Fiction: Truth and Glitter

This month's Words for Wednesday prompts are provided by River and hosted at her blog here. This week's prompts are: poised, reef, crashing, bridge, wrecked, turquoise, glitter.

Fiction: Truth and Glitter
Rose stood, poised over the sink, as water ran over her hands. The tiny, shiny flakes slipped off her fingers and down the drain. It was another crashing realization. The glitter weren't going away any time soon.
    She turned off the faucet and dried her hands on the towel hanging on the wall. It must be some kind of cosmic joke. How could someone's lie make glitter come out of her fingertips? Gloves didn't help as the glitter just get in the way of moving her hands. She studied her finger tips. They were round, ordinary and a little rough. Nothing unusual. She sighed.
    Around her, the turquoise with bits of orange and brown tiles on the wall and floor - colors of a barrier reef - made her feel like a wrecked ship in the middle of the ocean with half her mind intact and the other half looking for dry land. For a long moment, she sat on the toilet cover and stared at the tiles.
    There was no need to panic. The glitter had been subtle, minuscule nuisances and weren't easy to see unless in certain angles and lights. She took in a deep breath and let it out. It was time to get back to work. She exited the bathroom and toward the storefront. Rose's part-timer, Sarah, was behind the counter attending to a customer. Rose waited until she was done before sending her to the back to check on orders.
    Owning a flower shop was Rose's dream but when the glitter started to appear last week, it became almost unbearable. Every one of her customers lied, if not about who the flowers were for then about something else. She had to tell people the glitter was part of the service but who put glitter in their flower bouquets? At least, no one complained about it. Yet.
    The bell above the door rang and a tall older man entered. He stopped by the counter and gave Rose a small smile. "Hi, I like some pink roses for my wife."
    Rose smiled. "How many? We offer a dozen for 50 bucks." Flowers weren't cheap, not these flowers that came from a special farm out of town. But men would pay through the roof for them if it meant getting their wives/girlfriends/significant others to forgive them.
    "I'll take two dozen. Make it two separate bouquets. Got my wife really mad. Need the extra flowers." The man chuckled. He glanced around the space. It was a small shop with a glass front and room enough for a certain amount of flowers and a counter.
    "Certainly. Anything else?" Rose started gathering up the roses. Glitter slipped from her fingers but she ignored them but it was a little harder to ignore the warmth that came with them. It wasn't her business why the man was lying. When she had the roses tied and wrapped, she picked up the pruning shears from the basket to her right on the work table and started cutting the stems.
    "No. Mind if I ask you a question?" said the man.
    She turned her head slightly to glance at the man. "Sure, ask away."
    "Do you think I should maybe get something else for my wife? Maybe it's time for a change. Sal— I mean, Joanne, keeps saying I don't give her enough of a surprise. Perhaps those white flowers over there?"
    Rose sighed. She had already cut the stems. The roses wouldn't last long after that. Keeping her face neutral, she turned and replied, "Sure. Whatever you want but I have to charge you for the roses since they are already wrapped and ready."
    He nodded a couple of times. "Yes but... that old saying the customer is always right - don't you follow that? I'm sure not going to pay for flowers I didn't ask for."
    "But you did ask for them!" She took a breath and let it out. "Can't you just give both rose bouquets to your mistress and get a dozen white lilies for your wife?" Oh no, did she say that out loud?
    "How dare you assumed I was cheating on my wife. What business is it yours?" The man's eyes flared.
    "I—" Rose paused. What could she say to that? He was here before and always ordered the same thing. One time he ordered by phone and had her write the cards to two different woman with the same message but delivered to two different addresses. Business depended on keeping one's mouth shut or so said Rose's mother. Rose took a deep breath and let it out. "Look here, Mister. You're paying for both bouquets or else you're banned from this shop."
    He laughed. "Is that so? I can have this place turn to ash with a lift of my fingers. Now either you do what I asked or get ready for an out-of-business sale. And don't think just because you're holding those scissors, you can scare me!"
    More glitter spat out of her fingers. That's it! She walked around the counter and aimed the shears at the man. "This isn't a scissor. This is a pruning shears. It is sharp. It can cut through steel and flesh. Do you know what I mean?" She glared at him.
    He straightened up. "Don't you threaten me, missy!"
    She scoffed. "Tell the truth. You are cheating on your wife, am I right?"
    "I will no—"
    "Answer the damm question!" She stepped closer toward him and lifted the shears higher.
    "No, I'm not." He smiled. "You're mistaken."
    Tiny burst of glitter rained on the shears. "You're lying. Tell the truth or else or I will redecorate your face!" She pointed the shears at him.
    "Fine! It's true. I'm cheating on my wife. So what? Now would you please put that sci—shears down!"
    "Not unless you pay for both bouquets." She kept the shears at him.
     He took another step back. "Fine! I'll pay for both bouquets! Just put the shears down."
    She sighed and lowered the shears and returned behind the counter.
    "By the way, you've got glitter on your nose," he said as he took out his wallet.
    She lifted her hand to her face and then regretted it.
    "Son of a monkey! Are you alright?" The man was staring at her with wide eyes.
    Blood dripped down from her face. She dropped the shears on the table.    
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The blood stopped oozing out by the time Rose reached the emergency room. The tall man was with her up until she was surrounded by a doctor and a nurse.
    "How did you get hurt? If the cause is something that might contain harmful substances, I might need to prescribe certain type of medication." The doctor met her eyes as he pulled on rubber gloves. His eyes were a nice shade of blue that matched the bathroom in her shop.
    "A pruning shears - recently sharpened. I usually used it to cut flower stems. I'm a florist with my own shop," replied Rose. She sat on the examination table while the doctor stood over her with a nurse by his side.
    The doctor nodded. "Are you hurt anywhere else? There's a blood on your hands." He inspected her hand that was free.
    Rose shook her head. "No, just my unfortunate nose." She chuckled. There was no pain but perhaps it will come later.
    "Are you taking any medication or alternative medicine? Any allergies?"
    "Nope. No allergies. I don't take drugs, not even aspirin."
    "Alright, let's see the damage." The doctor smiled. "By the way, my name's Dr. Bell."
    "Rose." She lifted the scrunched-up-blood-soaked handkerchief off her nose.
    He took the handkerchief and dropped into the trash can on his left. "Miss Rose, it doesn't look too deep but you will need stitches, just a few. Nothing to worry about. Let's begin." Dr. Bell sat on a stool.
    She balled her hands into fists. In all her thirty years, this was the first time she had ever been to the emergency room. She wished someone was here with her.
    The patient two beds away was lying on his stomach and shirtless. "I told you, doctor, I fell and hit my back on a table. Enough questions!" he shouted.
    Rose's fingers felt a rush of heat. She was certain the glitter had appeared. Her hands was becoming sweaty.
    Dr. Bell placed a sheet with a hole over her face covering everything but the wounded area of her nose. "Ignore the man. Miss Rose, keep very still. You don't want a new scar on your nose. And it's probably best if you don't talk to keep the facial movement to a minimum. I'm sorry to be this close but I need to be to get to the wound."
    An earthy, citrus musk came from the doctor. She liked the pleasant scent.
    "It looks like the cut is right on the bridge of your nose. Perfect aim actually. But it's a surface wound. Nothing to worry about." Dr. Bell's voice was soothing.
    Someone screamed. "Don't worry about that. Now tell me, Miss Rose, are florists better at keeping plants alive? I'm known to be a plant killer. My sister refused to allow me near her garden. Have plants died on you? Oh, sorry, you shouldn't be talking. Now hold very still. I'll put some lidocaine to numb the area and then I'll start the stitching. You'll feel some bit of pain and discomfort but it's normal. Remember to stay very still. Just hold your hand up if you understand."
    She held up her left but then forgot about the glitters.
    "Put your hand down. Now, I must say, I don't get many people with nose injuries. It's usually somewhere bigger like the thigh or the back or the arm..."
    She listened to his voice and nothing else. Soon, Dr. Bell was removing the paper away. "That wasn't so bad, was it?" he said.
    Rose shook her head. "No." She had not felt much discomfort.
    "Now, I know I shouldn't be giving advice." Dr. Bell pulled off his gloves and dumped them into the trash can. He leaned toward Rose. "I think I ought to tell you I've seen how glitter come into your hands. Now don't worry, I won't say a word to anyone. But let me tell you what my father told me when one of my schoolmates told lies about me and pretty much ruined high school for me. He said, "Other people's lies are not your lies. It's not your fault they are lying so don't let their lies affect you." He tilted his head toward the man in the other bed. "Does it bother you that man over there is lying to the doctor?"
    She nodded. She didn't know why but when people lied, even if it has nothing to do with her, it annoyed her.
    "Well, don't let it bother you. He's just embarrassed so he lied. He and his wife are trying to have a kid." He chuckled and stood up. "That's it. Just fill out all the forms and get your meds, follow the instructions and so on. Have a good evening, Miss Rose." He held out an arm toward his left.
    "Thank you, Dr. Bell." She stood up.
    "No problem, Miss Rose." He smiled. "And what's your shop's name? I might come by, buy some flowers. Do you sell plants?"
    She shook her head. "No. Just flowers. The name of my shop is The Last Spring." She would've give him a card if she had brought them.
    "The Last Spring? Sounds like there's a story there." Dr. Bell. "Bye."
    "Not really. Bye." She walked pass him and didn't glance back. Despite the sudden pain on her nose, she smiled.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

By the time Rose returned to the shop, the sky had turned dark. Sarah was behind the counter. "Are you alright? I was freaked out when I saw you with all that blood," she said.
    "It's just a small cut." Rose glanced at the table where she had left the two rose bouquets but they were gone. The shears was back in the basket.
    Sarah turned to look toward the table. "Oh, the man came back and purchased the roses and also a dozen white lilies. Was I supposed to wait?"
    "It's fine. I need to go use the bathroom for a bit. Will you stay put for a while?" Rose wasn't feeling too bad having taken a couple of aspirins.
    "Sure but maybe you can take a sick day. I can stay until six." Sarah smiled. She had probably recognized Rose wasn't in her best state.
    "You can go home when I return. I'm okay. Just need a few moments." Rose smiled to reassure the girl and walked through the doorway to the back and to the bathroom where she closed the door and locked it.
    In the mirror, her face was drained of color. Dried blood covered the front of her shirt and top of her apron. Her hair had untangled from the braid. Most of her nose was covered in white bandage. Why didn't she remember she had a pair of shears in her hand? It was a just a tiny cut, nothing to worry about. That was what Dr. Bell said. He wasn't lying since no glitter came off her fingers.
    "Other people's lies are not your lies. It's not your fault they are lying so don't let their lies affect you." Dr. Bell's words repeated in her head. Why was she so bothered when people lied? It wasn't as if their lies affected her. She exhaled. Dr. Bell was right. It wasn't the glitter that bothered her, it was the lies. From here on, she will try to ignore her customers' lies.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Back out front, with a change of shirt and apron, Rose took over the counter and sent Sarah home. Rose could have left too but she didn't want to go home yet. It wasn't as if someone was waiting for her. Besides, she loved being around flowers. They often calmed her. She sat down on the chair behind the counter. The clock on the wall to her left said it was a little after five. She had been at the emergency room longer than she thought. Thank goodness it was Thursday. She didn't have to open the shop tomorrow.
    A few customers came and went. She answered a couple of calls and had her deliveryman dropped off a few orders.
    Before long, it was a little before six - closing time.
    The bell rang. She stood up.
    "Hello, sweetheart. I'm glad I caught you before you close up." Her stepfather, Robert, stopped at the counter.
    "Hi, Dad." Rose smiled. Seeing her stepfather always cheered her. He had a happy face with large eyes and round cheeks.
    His thick, white eyebrows wiggled a bit. "Are you hurt? What happened to your nose?" The corner of his lips tilted upward slightly. "Was it an angry customer?"
    She laughed lightly. "Something like it. Don't tell Mom. What can I get you?"
    He nodded and smiled. "I like a dozen yellow tulips, if you please, Roseanna."
    "For the fight you had with Mom last week?" Rose started gathering up the tulips - they were her mother's favorite.
    Robert nodded. "Yes. For that."
    She picked a tulip from one of the buckets. Her hands warmed up and glitter slipped from her fingers but she proceeded to pick them. Between the noise of the tissue paper, cellophane, wrapping paper and the low sound of the music overhead as she wrapped them up, it was still not easy to ignore that her stepfather had lied.
    "I'm sorry I lied to you, sweetheart. Your mom and I didn't have a fight. We have several fights but it's not something you need to worry about. We're adults, we can take care of our own problems." He chuckled. "I think."
    "Okay." She laughed lightly. "I hope you two work it out."
    He nodded. "We will. If she doesn't kill me first." He chuckled.
    Her fingers lost their warm and only bits of glitter came out. She smiled and placed the finished bouquet on the counter.
    "Would you like to write something on the card or just sign your name?" She picked up a small card from the box under the counter on the build-in shelves and placed it on the counter top.
    "Sure." Robert picked up a pen from the glass jar beside the cash register. He paused, fingers flipping the pen. Then he scribbled something and handed the card to Rose. She tied the card into the ribbon and finished the transaction.
    Robert picked up the bouquet. "Thanks for this. Would you like me to wait and give you a ride home?"
    She shook her head. "No. You go on."
    "Goodnight, sweetheart."
    "Goodnight, Dad."
    Robert left. When Rose get home tonight, she will have phone calls from her mother. Rose wasn't the only one with unwanted talents. Her mother always knew when someone was lying to her. In her case, white granulated sugar eased out of her fingers. At least, she had some use for sugar. Glitter, well, Rose wasn't sure what to do with them aside from throwing them away but at least now, she knew, as long as she tried not to let the lies affect her, the glitter might eventually go away or at least, not show up so much.