Work Text:
“Okay, I need you guys to be responsible adults,” Thailand said. “And don’t wander too far.”
“We’re not children.”
“You act like one. Philippines, if you’re bored, there’s a garden nearby and you can take a selfie there or whatever,” Thailand said. “I’m going to see the set.”
“Kay~ Make sure it’s pretty!” Philippines waved at the bespectacled man. He then turned to the man beside him and his entire being glowed. “Out of everyone, we’re actually the chosen ones.”
Beside him, Indonesia smiled and nodded. “Yes. I’m so glad to be chosen.”
“We’re going to have a teaser poster of our own!”
“Yes, it sounds amazing.”
“Three of us! Well, Thailand shouldn’t be chosen since he had made a cameo before.”
“You can’t exclude him like that...”
“What should we do to make a lasting impression, huh, kuya?”
“Hmm...” Indonesia hummed thoughtfully at his friend’s question. “I think... we should try to wear something eyecatching?” he suggested.
“Aren’t our debut clothes already decided to be military uniform?” Philippines pouted. “I would kill to be able to wear my traditional clothes.”
“Then, everyone would also wear traditional clothes and people will be overwhelmed,” Indonesia pointed out.
“You’re right...” Philippines paused. “How about we use our national flowers so we could be eyecatching?” he suggested.
“That’s a great idea!” Indonesia smiled, all in on the idea.
Philippines’ eyes brightened. “If ladies saw us wearing flowers, they’ll be all over us! What a good idea of introducing a part of our identity too!”
Indonesia smiled. “That’s right.”
“Where should we put it, though?” Philippines blinked. “Behind our ears?” He swiped his hair back behind his ears and blinked innocently to Indonesia, he stifled a chuckle when he saw Indonesia blushing. “That’s how people usually wear flowers, right? You like to do it too!”
“Only when it’s a ceremony,” Indonesia defended himself.
“Still sexy, though,” Philippines smirked.
“Piri...” Indonesia sighed. “How about in our pocket? On the lapel?” he asked.
“So it could beautify your amazing chest?” Philippines asked innocently.
“Piri!” Indonesia blushed harder. “Forget it, let’s think of another way to stand out.”
“No, no, no, I was just kidding, kuya!” Philippines immediately clung to Indonesia’s arm. “I like the flower idea! Let’s get our national flowers! It’ll be a part of our debut uniform.”
“Shall we tell the others?”
“What? Haha, of course not,” Philippines answered bluntly. “This is only for us, if all of us wear flowers, no one stands out,” he beamed.
“Well, I guess you’re right,” Indonesia nodded.
The two of them went to the garden to pick their national flowers but upon splitting up for a while and reunited in the middle of the flower garden, the two of them stared incredulously at the flower in each other’s hand.
“Sampaguita...” Philippines murmured.
“Melati...” Indonesia mumbled.
The two nations stared blankly at each other, feeling as if they were the dumbest dumbasses in the world.
“Right, how could I forgot? We share national flower,” Philippines bit his lips as he looked at sampaguita in his hand.
Indonesia facepalmed. “You’re right.” How could he forget too?
“Aaaaahhh! Who will wear it then?!” Philippines hugged the flower close. “How else are we going to stand out if we both have the same flower?!” Philippines cried out. Damn, should he go and ask Indonesia to forget about this and let him be the only one wearing flower?
He couldn’t be that rude to such a good gentle man! Why?! Why did he share this idea, he should’ve kept it to himself- Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh
Philippines stressed for a while before suddenly calming down.
On the second thought, matching flowers sounds romantic... Philippines mused seriously and flushed slightly when an idea came to mind as he looked at Indonesia who also looked at his flower dejectedly.
‘We might look like a couple...’ Philippines stifled a smirk. ‘I don’t even have to think far and wide to lay off claim. This is genius, Philippines!’
“Well, this is your idea, Piri...” Indonesia said gloomily.
Philippines jolted and saw Indonesia was already walking away. “You know what, Kuya. I think this is actually great,” Philippines cleared his throat quickly to intervene. “We just need to change the placement to spice it up.”
Indonesia paused and turned around. “Placement?”
“Yup, yup. I could use it in lapel, you could slip it behind your ear. Then, we’ll make up something romantic like, I will always have you in my heart, and you’ll have me in your mind,” Philippines wiggled his brows. “I’m sure people will remember that.”
Indonesia’s cheeks were so red that Philippines wanted to just snicker at him and tease him more.
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“No, I’m serious. It might lessen the impact with the same flower and all. But it’s still a way to not let our national flower gone waste. Come on, I can’t be the only one with a national flower, it will be weird!” Philippines said. “Or should I be the one who put it behind my ear? I’m all ears for ideas. But I think you’ll look better with it behind your ear.”
“It’s fine,” Indonesia said hastily.
“Kuyaaaa! Listen to me first. I’m- ah! It breaks...” Philippines exclaimed as he looked at the flower peeking from his pocket. He had tried to slip it into his pocket earlier to show to Indonesia but he broke one of the petals.
“What’s wrong?” Indonesia stopped and immediately understood the problem.
Philippines shrugged. “I’ll just retrieve another one later—“ he paused when Indonesia stepped closer with the flower in his hand and then put his sampaguita into Philippines’ lapel pocket. The two flowers saddled with each other prettily, their white colour looked beautiful against his light-coloured uniform. The first flower’s flaw was covered.
“There you go,” Indonesia commented. “Two national flowers in your heart. My puspa bangsa, I offer them to you.”
Philippines’ heart skipped a beat hearing the two foreign words from Indonesia’s mouth.
“!!!” Pien suddenly jumped on Philippines’ shoulder and Indonesia backed away.
“Ow! Oh, sorry, sorry,” Indonesia smiled at the small tarsier. “Did I scare you?”
How could he? Philippines knew Pien just wanted some attention to himself and tried to get it from Indonesia, but it bought Philippines more time to calm down after rationalizing himself. He lost control when hearing a slightly familiar word from Indonesia, how embarrassing. Philippines stared at the two flowers on his chest and looked at Indonesia with wide eyes. “You... since when can you flirt?”
“Piri...”
“I’m just kidding.” Philippines was not. He cleared his throat. “But what about you? I don’t want to do this alone, it’s better having a matching flower and be a couple than wearing this alone,” he complained. He had fantasized many different possibilities in just a few minutes about the uses of sampaguita. Mainly about Indonesia wearing it behind his ear or Philippines asking Indonesia to put it behind his ear so it wouldn’t fall off.
“I’ll just use this,” Indonesia plucked off a purple flower from a nearby flower bed and smiled when he saw Philippines’ confused gaze. “I have three national flowers, Phili.”
“Oh!” Philippines blinked in surprise. “You do?”
“Yes. Puspa bangsa, puspa pesona, puspa langka,” Indonesia said strings of words that didn’t make sense to Philippines.
“What are those?”
“My three national flowers. This is my puspa pesona,” Indonesia said as he showed the purple moon orchid closer to Philippines.
“Moon orchid? What is puspa... peso..na?” Philippines struggled.
“It means flower of charm,” Indonesia said.
Philippines inhaled deeply. “That sounds cool. You want to tell the world of charming you are, kuya?” he smirked.
Indonesia looked away. “That’s because the last one is impossible to wear on my lapel.”
“What’s the last one?”
“Rare flower. Giant padma...” Indonesia facepalmed.
“Pfft--- hahaha, you can’t even wear that on your back.”
“And it smells awful.” Indonesia sighed and then joined his friend in laughing about his last national flower.
The two of them laughed merrily, surrounded by flowers. The atmosphere was gentle and warm, it felt like they could stay like this for hours.
Philippines caressed the two flowers on his lapel and blinked. “Then, what is sampaguita again?” he asked.
“Melati? Puspa bangsa.”
“What is that?”
“Nation’s flower. Or flower of the nation, if you will,” Indonesia said.
“Puspa means flower, right?” Philippines blinked. “So... Bangsa is... nation? Bansa?”
“Bangsa is nation,” Indonesia nodded.
Philippines smiled wider. “Haha, no way. Bansa is nation.”
Indonesia blinked and then realized. “Really?”
“Yes, yes!” Philippines laughed. “I thought it means different, but it’s actually the same.” The spot on his chest felt warmer than before, specifically the spot beneath the flowers Indonesia put into his lapel pocket. “So, you’re offering me... your nation?” he looked at Indonesia.
Indonesia paused and looked at Philippines. “Well...” he looked away. “It’s more like a poetic way to offer you my loyalty...”
Something just went off in Philippines. His ‘cute!’ meter just went off the roof and blew it off, he almost fainted there and then, but he was the cheerful mood-maker and troublemaker, he couldn’t just lose here. “Here I thought you’re offering yourself to me in place of nation,” Philippines said innocently.
“...that too...”
“Hm?” Philippines inched closer.
“Forget it.” Indonesia looked away and walked on briskly.
Philippines’ eyes sparkled. “Hey, hey, you can’t just charm me and then left~ Aren’t you wearing flower of charm? Charm me some more!” he chased after Indonesia. “Where are you going?”
“I’m thirsty,” Indonesia blurted out.
“What a coincidence! I’m also thirsty,” Philippines licked his lips but Indonesia was not stopping. “At least let’s take a selfie to commemorate today!”
“Aren’t we having a photoshoot?”
“Eeh?” Philippines pouted.
“Indonesia! Philippines!”
The two paused and looked over to see Thailand waving at them. “Where have you been?! Have you forgotten we have a photo shoot at sunset?!” He yelled at them with a pleasant voice but the aura around him was dark.
“C-coming!” Indonesia briskly ran towards the bespectacled man and Philippines lazily followed.
With the orange sky as their background, Philippines felt a bit regretful. He was looking forward to this photoshoot and now he didn’t. With Thailand, he couldn’t tease Indonesia too much.
Bansa, huh...?
Philippines glanced at Indonesia who held a glass of drink in his hand, looking slightly uncomfortable.
“Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, are you ready?” The cameraman asked and Philippines looked away.
“Ready as I ever be!” Philippines winked and raised his selfie stick.
No matter, tomorrow iss a new day, he wouldn’t just forget about today. The flower on his chest felt like a vow and it made him feel secure.