“Asshole.”
“Extraordinaire,” I mumble and take a long drink of my vanilla latte.
“You know that there are good guys out there, right?”
“And you have experience with this.”
She bites her lip. “Yeah, what the hell do I know. Mine was just as bad as yours.”
“Oh, I think yours might take top placement, but that’s okay. It shouldn’t be a competition for the worst! Men!”
Cali sticks her head around the door edge into the breakroom. “I can only imagine what you’re talking about with that word.” She sighs. “But…we’re starting to pick up, so…” Her head tips. “Some help?”
Cali and Mari own this unique establishment. And they are as unique as it is.
Mari jumps to her feet. “Be right there!”
I stand. My break is officially over. I look at the paper on the table and shove it into my bag. I don’t need to look at it. It’s the end.
I just want a new beginning.
Joel
I pullin front of the address that Mom told me to go to and I look to the sign.
That’s what it says and that’s what she said.
I chuckle to myself.That’s what she said.My inner twelve-year-old boy comes out.
Dirty Hoes Plants & Décor.
I thought Mom was kidding when she told me to come here for a gift for Grammy’s ninetieth birthday.
Apparently not.
I pull on the door and a chime sings a happy little ring. I smile at the sound. It’s not happy, it’s bright.
“Be right with you!” comes from somewhere to my right, but with the jungle like interior, it’s hard to know exactly from where.
I hear someone grunting in the corner. “Take your time,” I call out.
“Okay, thanks. Having a little issue.”
“Anything I can help with?”
“No…no. I’ve got it. Promise. Be right there.”
I wander around and find plastic strips cascading down from a doorway, leading to the exterior greenhouse.
Bet the roses are out here.
They aren’t exactly household plants, more garden wares. At least that would make sense to me, but I’m a fish out of water here.
I slide to a halt. The building is filled with every type of summer plant that I’ve never seen. Plants with big leaves that look like…well, that’s a good name for that…elephant ear. Fitting. I look at a few other plants and some of them say “cultivar” and some say “native”, and some don’t say anything. I wonder the difference but keep on the rocky path they’ve created to keep everything off the ground. There must be 1000 pounds of crushed granite on this floor. My job hauling rock from the quarry gives me the knowledge to give that assessment.
Rock hauling is a job. It’s not my dream. My dream was to play football. Professional, but those statistics—only .00075% of all high school football players make it to the NFL—are painfully true. I went to the scouting combine for three years, played a little arena ball, and then just gave up. I’m one of the 99.925%. It’s not a great group when football is all you ever wanted.
And it hurts to give up on a dream.