Today's MOSTLY TRUE SHORT STORY: The Red Rose

F LoBuono

She was walking up 57th St. with two male companions, heading west towards 10th Ave. From their appearance and attitude, I could tell that they were street people. The men wore baggy pants and jean jackets. The woman had a leather jacket on and kept her hair up in dreadlocks. They all walked like they owned that sidewalk. They continued up 57th while I searched for a parking spot. That's when I noticed it - clutched in the woman's left hand was a single, plastic, red rose.