't, then she could pick a new hobby in the future. And perhaps get flowers out of it. Cute and useful.

She patted her pockets and wrinkled her nose. "I don't have any change with me now, but I live in that building over there so if you give me a moment I can go for some cash." With a finger, she pointed at one of the apartment units across the street.