"This is perfect! I'll take it" Amy exclaimed excitedly as she skipped on her tippy toes like a little girl, which she resembled a little bit in her 1950s styled dress and auburn ponytail.
"And you don't have to worry about the neighbors either, they've been renting here forever" the estate agent added as he gestured her to take a set of steps next to the store entrance.
'That's perfect' Amy thought, the shop next door was a pastry shop. That would help her, seeing that she was going to open a flower store here. So any couples who ordered wedding cakes next door would potentially come to her for they're flower needs.
"And here is the apartment. It comes with the property. Most of the shops on this street were built like this in the sixties..." the estate agent continued, as they walked through the apartment, he pointed out all the better aspects of the property. It was a quant one bed apartment with a patio at the back, that looked down on the courtyard of the store.
"Now, if you're happy with everything I'll get the paperwork ready and you can move in, by the end of the week" he continued as they went down the stairs again.
The following week Amy moved in, she didn't have a lot of things, apart from her plants, so moving went quick. This was the next step in expanding her business. She started it when she was still studying horticulture, and it's been going going strong for the last four years.
Her business was unique in that the majority of her show pieces didn't use picked flowers, so it was more sustainable and she could lease the same piece out repeatedly. Her online presence was great but now it was time to have a place she could meet clients and work out of.
Amy didn't waste any time, connecting with the shop, next door. It helped expand her business and she quickly started to get more and more orders. Not to mention she got to wake up to the sweet scent of baking pastries every morning. She loved every minute of living here. Things were going well, so she was able to hire a shop assistant. This was a dream come true.
On Fridays Amy liked to buy sweet cakes and coffee for her and Beth, her assistant. They usually closed a little earlier on Fridays to enjoy their treats. As Amy was admiring the tasty displays in the shop front, she was confronted with a big bright sign saying: "WHERE MOVING" in big bold letters.
She was taken aback by this news. Amy hastily entered the pastry shop. "Hey, Alex. I see you're moving? ..." she greeted a short round and bald man standing behind the counter. "Oh hey Amy" he greeted "yeah the shop is becoming a bit small and a great spot opened in the new mall down the road."
"Oh, that's fantastic. I'm so happy for you." she tried to look happy. The fact was this was terrible news. Not only was she going to loose walk-in customers, the next tenants might have a bar. That was her worst fear. It would attract the wrong sort of crowd, not to mention loud music late at night, which would make her plants suffer. Amy believed plants are affected by sound. She would often play classical music at night to help them grow.
After she bought the sweet cakes she returned to her store, where Beth, her assistant, had already put the CLOSED sign in the glass door. Beth was already seated in the courtyard at the back and Amy went straight there, lost in her own thoughts.
"You forgot the coffee" Beth stated when she saw Amy.
"Oh snap! Sorry, I guess I was spacing out a bit" Amy said as she was about to turn around to get the coffees.
"Don't worry, I'll go grab it. Be right back" Beth said as she raced towards the door. Amy smiled as she saw Beth exiting the store. She loved working with Beth, who was always friendly and energetic, even if she could be bit brash sometimes. It worked out well, since Amy was always way too nice and struggled to be assertive, especially with clients.
Within minutes Amy heard the door bell again as Beth entered the shop with coffee in the one hand. She wasn't even halfway to the courtyard when she started "Did you see! Our pastry pals are moving!"
The two of them sat down at a small metal table and ate the treats as they continued speculating who the new renters would be.
"What if it's a costume shop?" Beth jested.
"Haha, yeah or a clown shop, with those creepy clowns everywhere. Then we can hire creepy clowns for weddings... Can you imagine!" Amy retorted.
They continued like that for a wee while and then Beth headed out. Amy locked up and then headed upstairs. She had a wedding the next day, so she would have to get up at 4 am to put the final touches on the show piece and all the other flower arrangements. This was becoming a routine for her.
A month passed and the pastry shop closed. As a goodbye gift Amy gave them one of her priced orchids. The next day she didn't wake up to the delicious fragrance of baking pastries, but rather to the startling loud drilling and banging noises of construction. Amy groaned as she struggled to get up and checked the time. "Six o'clock. Ughh, who starts construction at six".
Finally awake and up she turned the shower on, but instead of water running, she only got loud gurgling noises coming from the pipes. "No way! Those damn construction workers turned of the water" Amy exclaimed annoyed. Almost immediately Amy started stressing about whether her plants would have water today. Not only that, but now she'd have to go have a difficult conversation with some mean construction manager.
Amy absolutely hated confrontation, if she could, she would rather live without water for a couple of days, than having to confront some stranger. She sighed heavily, she didn't have a choice, her plants needed water.
She had no choice.