Archive of Our Own

Woojin wasn’t your average florist. Most people working at the flower shop had an appreciation for “nature” and the “intricate language of flowers”. They were the type of people who invited you on road trips “just because” and tried to drag you to watch the sunrise at four in the morning, because “the world is beautiful”. (Seriously. His coworker, Lee Daehwi, constantly tried to make him do all kinds of pretentious artsy shit.) Woojin was, to put it simply, not into the dreamy romance appeal of a flower shop.

If he was completely honest, the only reason he worked there was because he needed money, didn’t want to work hard in order to get said money, and thought that flowers were relatively pretty to look at. Also, the specific store at which he worked was located on a quiet corner in a quiet suburbia, so it’s not like he would have to deal with that many customers per day.

Yet contrary to his dislike of the sleepy stargazer image he was constantly given, he was normally a very good sport about working. In fact, he even usually enjoyed it, and did a near perfect job at treating customers nicely and respectfully.

But sometimes Woojin had his moments.

Take today, for example. He was especially fed up with, well, everything. He had bombed his physics test, had run late to work, and had only barely managed to finally make Daehwi shut up about taking him on another nature walk after his shift ended. Woojin loved Daehwi, he really did, but the things he wanted Woojin to do with him were always quite ridiculous. He felt like he might scream if someone tried to test his limits again.

Woojin was sitting with his elbows propped on the front counter, his chin resting in the palms of his hands. He was staring absentmindedly at the rose bouquets displayed in the front window, thinking about how much he needed to go home and finish his English paper. So lost in thought, he barely noticed that someone had walked through the door until the customer in question approached Woojin and gave him a meek wave.

Glancing up, Woojin met the gaze of a boy who looked to be around his age, with chubby cheeks and pink lips. Woojin sat up slightly in order to look more professional, and asked him a bored drawl, “How can I help you?”

The boy looked at him cautiously, surveyed the room, and then met Woojin’s eyes once again. “Um, can you help me find some flowers?” The boy was twisting his hands as he spoke.

This was the first thing the boy had said, yet it automatically struck a chord within Woojin. Annoyance bubbled up inside his chest at such a dumb request.

Typically, Woojin wouldn’t get mad at a customer for asking such a simple question. After all, it was his job to help them and show them around the shop. Plus, Woojin didn’t really like being rude unless he had to. But today was different. Today Woojin was at wit’s end with absolutely everything. Today Woojin might not have thought before he spoke. Today Woojin might have been a bit snappier than usual, and he might have accidentally growled at the boy a bit when he responded, “This is a fucking flower shop. What kind of flowers do you want?”

The boy’s cheeks turned scarlet after realizing the obscurity of what had said, and his mouth opened slightly as if to say something, then closed quickly.

Woojin’s snappy attitude wavered slightly after seeing this. He slowly felt guilt rise up in his stomach, and realized that that had been a pretty assholey thing to say. Sighing, he mumbled, “Sorry. That was rude of me.” Woojin’s own cheeks were darkening with shame now, and he suddenly found that he couldn’t bring himself meet the customer’s stare.

“I-It’s okay…” He heard the boy reply hesitantly. “I just… I need help to find a bouquet of flowers… something for someone you like?”

This boy wasn’t being any more specific than the previous time he had spoken, and Woojin had to fight the urge to bite back a reply. But there were still remnants of guilt filling him, so he decided to be nice.

With a strained smile, he responded, “Is there any specifics you could give me? A certain color or type you’re looking for?”

The boy shrugged. His eyes flitted up to meet Woojin’s, and he said, “I don’t know. Shouldn’t you know something about that kind of stuff? Like, the meaning of flowers and everything?”

Oh boy, Woojin was really starting to get aggravated now. Why did the gods have to punish him, on this specific day, with a customer who expected him to know every little detail about every stupid flower in existence?

“I actually don’t,” Woojin replied, in the politest tone he could muster at the moment. “I’m not very good at that kind of stuff. Something pink would probably get the message across.” He hoped that would satisfy the customer enough to finally leave Woojin alone. But of course, that wasn’t the end of it.

The boy wrinkled his nose, and tilted his head to the side. “Are you sure? I think I read somewhere that you’re supposed to give them something white.”

Exhaling slowly, and trying to not show his exasperation, Woojin said “Alright. So you may get white flowers if you wish. Tell me if you need any help.” Please, please let him quit bothering me, Woojin thought.

“But… do you think I should get them roses? Or carnations? I was thinking of yellow carnations maybe, even though those aren’t white, because I think they’re pretty. What’s your opinion?” The boy said all of this very fast, and Woojin couldn’t try to process it all without getting a headache. He rubbed his forehead, and then, barely registering his own actions, called for Daehwi from the back room.

Daehwi came rushing out immediately, with a smile plastered on his face and a blush smattering across his cheeks. He had his phone in his hand, and was busy looking down at it even as he joined Woojin at the counter. “Daehwi, stop texting your boyfriend and help this customer.” Woojin motioned across him at the boy waiting with his hands stuck into his pockets.

Daehwi raised an eyebrow and asked, in the most innocent tone, “Why can’t you do it?” Jesus Christ, the world was not letting Woojin have an easy time today.

“Because he’s asking about flower meanings and I don’t know shit about those,” Woojin said through gritted teeth. Daehwi knew how much it aggravated Woojin when customers expected him to know these things, so he reluctantly put down his phone and turned to face the customer.

Woojin pointed to Daehwi and then told the boy, “He can help answer your questions today.” And with that, Woojin left and entered the back room with a sigh before sinking down on the sofa.

Listening to the conversation taking place just outside the door, he heard Daehwi speaking brightly and cheerfully, as he always did.

He heard the customer explain the situation to Daehwi, and then Daehwi clicked his tongue unapprovingly.

“What’s your name?” Daehwi spoke, and Woojin rolled his eyes. Daehwi was always trying to unnecessarily befriend any and every single customer that walked in the door.

“...Jihoon.” Came the wavering voice of the boy.

Woojin heard shuffling, and then, “Well, Jihoon, it’s never a good idea to buy someone you like yellow carnations! They actually symbolize disappointment.” Woojin could practically see the way the boy, Jihoon, flushed at that comment.

“Oh… Should I get them white ones, then?”

“White flowers generally mean innocence or purity, but I don’t think that would get your message across. Something pink and simple, like a rose, should let someone know you like them!”

“...Okay!” Jihoon sounded happier when he responded, which was probably a direct response to Daehwi’s contagious cheerfulness.

Woojin waited until he heard the customer pay and leave, swinging the door behind him, and only then did he finally emerge from the back room, muttering a quick thanks to Daehwi before settling into his front counter position once again.

The next day was a much better day for Woojin. He had managed to convince his teacher to let him have some extra credit, he had arrived perfectly on time to work, and Daehwi had invited his boyfriend, Jinyoung, to the shop. (Woojin found it very endearing to watch them giggle and have fun together.) Overall, Woojin was feeling back to normal, and had been treating the customers that had come in with the utmost sincerity and kindness.

He felt very guilty, then, when he heard the jingling of the door, and looked up to see the same boy from yesterday walk in. What was his name again? Woojin thought to himself as the boy approached the counter, looking very hesitant when he saw who was manning it again.

Daehwi, who was sitting in the corner of the shop, cuddled against Jinyoung, waved when he saw the boy walk in. “Hey, Jihoon!” He called.

Jihoon, the boy, shot him a small smile, before he faced Woojin.

“Woojinie, do you need help today?” Daehwi shouted from his position. Woojin shook his head, replied with an “I’m fine,” and turned to help Jihoon.

“How may I help you?”

Jihoon bit his lips and seemed to be looking everywhere in the room besides Woojin. Evidently, he was quite nervous about having Woojin serve him again.

“Uh…” Woojin began. “I’m sorry for the way I acted yesterday. I’m usually not like that…” He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and he felt awkwardness fill his entire body.

Jihoon’s eyes finally flew up to meet Woojin’s, and he offered him a shaky smile. “It’s okay,” he said uncertainly. “Were you having a bad day?”

“Something like that, yeah.” Woojin gave him small grin to let him know that he wasn’t an asshole, and Jihoon started turning red in the face, although Woojin wasn’t too sure why.

Woojin leaned across the counter, propping his head up on his hands, and asked him, “So, what do you need today?”

“Oh!” Jihoon seemed to suddenly remember that he had come here with a purpose. “Well, um… I need another bouquet of pink roses.”

Woojin nodded. “Did the person you were buying them for like them?” He hopped off his stool to select a few roses, and began arranging them into an intricate bouquet.

“Ah… I’m not too sure, actually.” Jihoon responded. “My friend made me buy them yesterday, so he would have flowers to give to his boyfriend. I’m guessing he liked them, since he sent me to get some more today.”

Tying off the bouquet, Woojin chucked lightly. “I’m glad he liked them, then!” He maneuvered himself so he was standing in front of Jihoon, and prepared himself to give him the flowers.

What happened next happened very fast. Upon handing the bouquet over, Woojin stumbled across the floor and fell over. The flowers crashed to the ground, and Woojin may or may not have smushed some of them with the weight of his body.

Quickly, he picked himself off up the ground, and he heard a quiet giggle erupt from Jihoon. Looking over, he saw that the boy’s eyes were crinkled, and that he had his hand covering his mouth as he laughed. It was a cute gesture, and Woojin felt himself blinking up at him owlishly, not quite sure how he should react.

Jihoon’s laughter was contagious though, and soon Woojin found himself grinning as well, as he gathered another bunch of roses. Carefully handing them over this time, he muttered a small, “Sorry about that,” under his breath. Jihoon smiled up at him.

“No problem!” He handed over his money, Woojin gave him his change, and Jihoon left with a grin still plastered across his face.

Jihoon showed up once again, the next day. It was odd, really, to see a customer show up so frequently. It was a flower shop, and regulars weren’t too common at flower shops. But if Jihoon kept on coming back, that would probably change.

This time, Jihoon shot Woojin a huge smile upon seeing him, and chirped out a greeting.

Woojin bowed his head and grinned back at him. “How are you doing today, Jihoon?” Woojin was feeling cheerful again and, for some reason, his heart lifted even more as soon as Jihoon had walked in the door.

“I’m good!” Jihoon replied shyly, reaching out to finger the petals of a dahlia lying on the counter between the two boys. He peered up at Woojin through this eyelashes. “What about you?”

“I’m doing okay,” Woojin paused, then said, “Do you need another bouquet of roses?”

He saw Jihoon nod, and drop his hand from the dahlia. Woojin moved from behind the counter to fetch the roses, and he suddenly remembered the incident that had occurred the previous day. Blushing to himself slightly, he added, “Hopefully I won’t drop them this time.”

Jihoon laughed at this, and covered his mouth with his hands once again. He has sweater paws, Woojin noticed, and he accidentally snipped off the petal of a rose in his state of absentmindedness. Frowning to himself, he plucked another flower and added it to the bouquet. When he was done tying it all up, he handed it back over to Jihoon promptly.

“There you go! Hopefully your friend likes them.”

“My friend’s boyfriend, actually.” Jihoon corrected. Woojin cocked his head at this. What an unusual thing to say, he thought. Not many people would point out something so small.

Woojin gave him a crooked smile, and then pointedly replied, “Oh, my bad. I hope your friend’s boyfriend likes them.” This made Jihoon titter again, and then he waved goodbye and was gone as quickly as he had come.

Jihoon was a very odd guy, Woojin had come to notice over the next few months. Every day, without fail, Jihoon had come into the shop for the same bouquet of pink roses for his friend’s boyfriend (something he never let Woojin forget).

After about the first week or so, Woojin had asked Jihoon to tell him more about himself. It was a cold afternoon, and although it was only 5:00, night had already fallen across the sleepy suburbia. The shop was quiet and Jihoon was the only customer, with Woojin being the only worker. Even Daehwi wasn’t there — he had taken the day off to go on some lame date with his boyfriend. They’d had some time to kill, and Jihoon didn’t seem to be in a hurry, so Woojin figured it would be a nice thing to get to know the store’s only regular customer.

Jihoon had quickly launched into a hyperbolic retelling of his day from start to finish, beginning with him falling out of bed at exactly 7:00, and ending with him tripping over his own feet on his way to the florist’s. Woojin couldn’t help but laugh as Jihoon spewed out even more information, about pointless things such as his friend’s boyfriend or his failing math grade. He learned a lot about Jihoon on that icy winter’s afternoon, and he found himself looking forward to the next day.

Two weeks into his visits, Jihoon had burst through the door, clutching the side of his face desperately, shouting “Woojin, I’m dying!”, and immediately scaring off the two customers Woojin had been currently assisting. Woojin had hurried over, asking him what was wrong, only to discover that Jihoon had simply gotten a paper cut on his left cheek. It was funniest damned thing Woojin had ever seen or heard in his entire life, and it was totally worth getting lectured for letting two customers go so easily.

Woojin had soon found himself feeling more eager to go to work and see Jihoon each day. Jihoon was dramatic, and he was weird, and him and Woojin always ended up bickering about the simplest things, but it felt natural. It always felt comfortable to watch Jihoon talk and laugh and argue about whatever dumb thing they were arguing about that particular day. Sometimes, it was nice to admire the sparkle in Jihoon’s eyes as he babbled on about some crazy story of his day, or the way his cheeks flushed when Woojin ended up winning an argument. Were those normal things to think about a friend? Woojin wasn’t sure.

Daehwi had noticed this sudden change in Woojin. Although Woojin had never exactly resented going to work before, he definitely never looked forward to it. Yet recently he always seemed brighter, humming under his breath and smiling to himself after Jihoon had gone. That was what Daehwi told Woojin, anyways, who hadn’t even noticed that he did half of those things.

“Do you like him, Woojin?” Daehwi asked one day, after Jihoon had left. Woojin had been wiping down the front counter, and nearly choked upon hearing this.

“W-Who? Jihoon?”

Daehwi gave him a look. “Of course I’m talking about Jihoon. Literally when have you shown any interest in anyone else before?” Woojin’s chest felt like it was getting tighter.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” He muttered, scrubbing at the counter with a bit more force than necessary. “He’s my friend. I just want to get closer to him, that’s all.”

Raising an eyebrow, Daehwi hummed disapprovingly but said nothing before he disappeared into the back room, leaving Woojin feeling extremely confused.

Jihoon had come to the shop every day for a month straight now. Ever since Daehwi had asked Woojin about his feelings, Woojin couldn’t stop thinking about it. Surely it couldn’t be a crush, could it? Crushes felt different than this, didn’t they? (Not that Woojin would know. He hadn’t had a crush since first grade.)

And besides, they didn’t know each other well enough for this to really be a crush, right?

This particular question sent Woojin into a spiral of complicated thoughts. If Woojin thought about it, he did kind of know a lot about Jihoon. He knew his friends’ names and what he was studying in school. He knew what Jihoon wanted to do for a living, and what his hobbies were. He knew about his extracurriculars and his favorite colors and his most hated foods. Wow, okay, fuck, Woojin really knew a lot about him. Not to mention that Jihoon knew all these things about Woojin, too.

God, this was a weird feeling.

Woojin was mulling these thoughts over while he waited for Jihoon to arrive, as he had recently taken to doing. The door swung open suddenly, and Woojin snapped out of his state and went to arrange the pink roses. As usual, he tried to pretend like he hadn’t just been thinking about what it would be like to kiss Jihoon. Or hold his hand. Or some other dumb romantic shit.

He expected today to be just a normal encounter with Jihoon. Or at least, as normal as it could be when Woojin possibly had a giant ass crush on said boy.

But Jihoon seemed nervous today, Woojin observed. He wasn’t smiling as much, and he kept playing with the sleeves of his sweater and looking down at the floor. When Woojin greeted him and handed over the flowers, Jihoon barely made eye contact with him before turning extremely, extremely red.

Woojin frowned. Had something happened? Was there something on Woojin’s face?

“Jihoon? Are you okay?” He asked, concernedly.

Jihoon jumped at his sudden question. “I-I’m fine!” He stammered. He took a deep breath, and barely managed to choke out, “But is what Daehwi said true?”

Confusion flooded Woojin. Had Daehwi been talking about him to Jihoon? Oh God, this could not end up well.

Carefully, Woojin inquired, “What did Daehwi say?” He could feel his heart hammering in his chest.

“He — ” Jihoon paused, looked down, and then continued. “He said you wanted to take me to dinner tonight? After your shift ended?” His voice got higher as he spoke, seemingly out of embarrassment.

Woojin’s heart dropped. Daehwi had actually told Jihoon something that Woojin had never actually said? That fucker. He was going to positively kill Daehwi when he saw him later. Not to mention, the thought of Woojin going out with Jihoon sent his heart into overdrive.

Jihoon’s face was as red as a strawberry, and Woojin found it incredibly endearing. Which brought him to his next question: Did he actually want to go out for dinner with Jihoon? It sounded so similar to a date, and it was clear that was the way the latter was taking it.

“Is that okay with you?” Woojin decided to ask this cautiously, and then see what Jihoon’s response was. If his response was good, maybe Woojin would consider it.

Jihoon absolutely refused to meet Woojin’s eyes when he answered. “I wouldn’t mind it…” He said shyly.

Shit, Woojin thought. He’s fucking adorable.

Without realizing what he was saying, he blurted, “Then yeah. Yeah, I’d like to go out to dinner with you.” (Was it hot in here, or was it just Woojin?)

At this, Jihoon visibly relaxed. He covered his face with his hands, but it was useless, because Woojin knew he was hiding a smile behind them. He felt himself grin too, and he handed Jihoon’s flowers over to him.

“My shift ends at 7:00.” Woojin stated. “You can leave and come back, if you want?”

Jihoon nodded. “I’ll drop these flowers off.” Woojin watched him as he left, and as soon as the door had swung shut, Woojin ran into the back room.

Daehwi was sitting on the couch, organizing catalogs and posters. He looked up when Woojin entered and offered him a sheepish grin. No doubt he had heard exactly what had gone on in the other room.

“Lee Daehwi,” Woojin began. “Why did you ever think it would be a good idea to tell him something like that?” He wasn’t sure what his tone sounded like whe he said this. Was it angry? Confused? Thankful? He had no idea.

Daehwi giggled. “Because it’s so obvious that you like him.” Woojin opened his mouth in defense, but Daehwi held up a hand, motioning him to wait until he finished. “And you and I both know that you’re too dense to do anything about it. So I’m helping you!”

Woojin didn’t know how to respond. Daehwi had good points. Groaning softly, he sunk down on the couch with his head buried in his hands.

“I don’t even know if I like him yet!” Was his small protest.

He heard Daehwi huff, then wrap his arms around Woojin. “Well if you don’t, I’m sure you will by tonight.” Woojin sighed in response, but let himself be held by Daehwi while his mind whirled.

“Oh my God, Daehwi!” Woojin suddenly started, quite loudly. He felt Daehwi sit up quickly and untangle himself from Woojin.

“Woojin? What is it?”

“I’m going on a fucking date with Jihoon.” Woojin said breathlessly. It had hit him like a truck, the realization that, wow, this was actually real life. He was really about to go on a date with possibly the cutest boy to ever exist. (also simultaneously the most annoying boy to ever exist.)

Daehwi laughed Woojin’s starstruck expression, and clapped him on his shoulder. “Yep! You got this!” Woojin turned to stare at Daehwi incredulously.

“Are you kidding me?” Woojin raised his voice. “I’m probably going to combust into flames before the end of the night!”

Cue his panic setting in, and Daehwi rushing to shush him and calm him down before Jihoon showed up again.

For about twenty minutes, Daehwi gave him lectures and advice about what to do on his date (?) with Jihoon. Woojin, on the other hand, couldn’t focus on what Daehwi was telling him because he was too busy losing his mind.

When Woojin heard the door open, he turned to Daehwi with his eyes full of desperation. “Please don’t make me do this,” He begged.

Daehwi patted his arm lightly, then said, “It’ll be fine! Go out and have a good time.” And without warning, he pushed Woojin out of the door and into the main shop.

Woojin stumbled from the force, and blindly reached out to grab something and steady himself. Unfortunately for him, that something happened to be a boy by the name of Park Jihoon. Woojin’s hands were gripping the sleeve of Jihoon’s fuzzy yellow sweater, and it took Woojin a second to realize what exactly was going on. He pulled away immediately, and saw Jihoon blinking at him confusedly.

“Sorry!” Woojin bit out, his face heating up.

Jihoon smiled at him gently and responded with, “It’s okay, idiot.”

The familiarity in which Jihoon insulted him was comforting. Woojin felt himself relax, and he scoffed before walking towards the doorway. “Let’s just get going, shall we?”

“I thought your shift ended at 7:00?” Jihoon raised an eyebrow at him. “It’s only 6:30.”

Woojin puffed out his cheeks. “Daehwi can cover for me.” He replied, pulling on his jacket. (Truthfully, he didn’t want to have to wait to go out with Jihoon. He wanted their so-called date to start as soon as possible.)

And so the two set off, walking down the ice lined streets, in an easy going silence. Woojin watched Jihoon, who was gazing up at the buildings around them. His eyes seemed like they were glittering, as if they were holding all of the universe. Quietly, Woojin asked, “What are you looking at?”

Jihoon turned to face Woojin. The tip of his nose was pink from the cold, and his lips were a bright, chapped scarlet. He looked beautiful.

“The snow. Don’t you think it’s pretty?” Jihoon lifted his hand up gently, to watch as snowflakes drifted down and landed on his fingertips. Woojin was mesmerized. Jesus Christ, he was in deep.

“I think you’re a pretentious fuck, is what I think.” Woojin muttered back, trying to hide the fact that he had been staring.

He heard Jihoon huff, and felt a light punch on his shoulder. “Just shut up and let me look at the snow, you asshole.”

“I think I’d rather look at you, though.” Woojin blurted. Quite literally, he blurted. He hadn’t thought at all before he’d spoken.

He saw Jihoon’s cheeks, nose, face turn a flustered red, and Jihoon tried to bury his face in his scarf in embarrassment. Woojin was feeling extremely hot himself, even though he was standing in the middle of a snowy neighborhood.

“L-let’s just get to the restaurant,” Jihoon stammered. He was smiling though, and it made Woojin’s heart soar. “Where are we going, anyways?”

Woojin’s beating heart suddenly slowed. He actually had no idea where they were headed.

Furrowing his brow, he said sheepishly, “I, uh, I actually don’t know.”

“Oh my God, you dumbass.”

Woojin rolled his eyes. “Well, where do you want to go, then?”

Jihoon shrugged at that, kicking at the ground lightly. He sent a rock scattering across the pavement. “I don’t know. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy.”

“Like hell it would be something fancy. I’ve never been more broke in my life.” Woojin replied. He relished in the way Jihoon laughed at this.

“There’s a McDonald’s up the street. We could just go there, if you wanted?” Jihoon wasn’t teasing him, from the look of things. He really didn’t care where they went.

Which is how the pair ended up in the dingy interior of a rundown McDonald’s on an early Friday evening. Woojin had opened the door for Jihoon as they entered, and ended up paying for their meal — Woojin ordered a hamburger and Jihoon had gotten a kid’s meal.

They were sitting, completely alone in the restaurant, in the far corner of the room. Bubbly pop music was playing softly over the speakers, and Woojin observed Jihoon as the latter shoved three chicken nuggets into his mouth at once.

“Why the fuck are you so hungry?” Woojin remarked, as he swirled a french fry in ketchup.

Jihoon pointed a finger at Woojin’s face. “You. Shut up and let me eat my Happy Meal.” He reached over and swiped one of Woojin’s fries.

Woojin frowned. “Hey! You have your own fries, no need to steal mine.” He took one of Jihoon’s, just for good measure. Jihoon jutted out his lower lip in a pout, and Woojin tried to ignore the violent pounding of his heart.

“But yours taste better!” Jihoon whined, and Woojin swatted away Jihoon’s hands before he could grab another fry.

“They taste exactly the same, you ass.”

“But you have more than me!”

“So?” Woojin countered. “That doesn’t make them taste any better. I’ll buy you more if you want.”

Jihoon’s mouth opened in a small “o”, then closed. “You don’t have to do that.” He replied, much shyer than before.

“I’ll do it,” Woojin stood up and fished around in his jacket pocket for his wallet. “How big of a portion do you want?”

Jihoon stood up too, knocking over his chair in the process. He waved his hands in front of Woojin, in a Please-Dont-Go-Buy-Me-More-Stuff gesture.

“Don’t! I’m fine! I’ll just steal yours!” Jihoon protested, his cheeks flushing.

Woojin smirked. “But I want to have all my fries, though?” He walked up to the counter, and plopped down his money. He asked for a medium order, ignoring Jihoon’s protests.

While they were waiting for the food to be delivered, Woojin noticed Jihoon staring at the sign for drinks, looking at some milkshake or something.

“Do you want a milkshake, too?” Woojin immediately waved over the employee behind the counter. He turned to Jihoon, and asked, “Which one do you want?”

Somehow, the act of ordering a cheap milkshake at a small McDonald’s made Jihoon incredibly flustered. Woojin didn’t really understand why. If Jihoon wanted something, shouldn’t he get it for him?

Jihoon was stuttering and stammering and started over his sentence about a million times, before Woojin looked at the employee and said, “Just get him a chocolate one. He likes chocolate.”

The employee nodded, then smiled at him. “You two are very cute together,” She remarked as she printed out their receipt. “I wish my boyfriend bought me milkshakes just because I wanted them.”

The thought of Jihoon being his boyfriend made Woojin’s brain short circuit. He barely registered being handed the order, and the next thing he knew, they were seated at their table again.

Woojin felt jittery as he watched Jihoon dig into the food Woojin had bought. Without thinking, he blurted, “Jihoon, is this a date?”

Jihoon dropped his fry in shock and nearly knocked over his milkshake. He stared up at Woojin with eyes as wide as saucers, nervousness etched across his face.

“I-is that what you want it to be?”

Woojin thought for a moment. “Yeah.” He replied simply. He couldn’t lie for shit, so he wasn’t going to pretend like he didn’t really want this.

A smile split across Jihoon’s face, and he said, “Then yes. It’s a date.”

Woojin decided to try something.

“You’re cute, Jihoon.” He stated.

It was weird, really, how much these few words seemed to affect Jihoon. His cheeks reddened for what was probably the hundredth time that night, and he shrunk in his seat. He buried his face in his hands, and when Woojin reached over the pull them away, Jihoon’s grin looked like it was positively glowing.

Still smiling softly, Jihoon mumbled, “Don’t call me cute! Or else!”

Woojin leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Yeah? Or else what?” He teased.

“Or else I’ll steal all your fries!” Jihoon stuck out his tongue.

Woojin stuck out his tongue back at him, and pulled his fries closer to himself. Jihoon, being the dumbass he was, leaned over across the table to try and reach Woojin’s fries. When he realized he couldn’t get to them, Jihoon got up and slid into the chair next to Woojin.

He made a grab for the fries, and Woojin leaned back to avoid him, giggling a bit. Unfortunately for Woojin, Jihoon leaned over with him, and practically flattened him in order to snag the container. He succeeded in doing so, and smiled triumphantly above Woojin.

It was only then that Woojin realized how close they were. Woojin’s back was pressed the wall at an angle, and Jihoon was leaning over him, so close that the tips of their noses were almost brushing. Woojin couldn’t help but notice the way that Jihoon’s lips were dry and chapped, but still pink and full nonetheless. He was staring, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop thinking of what would happen if he shifted just a little and pressed his own mouth against Jihoon’s.

Jihoon was now seeming to realize their close proximity, and quickly sat up, relieving some of the tension in Woojin’s chest. “Sorry,” He said quietly, and settled back into his chair.

“It’s okay,” Woojin smiled back softly. He saw Jihoon’s eyes twinkle as he smiled back, and Woojin seized that perfect opportunity to outstretched his hand and steal his fries back.

“Hey!” Jihoon yelped.

Woojin just grinned back, and popped a handful of fries into his mouth. “That’s what you get for not paying attention!”

The rest of their evening passed in relative comfortableness. They spent the rest of their dinner bickering and making jokes, and Woojin was frequently found himself thinking about how Jihoon was too cute for words.

As they walked home, Jihoon became preoccupied with looking at the snow again, while Woojin became preoccupied with looking at Jihoon. Jihoon really was gorgeous, Woojin thought, even when he was doing the most mundane things.

Woojin was so absorbed with just looking at Jihoon, that he hadn’t even noticed that Jihoon had stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. Jihoon was pointing at something on the side of the road, and Woojin followed the direction of his finger.

Sprouting from the cracks in the asphalt, among the white winter snow, was a single flower. It was a dandelion, bright and yellow, standing firmly upright.

“Look at the flower!” Jihoon remarked, sounding astonished. He turned to face Woojin. “What kind of flower is it?”

Woojin stared at him. “You don’t know what a dandelion looks like?”

“...So what if I don’t! I’m not the one who works at a flower shop!”

Woojin rolled his eyes, and then walked over the flower before gently plucking it and handing it over to Jihoon. Jihoon’s eyes widened, and his fingers brushed gently over Woojin’s as he took it from him. Jihoon’s hands were soft.

“Thanks,” Jihoon said, twirling the dandelion between his fingers. “What do dandelions symbolize?”

Woojin scowled at him. “You know how much I hate when people ask me that.”

Giggling, Jihoon responded, “Yeah. But I just wanted to annoy you.”

“Clearly.”

By this point, the two had reached the entrance of the flower shop. Jihoon was still playing with the dandelion he was holding, and Woojin was still mesmerized by Jihoon’s beauty.

“Well,” Woojin said awkwardly, tearing his eyes away from Jihoon to look up at the sign on the shop’s front door. “Tonight was fun.”

“Yeah,” He heard Jihoon sigh. “We should do that again sometime.” Woojin’s heart jumped at this.

He nodded. “Then… I’ll head inside now.”

Woojin bid Jihoon goodnight, but before he stepped inside the door, Jihoon leaned up to press a quick kiss on Woojin’s cheek. Jihoon squeaked out a small goodbye, and ran off, leaving Woojin feeling awestruck, touching his cheek like an idiot.

Anyone knew that Woojin would be lying if he said he didn’t have a huge crush on Jihoon. Daehwi had been correct in saying that by the end of their “date”, he would have figured out his feelings. And oh boy, did he.

Every time Jihoon came into the store, Woojin couldn’t help but feel on top of the world. According to Daehwi, the two had been “dancing around each other” for the past two weeks since their date. They hadn’t gone on another one, and both of them were too shy to actually ask.

Woojin was really about to just ask Daehwi to set the two up again, when something very odd happened.

It was another normal day of Woojin pining and Daehwi being annoyed with him, and, as usual, Woojin’s face lit up the moment Jihoon entered the shop. Jihoon gave him a shy wave, strangely reminiscent of their first encounter together.

Woojin immediately moved over to start gathering a bundle of pink roses, admiring the way Jihoon was looking at him. Woojin started to tie the flowers together, when suddenly Jihoon blurted, “Stop!”

Woojin paused. He glanced over at Jihoon, who had put a hand out in order to stop Woojin. His face was red.

“Why?” Woojin asked, brows furrowed. “Is there something wrong?”

Jihoon retracted his hand, and scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. He seemed out of breath, and Woojin was thoroughly confused.

Jihoon looked like he wanted to say something, because he kept opening and closing his mouth, but nothing was coming out.

“I…” Jihoon paused, then restarted. “You…”

This went on for another thirty seconds, Jihoon stuttering and being unable to speak, all while Woojin stood still.

Eventually, Jihoon managed to get out, “I’m not here for roses today.” He was looking at the far corner of the ceiling, pointedly not meeting Woojin’s eyes.

Woojin blinked. “Okay… then do you need any other flowers?” He was thoroughly confused.

“Yeah,” Jihoon said breathlessly, fidgeting with the buttons on his jacket. “C-can I get some dandelions?”

Woojin’s heart starting pounding violently. He didn’t know what Jihoon was planning to do, but the fact that he seemed so nervous, and wanted to get dandelions, was just a bit out of the ordinary. Also, it was a bit odd considering that dandelions were somewhat special to Woojin and Jihoon. Nonetheless, he began pulling out dandelions and bundling them together, all while his hands shook with nervousness.

He handed them over to Jihoon, who took them lightly. But, to Woojin’s surprise, Jihoon thrust the flowers right back out, holding them in front of Woojin.

“They’re for you.” Jihoon’s cheeks were blazing furiously as he said this.

Woojin was dumbstruck. For him? Flowers, from Jihoon, for him? He didn’t understand, except he knew that this entire encounter was doing things to his feelings.

“For me?”

Jihoon nodded. “B-because,” He took a deep breath, “because I like you, Woojin.”

It felt like time had stopped. Woojin had never been one for the dreamy romance appeal of a flower shop, but if this was what working in a florist’s meant, then he was all for it.

He gaped at Jihoon, and looked down at the flowers. Hesitantly, he reached for them. Their hands lingered on each other for a bit longer than necessary, but Woojin felt amazed.

“Y-you like me?” Woojin asked quietly.

Jihoon nodded, biting his lip nervously. “I hope you like me too… We went on that date a while ago, so I’d hope so.” He appeared relatively calm, but Woojin knew Jihoon well enough to tell that he wasn’t, in fact, calm at all.

Woojin felt like the words were stuck in his throat.

“Can I kiss you?”

Instead of a confession, these were the words that spilled out of Woojin. He heard Jihoon inhale sharply, and then he felt Jihoon tug at his hand.

Looking up, Woojin’s eyes met Jihoon’s. They were beautiful, a dark brown swirling with essence of the universe. And then he felt himself lean in, he felt Jihoon’s breath against his lips, and then they were kissing.

Kissing Jihoon was quite an experience. It felt exactly like what Woojin expected, yet totally different at the same time. It was completely indescribable, yet it felt so right.

Jihoon’s arm had snaked around Woojin’s waist, and Woojin felt himself being pulled in closer. Woojin placed his hand on the back of Jihoon’s neck, and he felt Jihoon smile against his lips. They were lost in their own world.

The magic was shattered when they heard a small giggle, and broke apart instantly to see Daehwi smiling at them from the corner of the room. Woojin scowled at this, and he looked over at Jihoon, whose cheeks and lips were a bright, shiny red. Jihoon looked absolutely scandalized at being caught kissing, but Woojin was just annoyed.

Daehwi caught Woojin’s glare, and held up his hands in defeat. “Okay, okay, I’m leaving!” He grabbed his coat and his keys, waved goodbye, and exited the shop.

Jihoon and Woojin were left alone now, and if he was honest, Woojin just wanted to kiss Jihoon even more.

“Woojin?” Jihoon blinked up at him. “What does this mean?”

“What does what mean?” God, Jihoon was so fucking cute. It really messed with Woojin’s mind.

Jihoon hesitated. “We kissed. What does that mean?” When Woojin didn’t respond, he continued. “Like, are we boyfriends? Or just friends still? Friends who kiss each other? Is that a thing?”

Jihoon’s babbling was absolutely endearing, and Woojin found himself smiling softly at him.

“I’d like to be boyfriends,” Woojin said slowly. “If that’s okay with you.”

He saw Jihoon’s shoulders relax. “God, that’s okay with me.”

Woojin hummed, and drew Jihoon in closer. “Okay then, boyfriend.”

“You’re such a dumbass,” Jihoon stammered, but he didn’t protest when Woojin put his arms around his neck, and pulled him in for another kiss.

It was another regular day in the shop. Woojin was tapping his finger against the counter in impatience, as he waited for his boyfriend to arrive. He and Jihoon had been dating for about two months now, and Woojin was absolutely smitten. It was so adorable how easily he could make Jihoon flustered, and it was so sweet how nice he felt just being in Jihoon’s presence.

He also had figured out recently that the only reason Jihoon had come into the shop every day was because he found Woojin cute, and then ended up falling for him later. Which was the most romantic damned thing Woojin had ever heard in his life.

When the door opened, Woojin felt a smile break across his face. Jihoon was dressed in a light sweater, because the weather was getting warmer. It was almost springtime, almost prime flower season.

Jihoon approached the counter, and leaned in to give Woojin a quick kiss. Woojin felt dizzy when he pulled away, and couldn’t seem to wipe that stupid smile off his face.

“How can I help you today?” Woojin asked, grinning.

Jihoon giggled. “I’d like a dandelion bouquet, please!”

Woojin nodded, and went to pick out the prettiest dandelions he could find. “Are they for someone special?” He asked teasingly.

“They’re for my boyfriend!” Was Jihoon’s response.

“What a lucky guy he must be.” Woojin grinned as he gave the flowers to Jihoon.

Jihoon handed them right back, pressing them into Woojin’s chest. Woojin planted a kiss square on Jihoon’s lips, and he felt happiness bubble up inside of him before they pulled away.

Smirking, Jihoon asked, “Do you have any idea what dandelions symbolize yet?”

Woojin rolled his eyes, but kept his hold on Jihoon’s waist. “You’re absolutely insufferable.”

“I don’t see you complaining, though!”

Woojin hummed, and touched one of the dandelion petals lightly.

“You’re right. I don’t mind it one bit.”

Dandelion: rising above life’s challenges, getting your wish fulfilled.