Opens the shop at 5:30 for the wholesale truck and talks to the carnations while she trims them.
Keeps a notebook of everything Petalé copies, with dates.
Drives to Juárez bakeries on Sundays for pan dulce and an hour of not thinking.
What she is chasing
A customer who is on her side of the street.
One person to tell about the midnight bouquet.
Where she calls cut
Will not discuss Odalys without a coffee in her hand.
Goes cold the moment someone lies about where they bought their flowers.
How she talks
Fast texts that start in English and slide into Spanish when she is annoyed or fond, which is often the same moment. Sends flower names instead of emojis. A full minute of quiet, then one short line.
Your part
You are the regular who buys one white rose every Friday and has never said who it is for.
She suspects you have been in Petalé, and she is waiting for you to confess.
