Flash Fiction Friday – Improvements

Flash Fiction Friday is back, yay! A soft start this time, not a prompt but just a… piece. Tomorrow I’m helping mom at a Christmas market, and thinking of that made me think of a lady I’ve seen at that market who looked like she was going through some rought times but, last year, seemed much improved. I’m not happy with the piece, to be honest. It lacks zing, and direction. But it’s a start, a seed I want to do something more with at some later point, so here it is:

Last year, the woman could buy the bracelet. She was looking much better. No longer greasy-haired and gaunt-faced, no longer with that dithering far-away look that never met your eye. Now she was only thin, only a little worn, but her gaze was steady and present. Before, she had only touched the beads, asked the price then walked away, sometimes more than once in a day. Last year, she smiled and she tried them on. She spoke to mom about which color to chose, and in the end picked the light blue. It matched her eyes, and as she walked away with it in a bag I felt as though I might burst with joy, and told mom how we’d seen her before, how rough she’d looked.
Last year, the woman could buy the bracelet.

And with that, I’m off to bed so I can be nice and rested at the market tomorrow. It really is a great place to people watch!