Blooming: Part 3

The pharmacy’s bells jingled as Rose unlocked the doors and stepped into the dark store. She tucked her keys into her pocket, closed the door behind her, and flicked on the neon ‘OPEN’ sign hanging in the window. As she turned to walk to the back of the store to turn the lights on, she crept as slowly as she could down the aisles so that she wouldn’t have to turn the lights on just yet. She had always been more comfortable in the dark.

As Rose walked down one of the aisles with bandages and healing ointment stacked on the shelves, she spotted a box of bandages near her head, lit up by the faint glow of the streetlights that stood outside the pharmacy. The box had a brightly-colored cartoon character displayed on the packaging… it seemed familiar, but Rose moved past it quickly.

She continued to make her way to the back of the store and flipped on all the light switches when she reached the back wall. The dim fluorescent lights took a second to flicker on above her head and she smiled at the thought of having a random power outage right as her shift began. Gino, her manager, would be furious if the electricity went out again while she was on duty. It wasn’t her fault though, right? It’s not like Rose controlled the rain or the lightning, or was friends with Rob the electricity guy, who happened to be divorced and very, very lonely… And anyways, what reason would Rose have for cutting the power? Gino was always accusing her of messing around in the breaker box to get out of working, but he didn’t know how much she needed the money. Gino didn’t ask, and Rose didn’t care to tell him. It wasn’t his business anyway.

She turned and surveyed the sad, dingy store laid out in front of her and sighed. The walls were in need of a new paint job and a couple of the ceiling tiles had stains from water damage. The carpet was worn and in some places, had holes big enough to see the concrete underneath. And to top it all off, the whole place smelled like a mix between a dead lady’s house and a doctor’s office. What a place to be at nine p.m. on a Saturday. Although, the strangest people always came in on Saturdays. Rose had an unsettling feeling that today was going to be very, very interesting.

…

Walgrans was quiet until about 11:20 that night. 19-year old Stephanie Smith staggered in, obviously drunk, with a new fake ID, trying to buy beer for her friends, but she always seemed to forget that she’d gone to school with Rose. Luckily for Stephanie, Rose couldn’t give less of a shit about what Stephanie and her friends planned to do, so Stephanie walked out of Walgrans at 11:27 with hands full of liquid regret.

Then it was time for wrinkly old Mrs. Harris to make her nightly visit. She always came in asking Rose if she had seen her “beloved angel Morris”. Unfortunately for Mrs. Harris, her cat Morris had gone ‘missing’ two months back and no one in their part of Arlington had the heart to tell her that the principal of the high school down the road had run him over when it was dark out one night.

“Mrs. Harris, maybe you should consider getting a new cat,” Rose said, watching as Mrs. Harris wandered aimlessly up and down the aisles. Every couple of seconds, she would stop to consider some lotion or a bottle of cold medicine, and then move on like she had better places to be.

“Oh, I could never,” the strange old lady said. “Morris was my one and only love, and he will come back to me. Just you wait.”

Rose didn’t think that would happen, what with Morris’s remains being twelve feet underground and all, but there was no way she was going to be the one to break the news to Mrs. Harris.

Rose stepped out from behind the register and walked over to the bandage aisle where she saw Mrs. Harris examining the same box of bandages that Rose had been looking at a couple hours earlier. Again, she felt that twinge of familiarity, but ignored the urge to stop and figure out why she knew that box.

“Mrs. Harris, have you found what you needed?” Rose asked.

Mrs. Harris chuckled.

“Rosalie, the only thing I need is my cat and a good night’s sleep,” she replied, making intense eye contact with Rose. Rose’s eye twitched involuntarily at the mention of her real name, but kept a polite smile on her face.

“Could I walk you home, then? It’s dangerous to be out at this time of night,” Rose said. This was also part of their nightly routine. Again, Mrs. Harris chuckled, and said softly, “That would be nice, dear.”

Rose offered Mrs. Harris her arm and they made their way to front of the store. Rose thought about how odd the pair of them must look walking together, with Rose’s one brown eye and one green eye, and Mrs. Harris’s crooked back and neon pink dress that she always insisted on wearing, because someone had once told her that it was ‘her color’.

They reached the front doors and as Rose paused to lock up the store, she felt Mrs. Harris put her hand on Rose’s shoulder. She turned and found the old woman looking at her with a worried expression and wide eyes and felt a feeling of alarm sweep through her.

“Are you okay, Mrs. Harris? What’s wrong?” Rose asked. Mrs. Harris beckoned Rose closer, like she was going to tell her a secret. Rose bent her head towards the shorter woman.

“I think… I think someone is watching you tonight,” Mrs. Harris whispered. Rose pulled back in surprise, but Mrs. Harris grabbed Rose’s head, holding their faces close together.

“I came into the store tonight because I felt like I had to protect you, but I don’t think I can,” Mrs. Harris continued, her milky eyes boring into Rose. “I can feel them watching you. You must be careful tonight, Rosalie.” Mrs. Harris released Rose’s face and stepped back, smiling, like she’d just told Rose a funny joke.

“I think it’s time we get going, don’t you?” She said cheerfully, once again taking Rose’s arm. She started to step forward, but Rose stopped her and spun around to face Mrs. Harris.

“Mrs. Harris, what on earth do you mean they’re watching me? WHO is watching me?” She asked, wondering if maybe the old lady had finally lost her mind. Mrs. Harris stared back at her blankly.

“Rosalie, I’m quite sure I don’t know what you mean. Are you feeling well?” Mrs. Harris said, reaching up to feel Rose’s forehead. Rose caught her hand and held it midair.

“Please, Mrs. Harris. You just said someone was watching me!” Rose exclaimed, feeling frustrated. It was definitely too late for this kind of nonsense. Mrs. Harris chuckled softly as if she were remembering something pleasant. She leaned in again and whispered, “They’re listening, too,” before kissing Rosalie on the cheek and saying, “You always make me laugh, dear. Let’s be on our way.”

Rose, deciding that it was best to not argue, faked a smile and turned to begin walking in the direction of the old woman’s house. The only reason she’d offered to walk Mrs. Harris home was because her house was so close to the pharmacy and she knew that the residential neighborhoods were full of criminals and drug dealers at night, but it now seemed like it had been a mistake to offer Mrs. Harris an opportunity to mess with her.

A couple minutes later as the two reached the front porch of Mrs. Harris’s house, Rose helped Mrs. Harris up the steps and turned to say goodnight. Instead, she found Mrs. Harris again looking up at her with a look of warning.

“Rosalie, the world is not safe tonight. Be careful, dear,” She whispered, and opened her front door. She turned around one last time to smile and said, “Thank you so much for walking me home. It’s nice to have company these days.” Rose looked at the old woman, suddenly thankful for her concern, and gave her a real smile.

“Call me if you need anything, Mrs. Harris,” Rose said, and added quietly, “I’ll close up early tonight.” Mrs. Harris nodded and closed the door. Rose stared at the faded wood for a second before turning and walking down the driveway. Mrs. Harris was strange, definitely, but she meant well. When Rose reached the sidewalk, she turned to look at Mrs. Harris’s house one last time and saw the old woman watching her from an upstairs window. Feeling unsettled, Rose quickly walked back to Walgrans, not wanting to be out in the dark any longer.

…

Before Rose reached the pharmacy, she suddenly remembered why that box of bandages had felt so familiar to her. As she stopped walking on the cracked sidewalk to pin down the faint memory, she felt the details come flooding back to her.

It was a perfect sunny day in the middle of July. Rose and her best friend Lili had gone out to get ice cream cones because they’d helped a nice lady in a pink dress mow her lawn and she’d given the pair of young girls $10. On their way to the little ice cream shop in the busy part of city, Rose and Lili had begun to race. It was always a competition with them, and this afternoon was no different. They’d raced through the crowded streets, pushing people aside and laughing as the strangers yelled obscenities after them. It had felt like they were flying, racing above the steaming gravel road and feeling the July heat blowing across their faces. They could see the ice cream shop in the distance and Rose and Lili were neck and neck. Suddenly, Rose tripped on a crack in the sidewalk and tumbled head over heels into the street. Hearing Rose fall, Lili stopped to look back and starting yelling at Rose. She was running and screaming, but Rose couldn’t hear her. All of a sudden, Rose heard the blast of a car horn and looked to her left to see a huge red truck barreling down the street towards her. She could still hear Lili screaming and she tried to move out of the way but she was frozen on the ground. And just as the truck reached Rose, the nice lady in the pink dress appeared and yanked Rose out of the street and into safety. The lady pulled Rose into her arms while Rose cried and looked at all the tiny scrapes all over her arms and legs. Lili finally ran back to them as the woman was saying, “Now, don’t ever do that again.” Apparently, she had followed them after the girls had mowed her lawn to make sure they made it to the ice cream shop. After Rose had stopped crying, the lady bought them ice cream and the boy working at the shop had found some colorful bandages in the back. Lili and the lady had helped Rose put the bandages with the cartoon character all over her legs and arms. After all that had happened that day, at least the girls still got their ice cream.

Rose sank back to reality and shook herself mentally. She started walking back to the store again. Man, what a young memory. That had been back when she’d first met Mrs. Harris, and when she was still friends with Lili. Lili had moved away for college a year ago, but Rose had never quite sorted out her anger at her childhood best friend. They’d known each other their whole lives, but they were just too different. However, it was cold outside, and Rose didn’t like to dwell on the past.

As Rose approached the storefront, she reached into her pocket for the keys and felt a wave of panic wash over her as she realized that her keys weren’t in her pocket. Or her back pockets. Or her shoes. She paced back and forth in front of Walgrans, wondering what she was going to tell Gino. How could she possibly have lost her keys when she was so sure that she’d put them in her pocket? Also, the store was dark, and she could’ve sworn she’d kept the lights on when she’d left. Apparently, she couldn’t remember anything.

Suddenly, a tall figure stepped out of the shadows beside the building and Rose jumped a mile. After realizing it was only Razor, one of her best friends from high school, Rose breathed a sigh of relief and pressed pressed her hand over her heart.

“Good grief, Razor, what on earth are you doing here?” She asked, becoming more confused by the second as she thought about what possible reason he had to be at the pharmacy at 12:00 in the morning.

“I believe you’re looking for these?” He said, stretching out a hand as he walked towards her. Taking a step in his direction, Rose saw that he was holding her keys.

“How do you have my keys? I was sure I put them in my pocket!” She exclaimed, jogging forward and grabbing her keys to inspect them. Razor smiled as he watched her.

“I saw you drop them when that crazy old lady grabbed you when you left earlier. I was going to talk to you then, but I figured it would be best to talk without the company of that lunatic,” he explained. Rose straightened and looked at Razor. He was still smiling warmly, but something felt off about his story. Why would he let Rose walk Mrs. Harris home by herself? Razor knew better than anyone how dangerous it was in this neighborhood. He’d been given his nickname because when he ten and Rose was eight, he was attacked by a couple of teenagers with razors. After that day, he was left with a jagged scar that reached from the top of his left eyebrow to the tip of his nose that also sealed his left eye shut. He looked intimidating, but Rose had gone to school with him her whole life, until he’d graduated 2 years before her. So why would he leave her alone at this time of night?

Rose tucked her keys into her pocket and began walking towards the pharmacy doors.

“Mrs. Harris isn’t a lunatic,” she said, feeling a need to defend the old lady. “She was only worried about me. Besides, you still haven’t told me why you’re here.”

Razor followed her as she unlocked the doors of the dark pharmacy and stepped inside. As they made their way to the back to turn on the lights, he said, “I just wanted to see how you’re doing. I know how lonely the night shift gets, so I thought I would keep you company.”

Rose glanced at him to see if he was joking, but he looked serious. She frowned.

“Why visit me tonight, though? I’ve barely seen you since last May,” She asked, starting to feel suspicious. He’d come to visit her for her graduation, but had to leave immediately afterwards. Something about college finals? Whatever the real reason was, he hadn’t bothered to call or text her since then, and if she knew anything about Razor, she knew that he’d much rather sleep than walk over to the pharmacy in the middle of the night. Not that she was mad or anything…

Razor chuckled and slung his arm around her shoulders.

“What, I can’t visit my favorite 19 year old? Come on, Rosalie, don’t be like this. Honestly, I meant to call you, I just didn’t have time.” At the mention of her real name, Rose stiffened and pulled his arm off of her as they walked.

“Well, you’re definitely not my favorite 21 year old. And don’t call me Rosalie, you know how I hate that,” she said, stopping in the middle of the bandage aisle. In the dim light from the streetlamps, his good eye seemed to glow as he looked at her. “I know you, or at least, I thought I did, and I know that there’s no way you’d come all this way to visit me if it weren’t important. Please, just tell me what’s going on,” She said, growing anxious. The more she thought about it, the more something felt wrong. She’d dropped her keys, but she knew- she knew- that she hadn’t turned the pharmacy lights off, because she was coming right back. And if Razor was the one who’d grabbed her keys, he was the only one who could’ve been inside the store. He’d changed ever since they’d stopped hanging out. What had he done while she was gone?

Razor stared at her in the dark, still smiling. Always smiling.

“Rosie, you’ve got no reason to worry, but you have to promise me you won’t freak out if I tell you why I’m really here,” He said, stepping towards her. Rose crossed her arms over her chest.

“I won’t freak out if you just tell me what’s going on instead of just standing there and being weird,” Rose said nervously. She watched as he stepped closer and closer. Alarm bells were ringing in her head and she started to think of escape plans if worst came to worst.

“You’ve noticed the lights are off, right?” Razor asked. Rose nodded, glancing around at the dark store. To anyone outside, it would seem that the pharmacy was closed for the night. Razor took one more step and then he was right in front of her. He shifted his weight from foot to foot, suddenly looking nervous.

“I had to turn them off because of what I’m about to ask you to do.” Rose tensed. She’d never seen Razor be nervous like this before. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

“Rosie, you know I work for the Kings, right?” Razor sighed. “I came here because we need your help.” Rose could feel his stare holding her in place. Hold on, pause. What did he just say to her? She rolled her eyes.

“Oh, fancy that. You don’t bother to call me or text me for a whole year and then when you finally decide to visit, it’s because the Kings need my help? Please. Like I would ever help you.” Rose started pacing in front of Razor. “And let me guess- the all powerful Kingpin has a cold and he sent you to pick up some NyQuil. Well, if you needed cold medicine, you could’ve kept the lights on. Don’t bother me again,” she said, bitingly sarcastic. Rose had been trying to get into the Kings for years and for whatever reason, her dad wouldn’t let her. It was the only way for her to finally make enough money to support her family; having just her dad in the gang wasn’t enough. And Razor really thought he could waltz into her pharmacy, claiming that he needed help, not bothering to address the fact that he had abandoned her for the Kings. Well, whatever. She’d had enough.

Rose turned to continue walking down the dark aisle when she felt Razor’s hand on her shoulder.

“Rosie… Rose. Rose!” He shouted as she shook off his hand and kept marching into the darkness. She could feel a red hot ball of anger forming in the pit of her stomach. Razor really had the audacity to come to her for nothing more than a mission for the Kings. Even after all they’d been through together.

“Rose, come on! I’m being serious!” She could hear his footsteps behind her, but she kept walking. “We were supposed to get a couple orders of meds tonight for some high-profile clients but our supplier got cold feet last minute, and we can’t afford to drop the ball on this! We really need your help, Rose. I need your help.” At that, Rose stopped walking. She turned around.

“I will help you on one condition,” she said, walking up to Razor and crossing her arms over her chest. “You get me into the Kings.”

Razor sighed and nodded at her.

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

Just to be sure, Rose stuck out her pinky like she used to do with Lili. Razor hooked his little finger around hers and gave it a firm tug. Satisfied, Rose turned back around and began leading Razor towards the storage room at the back of the pharmacy where they kept all their extra medication.

“So. What can I get for you today?”