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He's not sure when it started or how it started.
Win remembers it as if it only happened yesterday. A frazzled customer came stumbling in Souri Flower Shop, sweating dripping down his forehead. Fortunately, most of the flower shop's staff were on their lunch break that day, so they didn't have to see the heaving mess that was Bright Vachirawit.
The first thing that he felt for Bright was concern, as his face was painted with an alarmed expression.
(Come on, give Win some credit. He's not the "love at first sight" type of guy.)
"Um, excuse me...?" And those–those were the first words he said to him. It was a bit awkward. Bright was still catching his breath in an attempt to regain composure. After a minute or two, the stressed stranger eventually stood up straight and struck a conversation.
Bright gave him an awkward, lopsided smile. Win couldn't help but get lost in that pretty grin of his. "Uh, d-do you have hydrangeas?"
Win stared for a moment, then blinked twice. They were a flower shop, of course they had hydrangeas. With a nod, he responded;
"Yes, we do."
"Then I'd like the blue ones, please." His smile widened. Win felt his heart skip a beat.
When Win finished arranging the bouquet, the customer pulled out a card from the pocket of his suit jacket. Win raised an eyebrow when Bright gave the card to him.
"Could you place the card somewhere in the bouquet? I always write my mom something when I give her flowers."
Oh, it's for his mom. It is mother's day, after all.
"Of course." Win said, taking the card out of Bright's hand. "So, hydrangeas are her favorite flowers, huh? They're slightly pricier."
Bright's stuffy smile turned into a genuine one, full of life. Win, although he was busy with the card, felt his cheeks warm. He was attractive, okay? And Win tended to have a weakness for attractive people.
"Yeah! I get a bouquet of them every year for mother's day, her birthday, Christmas, New Year - you know, holidays." Bright said. "I was on my way to get flowers for her, but I realized that the flower shop near our house had relocated."
"Hence why you were rushing?"
"Yep."
Win finished tying the card in place and handed Bright the bouquet.
"Here you go. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day."
Bright grinned as he paid. "I will. Thank you so much, um...?"
"Win."
"Yeah! Thanks, Win!"
"And you're welcome...?"
"Bright!" Bright said.
Win returned the smile. "Bright."
The next time Bright stops by the shop, he's relaxed and cool, unlike the first time they met each other. He was wearing a white shirt and a pair of black pants. Similar to what a university student would wear.
Oh, he was probably a university student like Win.
"Welcome! What can we do for you?" Win heard Love's cheery greeting, but paid no attention to her. He was busy staring at Bright, who was practically glowing, behind the counter.
Bright nodded. "Hi, um, is Win here?"
Win almost fell out of his stool.
"Of course!" Love said. "I'm surprised you know boss, you don't look like you're from around here."
Love then pointed to the counter, where Win was residing in. He gulped as his heart rate began to speed up, little by little. Why was he suddenly nervous. There's really nothing to be nervous about. Bright was just a customer who was probably only visiting to thank him for the other day. It was no big deal.
But at the same time, it felt like i was a big deal.
Bright approached the counter, shining eyes and all, and smiled.
Win has never felt such a strong urge to kiss someone. Which is really weird. He's seen this guy once. Once.
Bright leaned into the counter and started to talk. "I wanted to thank you for last time. My mom liked the hydrangeas a lot! Said they were more vibrant than any hydrangeas she's seen."
"Oh." Win said dumbly. God, what was he doing. "Well, we take care of our flowers here. We, um, want to e-ensure that they're pretty and you know – not dull."
Bright hummed.
"Then you're doing a great job at it!" he replied. "Okay, so, I actually want to grab some more flowers."
Finally. Win couldn't handle being in such a close proximity to Bright. His feet itched to go to the backroom to get some flowers.
"It's for a girl." There goes his chances. That was quick. "My friend's girlfriend, to be exact. He was too busy setting up the location for their date, so I came here to pick some up."
Okay, so he wasn't completely hopeless.
Wait, why was he even thinking about this? Gross. Hitting on customers is unprofessional.
"What kind of flowers did your friend tell you to buy?" Win asked.
Bright reached for his phone and scrolled through a bit.
"He wants... bluebells?"
Win smiled.
"That's a great choice." Win said. "Did you know that bluebells signify loyalty and constancy? Gratitude and humility, too."
Bright shrugged. "That makes a lot of sense. They've been together since high school. My friend has been nothing but loyal."
Win excused himself to grab the bluebells. Bright nodded and waited.
He couldn't help but feel envious towards the relationship Bright's friend had. Win didn't really have relationships like those, in the romantic sense. Loyalty? Constancy? All they did was complain, cheat, leave, and repeat. Win didn't know why he had the worst luck when it came to love. He didn't know why he subjected himself to that kind of pain either. Loneliness, probably? Well, whatever it was, he didn't want to experience those things again.
When he came back to the counter, Bright was talking to Love about something. He smiled. As friendly as she was, she never really talked to new people.
Bright's different, I guess. Win thought to himself.
"I'm back." Win announced casually, the bouquet of bluebells on his hand. He headed to the counter and grabbed the paper and twine.
Bright looked at the flowers with curiosity.
"They're really pretty, huh?" Win said as he arranged the flowers.
"They are." Bright agreed, nodding slightly.
There was a slight pause.
"You're pretty too, Win."
Win choked on his spit.
Lunch was supposed to be a time where everyone just sat down, ate, and shared a few stories here and there. Usually, that's what happens at Souri, too. Since the shop was popular and a bit hectic at times, the staff reserved their energy for later. They simply ate their food and reminded each other of tasks that needed to be done.
However, that wasn't the case for that specific day. The entire Souri staff, including Win, were eating at their favorite barbecue place. They were usually pretty quiet, so the owners didn't pay any attention to them, but that time around - the staff went batshit.
"I don't go to work for one day and suddenly boss is flirting with a customer." Film said, exasperated.
Win shook his head. "That's not what happened —"
"What was his name again, Love? Bright? I'm sure Win fell right away." Toptap inquired as he stuffed a skewered pork in his mouth.
Win gave up at that point and just ate his food.
Love hummed, putting down her utensils. "It was disgusting. What kind of person actually says that in such an outright way?"
"Bright, apparently." came Film's reply. The group started chuckling, illiciting an eye roll from Win. These guys were ridiculous. But they were professionals when it came to taking care of plants and flowers, so Win had to put up with it.
Win spoke up. "He said he was only joking around though. He even told me he likes to joke around. It's really nothing, guys."
"Don't sell yourself short, boss!" Film said. "You're very attractive and everyone knows that."
"It's just – you know I hate making assumptions and taking things the wrong way."
Toptap sighed. "Win, you're very knowledgeable about flowers, but you're very dense when it comes to love. Work on that."
Maybe he should. Whatever.
Shortly after, they finished their meal.
Bright stops by the shop for the fifth time, two months after his last visit. He and Win have been messaging each other since the third time Bright visited. This time around, he was in the shop to buy flowers for his mom's birthday.Win recalled that Bright got his mom hydrangeas during special occasions and holidays, and he genuinely found it endearing.
"– but it didn't meet other's expectations. As much as I love my faculty, they make shitty decisions in design." Bright ranted, sighing in between. "We're supposed to be marketing students. Then why the hell didn't – hey, Win? You there?"
Win snapped out of his trance and laughed awkwardly. He was not going to admit that he was staring at Bright's face. Never.
"Yeah, I just got distracted."
Bright smirked. "By my face?"
It was supposed to be a joke, but he was right.
Win attempted to hide his warming cheeks. "Whatever, aren't you here for the hydrangeas?"
"Oh, shit. Yeah. Here's the card." Bright placed it on the counter. Win nodded and headed to the west side of the shop.
As he picked the best looking hydrangeas, his mind was running with all sorts of thoughts. Win was mostly thinking about what his co-workers have been saying for the past month or so.
Recently, Love bumped into Bright in a coffee shop. Bright remembered who Love was and struck a conversation with her. They got to know each other pretty well, and Love quickly realized that Bright was extremely talkative. But he wasn't an oversharer either.
After questions upon questions, Love got to the dating side of things.
"A lot of people are actually surprised when I say I'm single." Bright told Love. "But I don't like dating around. I'm waiting for the one. Cheesy, right?"
So he was single. What's that got to do with Win?
Apparently, everything – according to his peers, anyways.
When it became common knowledge to the staff and some regular customers (who were equally as invested in Win's love life as his co-workers) that Bright was single, all of them constantly shared their own tips on asking someone out. Win was exasperated, needless to say. He barely saw Bright and most of their interactions were via text. Why were the people around him so obsessed with the idea of Win asking him out?
Then, as if on cue, Film's voice rang in his head.
"Just shoot your shot boss. There's no harm in trying, you know?"
Hesitantly, he picked up a single white cape jasmine flower.
Win walked back to the counter and found Bright and Love talking to each other. The two of them stopped when Win arrived.
"Oh, the hydrangeas are as pretty as ever – wait, what's this one?" Bright said and pointed to the white flower.
Love stared at the flower. She then gave Win a knowing smirk.
"What?" Win questioned nervously. If Love says anything, Win will disintegrate right here, right now.
"Nothing." Love replied, then left.
Bright watched as Win skillfully arranged the flowers. "So what's the white one?"
"Cape jasmine." Win replied, tying the card to the hydrangea bouquet. "I figured I should give you one. You're a regular here basically, so um, yeah."
The smile Bright gave him after he said that could light up the world. Really.
"Thanks, Win."
As days passed, their once peaceful lunchtimes slowly started to disappear. They were now the opposite of peaceful.
"Did I actually hear that right?" Toptap asked incredulously. "Instead of being outright and talking like a normal person, you've resulted to giving him flowers?"
Win sighed. "You said it yourself. I'm completely dense about these things. All I know are –"
"Flowers." Love, Film, and Toptap all said in unison.
Exactly.
"But like, isn't Bright completely clueless about these kinds of things?" Film asked with a raised eyebrow.
Win shrugged. "That's good for me, then. He probably doesn't want to be with me anyway."
As much as he wanted this to turn into a happy ending moment, this was real life. Counting on assumptions and dreams doesn't get you anywhere. Rational and realistic thinking will save you the pain and the hurt. At least that's what Win believes in.
Toptap spoke up. "You should still keep it up, though. Maybe he'll come around."
"He will." Love replied, taking a bite of her food. "There's a part of me that believes – no, knows – that Bright will come around.
His friends were delusional for thinking these things. How could Bright ever like him? They were friends, and that's as far as they'll get. But deep inside Win, he hoped that his friends were right.
"So, what flower will you give him next?"
"Bye, Win! Thanks for the flower, again!"
Win smiled as he waved goodbye.
This month, Bright visited the shop five times.
This month, Win gave Bright five flowers that confessed his feelings.
Aster, carnations, forget-me-nots, heathers, and daffodils.
As his flowers grew everyday, so did his feelings for Bright.
"Mike?" Bright said as he saw his friend, standing outside his dorm room with a silly, lopsided smile. "What the hell? It's five in the morning."
Mike chuckled. "Just let me in, Bright! I need to ask for a second opinion!"
Bright raised an eyebrow. What kind of second opinion does Mike need for him to show up at his apartment at this hour? Surely it's not a project? They were in two different faculties. With an annoyed sigh, he waved his hand and let his friend in.
The two of them sat on Bright's leather couch. Mike opened his bag and took out a thick, brown book with decorative flowers painted on the spine. Bright has seen this book before! He's seen a customer at Souri read this when they were picking flowers to buy. But still, why would Mike talk to him about this kind of stuff?
"So," Mike began. "I'm hitting on someone."
Bright rolled his eyes. Of course he was. "Alright. And why would you need my second opinion on this?"
"The guy I like is a florist!"
That makes the two of us, then. Bright thought, as a certain florist crossed his mind. He suddenly felt warm.
Mike continued to explain. "You see this book? It has all sorts of flowers and their meanings. And you know, I don't want to give him flowers that mean death and shit – so I got it. But I also want you to help me pick out the flowers I'm gonna give him. What do you say?"
Bright briefly imagined the look on Win's face if he started researching more about flowers. "Okay. I'll do it."
"Great!" Mike said, smiling. "Let me browse for a bit, then."
Mike opened the book and started to scan it. Bright thought about it, it would be pretty romantic if he confessed to Win with flowers. Like, you know, randomly giving him flowers everyday and ask him to decode it –
Wait, what?
"Hey, Bright."
"Yeah?"
"If you have the time, you should try to look for the meanings of the flowers I've been giving you. You still remember the names, yeah?
"I do. But why?"
"Um, it's – uh – interesting."
Bright widened his eyes. Could it be...?
As if on cue, Mike found the section that had "flowers of love" written on top of the page.
"Aster. Oh, this one's pretty – it means symbol of love, trusting." Mike said, nodding his head as he read it. "That's a good message to send out. I do trust him."
Bright continued to listen.
"Azalea... Bluebell... Ah, carnation. Fascination, distinction and love."
"Daffodils mean return my affection? Oh, definitely this."
"Cape jasmine... secret love, joy... okay."
"Forget-me-nots... true love."
"Let's see – heather means either admiration or protection, depending on the color. I see."
Mike turned to Bright. "So, what do you think?"
Bright stared at his friend, his cheeks and ears warm. Mike stared back, concerned.
"You okay?"
Bright stood up. "I have to go."
"What – oi, where are you going!?"
Win has seen and experienced many shocking things in his life. From horror movies, uncomfortable videos of people skydiving, surprise birthday parties, and all sorts of other things. But nothing has shocked him more than a frazzled Bright Vachirawit, knocking on the glass door of Souri Flower Shop at six thirty in the morning. Not to mention, he was holding a gigantic bouquet of red roses.
It was like the first time they met, now that he thought about it. Bright was rushing that day, too. But it's probably not because of hydrangeas this time around.
Win gulped and unlocked the glass door. Bright went inside and started to heave heavily. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, uh... just... give me a – a second."
Win was about to turn around and get Bright some water, but he felt a hand grab his wrist. "No... it'll be quick."
"Okay."
Bright stood up straight and heaved one more time. He cleared his throat and looked at Win. Win wanted to laugh at Bright's face, since it was so puffy and red. But when Bright held out the bouquet of red roses to him, Win felt warmer as well.
"Is this – ?"
"Yes. Um, it's – it's for you."
Win chuckled awkwardly and scratched the nape of his neck. He reached out for the bouquet and felt his hand touch Bright's for a brief moment. He started to get even warmer.
"Thank you..."
A long silence followed. They didn't know what to say. Win didn't know what to do. How would you react if the guy you've had a massive crush on for months bangs on your door at six thirty in the morning with a bouquet of roses? And gives the roses to you? Yeah, you'd feel slightly alarmed.
"Win." Bright said, breaking the silence.
"Yeah?"
"You could have just asked me out, you know."
Oh my god. What the fuck. This is happening. This is actually happening. Win thought to himself.
"What do you mean?"
Bright chuckled awkwardly. "I – uh, figured out the meaning of the flowers you've been giving me. And, um – yeah."
Another silence followed. It didn't last long, though.
Win gulped. "So... do you like me back?"
"Of course I do!" Bright said a bit too loudly. He reddened. "I mean, of course I do. The roses... I was hoping they'd deliver the message quite well..."
Win's heart was about to explode. He could hear it in his ears. Oh god. Bright likes him back. Bright actually likes him back. This can't be real.
"So, um, do you wanna go out with – ?"
Win leaned in and gave Bright a soft, chaste kiss. Bright blinked twice, his cheeks reddening by the second.
"Yeah." Win said, smiling. "I do."
end.