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Hinata pulled his lower lip between his teeth, chewing absently at it as he tucked another flower into the arrangement. Would it look better here, or here? He pulled it back out, sliding it in at another spot and frowning at his work. Something still looked off. What if- the merry tinkling of the bell over the shop door interrupted his concentration, and he looked up with his sun-shiniest smile to greet the customer who’d just entered. “Hello!” He greeted cheerily as his gaze met a set of dark blue eyes framed by a slight scowl. “Can I help you with something?”
A bemused expression had crossed the visitor’s face, and he was looking at Hinata so intently that Hinata felt his cheeks start to burn, subconsciously reaching for his face. Was there something on his mouth? Maybe he had a chunk of broccoli stuck between his teeth – as he began nervously patting his hair in search of flyaways, his palm landed on the daisy he just remembered Yachi had tucked behind his ear with a giggle that morning before she’d left to help Asahi with deliveries.
“Oh god.” He quickly pulled it out, tossing it to the floor with a flick of his wrist. Now his face was definitely a little warm. “What can I do for you?” He finally asked, hoping they could both move on and forget he’d been wearing a flower in his hair.
The customer shook his head slightly, turning a little red himself. “Uh, sorry. I – I’m here to meet with someone about the flowers for the Sawamura-Sugawara wedding?” Hinata nodded as realization dawned across his face. Asahi had told him someone might be in today to finalize the order. He hadn’t been expecting this exactly, because unless he was mistaken Asahi had been speaking with a woman over the phone. The taller man looked as though he’d rather be plucking out his eyelashes one by one than standing in the midst of a flower shop.
“K-Kioyoko-san?” Hinata finally asked hesitantly, glancing once more at Asahi’s notes. That was the name Asahi had written down. He’d learned to decipher his chicken scratch pretty well over the year he’d worked for him.
“No, dumbass.” The customer sighed, and Hinata tried his best to keep the shock from his face at being called a dumbass by someone he barely knew. “I’m Kageyama Tobio, and the only reason I’m here is because Kiyoko has a bad cold, and Daichi is terrifying when he’s stressed out.” Hinata couldn’t help the snort of laughter that spurted out at his exasperation and discomfort.
“I’m sorry.” He quickly apologized, lips quivering with mirth though he gave his most valiant effort to maintain a straight face. “I think Kiyoko-san and Asahi finalized most of the details anyway…” He scrounged around for the photos Asahi had left him, spreading them across the table and motioning for the uncomfortable looking man to take a seat.
“Relax!” He said suddenly, feeling almost bad for him. This was clearly not how he’d planned to spend his Saturday morning. “I don’t bite.” He chuckled lightly at his own joke, breaking out in a smile that he hoped was reassuring. “I’ll get you out of here fast.” At that an almost pleasant look crossed the man’s face, and Hinata decided he wasn’t really that grouchy after all, just miles out of place and scowling as a coping mechanism.
A light “humph” was his only response, but the dark gaze held his for a few moments before glancing down at the photos.
“Ah, anyway.” Hinata shrugged, moving on quickly. The look in that guy’s eyes sent an odd shiver through his gut. “This is the centerpiece arrangement they were looking at for the tables... Roses, baby’s breath, your typical wedding stuff I guess. As for the altar, I think they were thinking of something like the one I’ve got right here, actually.” He gestured towards the arrangement he’d been working on.
“Oh, uh… it’s nice.” The guy finally said gruffly, tacking on an “I guess.” Hinata nodded. He sure wouldn’t be getting too much out of this guy.
“So is this what they want for the centerpieces?” Hinata finally asked, holding up the photo once more.
“Um… I guess?” The guy sighed, running a hand over his face. “Look, flowers aren’t really my thing. Whatever you think is good, I’m sure it will be fine. I mean… it looks like you have good taste.” His cheeks took on a slightly red tinge as he gestured towards the arrangement.
“Ah, thanks.” Hinata beamed. “I wasn’t quite sure if it worked, but maybe it does.” He glanced thoughtfully once more at his work. “Anyway, how many will you need?” He quickly refocused the conversation. Asahi often chided him for being too chatty with the customers.
“There’s 20 tables, so 20?” He didn’t seem too convinced.
“Probably.” Hinata tapped the tip of his pencil on the order form. “And there’s the altar arrangement, the bouquets for decoration, the petals for the flower girl…” He was muttering to himself as he scribbled, finally lifting his pencil from the page with a flourish. “And, that should be everything!” He finished brightly. “We’ll work out the bill and you’ll probably be able to pay it tomorrow.” He glanced up at the guy whose eyes had begun to wander around the shop. “Okay?” He prompted, and the dark gaze snapped back to his.
“Sure. Sounds good.” The guy managed what could almost be considered a smile. “Uh, thanks. For all your help. I appreciate it.” Nestled somewhere in the statement, Hianta sensed an apology for acting so surly.
“No problem. Have a great day!” He gave a small wave in farewell.
“Thanks. Uh, you too.” He opened his mouth almost as though he wanted to say something more, but then quickly closed it. The bell jangled once more upon his exit, and Hianta found himself watching the retreating back with a small flutter in his chest and the strange feeling that something big had just happened.
*
The moment he stepped out of the flower shop with the tinkling of the bell still in his ears, the spell cast on Kageyama by that smile started to fade, but it was still pressed into his memory. The sun beat down on his shoulders, warming his skin through his shirt, but a different kind of warmth welled up in his middle. He frowned but didn’t have time to puzzle over it, because his phone jangled in his pocket and by the time he brought it to his ear Daichi was already talking.
“-and please tell me you went to the florist, Kageyama, I-”
“I went to the florist.” Kageyama quickly cut off his tirade. “Everything’s ordered, and the bill’s going to be ready tomorrow. It’s fine.”
“Oh, thanks, Kageyama.” Daichi breathed. “I know you didn’t really want to, but believe me, you’re a life-saver. When Kiyoko got sick I was panicking a little bit, but then she suggested you might be able to go, and I would have gone myself, but Koushi’s parents-”
“I really don’t mind.” Cutting in was the only way he could get a word in these days. “The guy there made it pretty simple.”
“Well, good! Ah, while we’re on the topic, Kageyama… I don’t suppose you’d mind going in to pay tomorrow?”
“No.” He said a little too quickly. “I’ll do it.” Maybe it was the loneliness starting to get to him, or maybe it was the fact that two of his closest friends were getting married in two weeks, but that smile had sparked something in him that he hadn’t felt in quite some time. Maybe it was stupid, but he needed to see it just one more time.
The next morning he actually took the time to glance in the mirror, trying to soften the scowl that creased his brow. Someone with a smile like the red-head at the flower shop (he had realized after hanging up with Daichi that he didn’t even know the guy’s name) might not appreciate a permanently grouchy face like the one Kageyama wore. In fact, there probably wasn’t much about him that the guy would appreciate. From his desk job to his bare-bones apartment, there wasn’t much about him that was anything remarkable. He huffed a sigh and watched his reflection’s hair fluff up. Just this once, he’d allow himself to be a little selfish.
When he walked into the shop, the guy at the desk was most certainly not the one from the day before. This guy had his hair pulled back in a loose bun, scruff sprouting on his chin, and didn’t look particularly like the kind of person who’d work in a flower shop. Kageyama only looked around for a few seconds before resigning himself to the fact that whatever he’d been hoping to happen (and he wasn’t even quite sure what), it just wasn’t meant to be. Had he not promised Daichi he’d pay the bill today he would’ve almost been tempted to duck back outside.
“Oh, hello!” The man greeted with a warm smile that softened the intimidating aura that lingered around him. “You must be here to pay the bill for the Sawamura-Sugawara order?” Kageyama only nodded in response, hoping to be in and out as soon as possible. The man looked down at the sheet, brow slowly crinkling into a frown. “Hinata!” He suddenly called into the room behind him so loudly that Kageyama gave a start, shoulders stiffening when the very person he’d been hoping to see despite himself appeared in the doorway.
“Didn’t you forget something?” The man asked with a sigh of thinly-veiled frustration. “Like the boutonnieres and the corsages, perhaps?”
“O-oh.” The color quickly drained from Hinata’s face – Hinata. Could someone with a smile like that have any name but one that referenced the sun? “I guess it slipped my mind.” The smile he shot Kageyama this time was weak and apologetic.
“Uh… it’s fine?” Kageyama didn’t really know whether it was or not. As long as the outcome wasn’t one that would incur Daichi’s wrath – or worse, Suga’s – he supposed it would have to be.
“I’m so sorry.” The man leaned across the counter a little too close for Kageyama’s comfort. “Hinata here will get this straightened out for you right away.” With one last warm smile directed at Kageyama and a pointed look in Hinata’s direction he disappeared through the same doorway Hinata had just appeared from.
“I – really am sorry. I guess it slipped my mind?” He repeated sheepishly. The look in his eyes was so warm and plaintive that Kageyama thought he could probably forgive him for murder if that’s what he was asking (Honestly, what had gotten into him?).
“Don’t worry about it.” Kageyama replied weakly, readily taking the seat offered to him. Hinata was talking about the different options, and he nodded along as though he were paying attention, but the truth was that all he could think about was the fact that if he moved his arm a few centimeters further it would be brushing against the other man’s.
“Kageyama-san?” Hinata was saying his name and looking at him with slight concern in his eyes. “Does that sound okay?”
He nodded quickly. “Sounds great.” He forced a poor smile, wondering just how easy it was to tell that he hadn’t heard a single word Hinata had been saying. “Uh, thanks a lot. For everything.”
“Ah, of course. It’s no problem!” Kageyama couldn’t tell if the smile just then was particularly bright, or if it was the one he used on all of the customers. “So you can definitely come in tomorrow to pay. I’m so sorry I inconvenienced you.” There was that plaintive look again.
“Really, it’s fine.” He was scrabbling, because he suddenly realized this may very well be the last time he’d see that man and his smile. Maybe that was what gave him the courage to do what he did next; that, and the assurance that at the very worst he’d return to his empty apartment as usual, further resigned to the lonely fate he’d already accepted.
“Hey.” A curious golden gaze was suddenly fixed on him. “I was wondering if, maybe, I mean, you wanted to getcoffeesometime?” Unfortunately, his bravery had run out mid-sentence. How typical.
“Um… I’m sorry?” There was that apologetic look again.
“Nothing. It’s nothing. Sorry.” He mumbled, hoping the red flush that suddenly colored his cheeks could be chalked up to the temperature in the flower shop, or too much sun. Tobio, this is exactly why you have to go home to that empty apartment every night.
“Oh.” Kageyama must be imagining the slight disappointment that flashed through those eyes before the smile returned. “Well, maybe I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye, Kageyama-san. Have a great day!”
“You too.” Kageyama’s smile this time was definitely forced. As he left the flower shop that day, the tinkling of the bell above the door sounded especially mocking.
*
“I’m almost positive he was trying to ask me out!” Hinata ran a frustrated hand through his already-disorganized hair. “But he was just talking so fast, and then when I asked him to repeat it, he brushed it off!” The strangled groan that followed was muffled into his arms folded on the table.
“This is that guy with the wedding flowers?” Yachi asked incredulously. “The one who you said looked scary? Did you want him to ask you out, or not?”
“I don’t know!” Hinata wailed. “I mean, yes? He’s not scary.” He found himself defending the guy for some reason. “He just… doesn’t like flower shops. He was uncomfortable. But beyond that… there was just something about him. Something intense. Mysterious.”
“Oh really?” Yachi quirked an eyebrow and a slight smirk creased her lips. “Tall, dark, and handsome? You think that’s your type?”
Hinata sighed deeply. “Probably not. Chances are I’ll never see him again anyway.” He shrugged.
“Unless you happen to be the only one in the shop when he comes to pay this afternoon.” Yachi suggested nonchalantly.
“Right…” Hinata agreed weakly, not trusting the gleam he saw in her eyes.
As it turns out, he was right not to trust that gleam. That afternoon he found himself behind the counter with nothing but the flowers and potted plants for company when the bell tinkled to announce an incoming customer, and naturally it was none other than ‘tall, dark, and handsome.’ Hinata managed to keep conversation as normal as possible, but as he closed the register, he made a split second decision.
“So, yesterday.” He began a little too loudly. “You asked me something, but I didn’t hear, and I don’t know, I thought maybe… Do you want to go out sometime?”
Kageyama’s mouth opened and closed before he nodded quickly. “I – I think I’d like that.” He may be handsome, but the slight flush that blossomed across his cheeks in that moment was positively adorable.
“This evening?” Hinata prompted, a wide smile breaking across his face unbidden. “You mentioned coffee.” He reminded gently. “How about that little place a few doors down from here? It’s nice.”
“Okay.” Kageyama agreed once more, and he gave what Hinata thought was probably the first genuine smile he’d seen on his face. It suited him.
That evening, Hinata’s foot tapped nonsensical patterns into the floor as he waited, watching the door for the tall figure with its piercing blue eyes. Just when he began to worry that he’d been stood up, Kageyama appeared, the uneasy shifting of his eyes finally coming to a stop on Hinata’s smile.
They slip easily into familiarity. When they each have a warm drink to occupy their hands, things feel less stilted. Hinata learned that Kageyama played volleyball in high school, that he works for a large accounting firm, and that he has a quiet longing for something more than nine to five behind a desk. Kageyama learned that Hinata was in the agricultural club in high school, that he has two cats named Fanta and Sprite, and that he wants nothing more than to see the world. By the end of the evening, Hinata’s heart had filled to the brim with a peculiar warmth and Kageyama’s hand was firm and calloused when he gave it a squeeze.
“Maybe we can get actual dinner sometime?” Hinata suggested before they parted.
Kageyama nodded slowly. “I think I’d like that a lot.” He gave Hinata one last smile – the one he’d come to crave in such a short time – before he turned and disappeared into the evening. Hinata rested a hand over his pounding heart for a few moments before turning towards home.
“So, you had a date last night?” Yachi asked cheekily the next morning. “Just as intense and mysterious as you dreamed?”
“He’s not mysterious at all.” Hinata sniggered. “Turns out he’s a huge dork. But y’know, I kind of like him better that way.”
“Now that sounds more like your type.” Yachi barely managed to dodge the balled up glove Hinata lobbed in her direction.
*
Kageyama groaned as he pushed yet another unsealed favor box in Kiyoko’s direction. “These tabs are just too small.” He muttered. It didn’t help that his hands were clumsy with lack of sleep and his mind continued to stubbornly return to the cause of it – a certain red-headed florist with a smile like sunshine.
“Something’s up with you.” Suga suddenly announced, looking up from his own place card project with a critical eye. “It’s almost like you’re… distracted?” Kageyama couldn’t help the hot blush that started at the base of his neck and worked its way up to the tips of his ears. “Maybe there’s something on your mind?”
“Could be.” He begrudgingly conceded.
“Don’t play coy.” Daichi smirked. “I’d recognize that blush anywhere. Could it be that it’s someone?”
“I – uh…” Now Daichi, Suga, and Kiyoko were all looking at him curiously, gazes boring into him until he was forced to look down at the favor box he’d begun to fiddle with. “I sort of ended up going on a date with the guy from the flower shop.” With the admission, they all spoke at once.
“You what?”
“That’s great, Kageyama!”
“The guy with the beard?”
“Kiyoko…” He sighed heavily. “Not the guy with the beard.” He quickly clarified. “Uh… his name’s Hinata. We… I had a good time.” For the umpteenth time that day, an image of his smile flashed through Kageyama’s mind.
“You should invite him to the wedding!” Suga gushed. “I mean, as your guest of course. You being a groomsman, I’m sure we could squeeze your date in somewhere. If we move Tsukishima to table four…” By now he was muttering to himself, paging through the notebook that never left his side.
That was how Kageyama found himself once more in the now-familiar flower shop, the tinkling from the bell above the door just fading as he met Hinata’s gaze with a bashful smile. “Kageyama!” There was no good reason for Hinata to be that excited to see him, and yet his signature smile still broke across his face. “What’s the occasion?”
“Hi.” He returned the greeting softly. “Actually, I’m, uh…” He paused, taking a deep breath to gather his thoughts. “This wedding. My friends’ wedding. Would you like to come? As my date? I mean, I know it’s short notice, and maybe you’re already working or something, but I just thought-”
“I’d love to.” Hinata assured firmly, breaking into Kageyama’s tirade with a feather-light touch on his hand, effectively silencing him.
“Oh.” Kageyama was pleasantly surprised by his earnestness. “Well… great.” The stubborn smile still felt alien on his face, but he liked the feeling it sent to his chest.
One week later when he stood with his friends as they promised each other the forever Kageyama had never doubted they’d share, a particular smile stood out from the crowd of happy faces. Later that evening as an upbeat pop song faded to something soft and slow and the shy gazes from two blushing faces led to fingers sliding easily together, Kageyama felt the beginning of something deep in his chest that he’d never truly expected to experience. It was just that his own lonely apartment had never even felt as much like home as the smile that beamed from the one who fit so perfectly in his arms.