The Yellow Hibiscus

Chapter 1

Wednesday, April 22, 2015, 1:09 P.M

There were two flower shops blocks away on 86th and Lexington Avenue. Since I moved into the neighborhood, I’d never been inside either of them. The first florist, ‘Every Bloomin Thing’ had a middle-aged man and a young girl attendant behind the counter. I was their only customer. The man was sorting and packing boxes of newly arrived flowers. As he passed me by, I noticed his name tag which read ‘Juan Luiz’.

“Can I help you?” she asked, politely straightening her thick-lensed glasses as I approached. Her name tag read ‘Lucy.’ The glasses attributed a tinge of maturity to her smooth unblemished copper-colored face, from which her hair had been swept back into French braids. When she smiled warmly at me, her smile exposed intricately wired orthodontic work. I showed her the now limp stalks of the flowers Willoby had given me.

She smiled again as she confessed that she had no idea what kind of flowers they were.

“I’ll check with Juan.”

She beckoned him over. He carefully examined the flowers and seemed also confused. For them to appreciate a more realistic specimen, I showed them the Diamond with the fresher flower embedded inside.

Lucy and Juan furtively exchanged glances, which betrayed suspicion and awe. They…