Rose squinted, hazel eyes scrunched up in concentration. A single drop of sweat made its way from her forehead to the petal-covered tattoos on her neck as she stared intently. Admittedly, she may have been a little over her head with this one. The design she was inking was one of the hardest in her collection, and it was only at a friend's request that she was doing it this time. Intricately designed and stretching long across his back, Rose had been working on it for nearly eight hours consecutively, a feat that was sure to impress even the hardest critic.
"Ouch!" Mickey yelped from the lounge chair beside her, flinching ever-so-slightly as Rose continued her work.
She grunted in response, only just resisting the urge to smack him for the sudden movement. "Hold still," she hissed through clenched teeth. It was very nearly done, just another swirl here and there, and- Ring! Rose whipped around, looking like hell in high heels as she cursed under her breath and held the ink pen aloft menacingly. (Alright, maybe all this inking was starting to get on her nerves.)
"Whoa, there," the intruder said, hands raised calmingly. The man shrugged off his military-esque coat, hanging it on a nearby coat rack. "Let's put the ink pen down, yeah?" Jack ran his hand through his hair, flashing a winning smile at Rose. She rolled her eyes. Nearly anyone else would've swooned at the motion, but not her. He was quite dashing, she admitted, but also far too cheesy for her tastes. Plus, he was taken.
"Hello, Jack," Rose sighed, turning around in her chair to get back to work. The old cuckoo clock that hung at the back of the shop proclaimed him to be nearly a quarter of an hour late, a common enough occurrence that she'd almost counted on it. She was accustomed to it by now, especially since he'd recently moved in with his boyfriend. They were cute, admittedly, but it meant that Jack was usually late to work since he now lived further away. She'd docked him pay at first, but he'd won her over eventually with little trinkets to decorate her desk with. Her coworker strolled up to the chair, eyeing Mickey's tattoo appreciatively.
He let out a low whistle. "How long'd that take?"
"Nearly eight hours," came Mickey's muffled answer, from underneath the lounge pillow he'd buried his face in.
Rose huffed. "It'll be longer if you struggle," she tutted, glaring at his back harshly. She vaguely registered Jack studying her with a frown, concern evident on his face.
"No breaks?" he asked.
"…No," she replied hesitantly.
"Food?"
"'Had a sandwich this morning."
"It's quarter past twelve."
"Yeah."
Tense silence hung over the parlour for the next few minutes, stressed and uneasy.
Finally, Jack grabbed the pen out of Rose's hands, holding it high above her.
"Oi!" she yelped, jumping up at it in vain.
"We both know this for your own good," he declared solemnly, holding the pen just above her (very limited) grasp.
Rose groaned, still reaching for her prized possession. "Jack, come on!" she protested.
Suddenly Jack sobered, placing a hand on Rose's shoulder earnestly. "Go, take a break." She suddenly noticed his worried frown, eyes looking into hers with genuine concern. "This is the third time this month, Rosie." He swallowed thickly, still staring at her unwaveringly. "I'm worried about you." Jack murmured. Rose looked away guiltily, focusing her stare on the unswept floor below them. There was still so much to do here, so much needed to be done.
Rose sighed. She really had been done the moment he'd looked her in the eye. Jack so rarely sobered up, it was hard not to take him seriously when he did. And as much as she hated to admit it, he did have a point. Maintaining a small, understaffed business in a small city took nearly everything she had, and sometimes there was hardly even any time to breathe. She rubbed her eyes wearily, stretching widely as she stood from her chair. Rose sighed. He did have a point… She rubbed her eyes wearily, stretching as she stood from the chair. "Don't muck up the design." Rose brushed his hand off but reached for her coat, swinging it over her shoulder as she walked out to the door. She'd never admit it, but maybe Jack was right… It couldn't hurt to check out that new flower stall, anyway.
Rose stepped outside the tattoo parlor and took a long breath of fresh air. It felt good to finally be free of the smell of ink and sterile cleaner. Jack's week-old chinese food didn't help, either. She shuddered at the thought, quickening her pace. Just next door to the parlour was a cafe, where Rose usually stopped by just before work. The owner was a good friend of hers, and a long chat wasn't uncommon between them during their breaks.
Rose pushed open the heavy doors, and was immediately bombarded busy customers. So much for peace and quiet, she mused as she narrowly avoided a businessman who seemed to be carrying three separate trays of coffee. Rose craned her neck, hoping to get a glimpse of her friend past the crowd gathering at the counter. Early afternoons were always a busy time at Unitea Cafe, an already popular venue, and come midday Martha was often drowning in customers. Over the crowd, Rose could just barely spot the barista bustling around behind the counter. Rose shoved her way past the customers roughly (to their heavy protest) and slid behind the counter, meeting eyes with Martha.
"Need a hand?" she asked, grinning.
Martha sagged in relief, enveloping the blonde in a tight hug. Her hair, typically neatly combed and tied, had escaped from its bun and was now flying around her freely in disheveled strands.
"Oh thank God," she practically sobbed into the blonde's shoulder. "Rose, I could kiss you right now!"
Rose laughed, pushing her away gently. "Better not, Mickey might get jealous," she winked.
Mickey was Rose's ex, now Martha's boyfriend. They'd had a mutual breakup a year ago when Rose had decided to open her tattoo parlor. Martha met him not long after, when he'd taken a summer job at the cafe to pay off some loans and the two had been dating ever since. As it turned out, it had only taken a nudge from Rose to get them together.
"Of me or you?" Martha asked, dusting off the front of her apron. Rose raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, good point. Anyway, you up for a bit of serving? I really need a bit of help around here."
Rose shrugged. "Sure, why not?" She followed the brunette, who gestured for her to come to the back.
Martha handed Rose a tray and placed a couple of drinks on it, turning around again to add some snacks onto it. Rose frowned as she was handed a second tray. "Shouldn't there be someone else here?" she asked, look around the empty storage room. She could've sworn there was at least one other person helping out at the cafe.
"Yeah, Tish was here up until a week or so ago." Martha grabbed another bun off the shelf and put it on Rose's tray, pursing her lips. "But she'd gotten a call about some high-class job or somethin' and had to move apartments 'n all that."
"Why don't you hire someone, then?" asked Rose, who was now struggle to balance the drinks and snacks Martha had handed her.
"Yeah, well tell me if you find anyone," the barista sighed, patting Rose's back as she headed out the door to the bustling crowd just beyond the counter. "I doubt anyone'd put up with this for the little pay I'm offering."
It was a good half hour or so until the crowd started to thin out, and by then Rose had had enough waitressing to last her a lifetime, God knew how Martha did it every day.
"'M really sorry about keeping you here," the brunette apologized later, when everyone had gone and the two were wiping the tables. "You can take some change out of the tip jar if you like, you were a big help."
Rose laughed. "Don't worry about it, it was fine. I needed something to take my mind off things anyway," she added.
"Yeah, I know what you mean. Too much bustlin' around nowadays, huh?"
Rose nodded, wiping another table clean.
Martha looked up, placing her hands on her hips. "Tell you what, I hear there's a new flower stall around. Why don't you have a look?"
The blonde raised an eyebrow at her friend. "I'm a bit busy for that, don't you think?"
"Oh, come off it! You're on break, aren't you?" Martha huffed, spraying the table she was cleaning once more. By now it was practically a mirror, clear and shiny as the day it had been made.
Rose sighed. "Well…"
"If it helps, I hear the owner's got a cute bum," she winked.
"Martha!"
"What? Mickey isn't here!"
Rose pondered the idea for a moment more. "Fine. But only because I'm here on break, not 'cause of… that other thing." she sniffed, staring Martha down disapprovingly.
"Right, sure ," the brunette said, wiping her brow as she set the cleaning supplies aside. Martha grinned at her conspiratorially. "Get going, then, before your break ends!"
"Alright, alright, I'm out!" Rose grinned, hanging up her apron and shrugging on her jacket. According to her friend, the flower shop was a block or so away, right near the Clements tower, where the city square was. It wasn't a bad place to set up a stall, really, the area around there was always filled with hustle and bustle from what Rose remembered. She'd considered setting up her parlour there when she'd first opened up, too, but decided against it because of the commute. Powell Street wasn't too shabby for business anyhow, and she quite liked having a number of attractions near her workplace. A chilly wind blew through the area and Rose shuddered, teeth shaking as it ruffled her hair and sent shivers through her body. The blonde shoved her hands into the pockets of her long vest coat, grumbling something about cold winds and warmer weather.
Rose froze suddenly. She felt around her pockets, frowning. There was something there, something that hadn't been there before. She pulled out a ten dollar bill, examining it carefully. Of course; Martha. She must've slipped it into her coat pocket as Rose was working, intent on offering a reward in some way or another. Rose shook her head, sighing. Her friend was stubborn as ever, that was for sure. There was a post-it attached to the bill, too.
'Make sure your first date's at the cafe! ;)'
Rose made a face. She huffed, crumpling up the paper and depositing it at a nearby trash can with a frown. Martha was always trying to set her up with someone in one way or another, either through a friend or signing her up for speed-dating. Rose wasn't all that interested in romance anyway, the tattoo parlor was really all she needed. Besides, she'd had some… unsavory experiences with a bloke some years back that didn't exactly have her rushing back into the dating scene. She had her friends, her job, and her family. What more could she want, really?
Before she knew it, Rose had arrived on Galley Way, where the flower stall was supposed to be. As expected, it was a busy sort of square, filled with people walking to and fro. Galley Way was a popular tour destination, from what Rose knew from the brochures that often found their way into her hands. There was a market near here that was popular with the children, and a cheese store that got visited often enough. City performers were nearly always there as well, and it was common knowledge that you could make a quick buck or two selling trinkets to the tourists that often passed by the area. Rose herself had done it when she was younger and had an hour to spare between work shifts and classes. Jack definitely still did, though his baubles could almost be called scams with how expensive they were. In any case, it had been long enough since Rose last visited that there were a few tents and stalls around unrecognizable to her, and she spent a few minutes strolling around looking at each one.
One stood out above the rest, however, the canvas roof of it a deep navy blue. It was lined with flowers of all sorts, too, each flourishing beautifully. Their myriad of colors stood out starkly against the otherwise dull city square. Rose grinned, making her way to the vividly-hued stall eagerly. This must be the stall Jack and Martha were talking about, surely. Amidst the array of flowers, she could see a man flitting about behind the counter. He was wearing a florist apron and a long blue collared shirt rolled up at the sleeves. He seemed to be busy arranging the flowers inside of the stall, well-combed hair flouncing about in an almost comical manner as he did so.
"Excuse me?" Rose asked, an amused smirk playing across her lips. The man didn't seem to notice her, still moving about busily. He was oddly captivating to watch, in the same way one could never quite take their eyes off a bouncing cockatoo. "Hello?" she rang the odd gold-colored bell on the counter once for good measure, raising an eyebrow.
That seemed to get his attention. The florist seemed to perk up, spinning around to face her with a lively, beaming sort of smile. "Oh! Hello," he grinned boyishly, wiping his water-soaked hands on his apron as he did so. "Sorry about that, the shop needs a bit of sorting out before I can really get to organizing my things," the man admitted plainly. "Of course, you're welcome to browse about if you'd like," he gestured sweepingly to the flowers surrounding him, accidentally cuffing one or two of them as he did so.
Rose beamed back. "Sure, yeah. I'd like, that." She waited a moment or two for him to introduce himself, looking around for a shop name. "I'm Rose," she offered, extending a hand to him.
He took it eagerly. "James," the man grinned. "Sorry, did I hear Rose? Like the…?" James gestured to her neck, and Rose touched her tattoo lightly, a series of floral rose vines adorning her neck.
"Yeah, silly idea for a tattoo, I know," she shrugged. She'd gotten it a year ago when Jack had first signed on, as a sort of initiation. It had been a risky move, Rose was well aware, but turned out beautifully inked. Jack claimed it was due to his superb inking skills, Rose claimed it was her ornate design. Either way, it had been their first combined effort, one that they both secretly treasured.
"No, no, I quite like it," he said, staring at her in a way that made Rose blush. He was getting awfully close now, not that she minded. She was going to have to thank Jack and Martha when she got back. "It's beautiful." James seemed to remember himself suddenly, and jerked away, widening the gap between them. "Sorry, did you come by for something?"
Rose nodded, ignoring the disappointed feeling that was beginning to bloom in her. "My friend runs the Unitea Cafe nearby, and she sent me to get some flowers for the front counter," she explained. "Just a simple bouquet should do."
"Sure thing!" James turned to pick a few flowers from the back shelf, still chattering pleasantly over the shoulder. "So, the Unitea Cafe, huh? That's just a couple blocks away, right?"
"Yup," Rose answered, popping the p. Some of these flowers were really very well-grown, she thought, cupping a nearby carnation carefully with her hand. They wouldn't make bad art references, either. "I work nearly right beside her, so I usually drop by for a cuppa before work, too." A shaft of light peeked through the clouds suddenly, bathing the two of them in golden sun.
James beamed at her through the sunlight, an assortment of various vividly-colored flowers gathered in his arms. "That sounds great," he smiled, wrapping them together with a small tie. "I've only just moved here, so I'm afraid I haven't had the chance to get to know the area."
Rose nodded. Cardiff was quite a big place, and even navigating the transit system was a challenge without a guide. "I can show you around, if you like," she offered, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "Tomorrow, after lunch?"
"Sounds great," he chuckled. "Oh! Right, I should probably give you this." James reached into his apron pocket and pulled out a business card, handing it to her with a flourish. "Where should I meet you?"
She took it eagerly. "Unitea Cafe, 2 o'clock. How much do I owe you for this, anyway?" Rose asked, taking the bouquet from his hands.
"30 pounds," James chirped, reaching back into the shop to grab something. Rose handed him the bill, blushing lightly when he handed her a rose in exchange. "Consider it a first-customer bonus," he winked. "Tell your friend I said hi, too."
"Will do!" Rose grinned, as she turned to the direction of the tattoo parlour. A pink and yellow rose, huh? She smiled, fingering the petals lightly. It was beautiful.