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“Can you point me in the direction of the fried chicken… Ms. Shin Ae?”
The man who asked was tall, taller than anyone Shin Ae knew at least—and she shared a class with some German kid who topped at least 180 centimeters. He had to practically crouch to read her name tag.
“Sir, this is the floral section.”
He blinked several times, turning to look at the poppies and tulips surrounding the counter. “Oh… right.”
“It’s across the store at the produce counter. The blue one with the menu posted overhead.”
His face lit up. “Ahh, thanks! Do you have any recommendations?”
Odd. It wasn’t the first time a customer asked her for directions in the grocery store, but never had someone inquired on her personal taste of the products.
“I mean,” Shin Ae stammered, “you can’t go wrong with the classic, but my best friend’s favorite is the Spicy Chipotle. I like the Lemon Pepper, but that one isn’t as popular.”
Looking at his bright orange hair vaguely reminded Shin Ae of the sauce they drizzled on the buffalo wings. Maybe it was a weird comparison, but Shin Ae tended to let her mind drift to food often.
“Good to know, thanks! I’ll have to stop by again. I really should get a bouquet for my girlfriend sometime.”
Girlfriend.
It wasn’t surprising, Shin Ae told herself. He was certainly good-looking enough to have a girlfriend. And besides, that was the way things went around here. When people bought flowers, they were usually in love or mourning. Less than ideal environment to find a boyfriend. Not that Shin Ae was looking for one, anyways.
***
“What did you say, Rika?”
“My Dad was talking about how a position just opened up in the floral section! Thinking of picking up a part time job, Shin Ae?”
“Maybe. I don’t know if the floral section would suit me, though. Seems too… delicate.”
“Relax, you’ll be fine! You can probably just cut stems in the back or put out the arrangements on display.”
“Yeah, I could probably do that.”
“Also, apparently the boss of the grocery store is really hot.”
“Rika!”
“Whaaat? I’m just saying!”
***
“Can you point me in the direction of the fried chicken?”
Same tall frame, same bright orange hair.
“Weren’t you just here yesterday?” Shin Ae asked, perplexed.
“Yeah, I was just looking for an excuse to talk to you.”
The statement caught Shin Ae off guard. “What’s that supposed to mean? In case you haven’t noticed, this obnoxiously bright purple apron means I’m on the clock, bud.”
“Hey, relax! I just saw the customer you were with earlier. Thought you could use a friendly face.”
Shin Ae’s face melted into understanding. “Oh, you mean the woman in the yellow cardigan?”
“Yeah, her! What was that about anyway?”
“She was complaining about how we got her order wrong,” she replied, the memory making her frown in disgust. “Something about how the white flowers she ordered were actually an extremely pale shade of green.”
“Sounds picky.”
“And get this! The week before, she was complaining about the difference between regular daisies and gerbera daisies.”
“Aren’t those the same thing?”
“You tell me! The gerbera daisies are a little bigger and more expensive, so I thought she’d be happy about getting a deal.”
“Sorry about that.”
“It’s not your fault, you don’t have to apologize,” Shin Ae remarked.
“Sorry, force of habit.”
Shin Ae stared at him.
“I just apologized again, didn’t I? Anyways, I should probably order those flowers for my girlfriend now.”
“Right, what can I get you?”
“A dozen red roses will be fine.”
“Classic.”
“Well,” the redhead said, rubbing the back of his neck, “she’s always liked traditional things.”
“I see. Can I get a name for the order?”
“Just Yeong Gi will be fine, thanks.”
***
“Are you sure you don’t want to try making an arrangement yourself?” Jayce had asked, setting the fresh cuttings on the table. “You’ve been working here for a while now. I think you’d be pretty good at it. You seem to have an eye for detail.”
“I’m okay, really. I’d probably mess it up and waste a whole batch of flowers.”
“No one’s perfect on their first try. You can’t expect to get good at something without messing up a couple of times, Shin Ae.”
“Alright, I’ll try one.”
“See, that’s more like it!”
“...It already looks bad. It’s like they’re all falling on top of each other instead of standing up straight.”
“That’s because you forgot to use the foam block.”
“Oh, right.”
“You know, any arrangement won’t stand up on its own without a good support or foundation.”
***
“Still looking for fried chicken? It was Yeong Gi, right?”
“Not today! I wanted to ask you some questions about your flowers.”
“Alright,” Shin Ae said, a little surprised by his excitement. “I mean, technically they’re not MY flowers but go ahead.”
“I was watching these Youtube videos about flowers, right? And apparently they have all these different meanings!”
“That’s true. Sometimes clients will want to send a specific bouquet to convey a certain message.”
“So, hypothetically, could I arrange a bouquet to send a secret message to someone?” Yeong Gi asked, eyes full of wonder. Asking the question, he leaned slightly closer. It was only then Shin Ae noticed the splash of freckles painted across the bridge of his nose.
“Err, not really. Flowers have meanings, but it can’t be substituted as a language. I guess maybe if you set up a system ahead of time?”
“Bummer.”
Shin Ae picked up the gardenias that had been resting on the counter. “Were you planning on ordering anything? More flowers for your girlfriend?”
“Oh, right! I should probably do that. These orange lilies look nice, what are they supposed to mean?”
Shin Ae snickered.
“Hatred.”
Yeong Gi set the flowers back down.
“I guess I’ll get roses again.”
***
“Sorry. That was a real tough client, Shin Ae.”
“I’m used to it.”
“I forgot to mention! While you were in the back that friend of yours stopped by.”
“Who, Yeong Gi?”
“Funny. The name sounds familiar. He saw what happened out there and left you a little something. He wanted to give it to you personally, but he had to go meet with his brother. It’s in the bag over there.”
“I see, thanks Jayce.”
“What did he get you anyway?”
“Lemon Pepper Chicken.”
***
“Another dozen roses?”
“Actually,” Yeongi Gi said, picking up a white camelia, “I thought I should try making my own bouquet. I've been doing a lot of research on all the flowers and their meanings. I kind of want to try.”
“Did you want to come around to the back?” Shin Ae asked, gesturing to the counter. “I can show you how it’s done.”
“Wait, you’d really let me do that?” Yeong Gi asked.
“Sure, you’ve been around here enough times that I know you won’t do anything crazy.”
According to the order forms, today marked the tenth week Yeong Gi had stopped by her floral counter in the grocery store. Although he made an effort to order roses every Thursday, there were still plenty of other times in the week he’d stop by just to chat. It was a nice break to the day when Shin Ae had to deal with an especially nasty customer.
“I should probably get you an apron, though,” she commented. “Sometimes when you cut the stems, nasty white stuff comes out the end. It can get on your clothes if you’re not careful.”
“Pleasant visual.”
“Shut up. I’m doing something nice for once.”
Yeong Gi put a hand to his heart. “I have no idea what you’re talking about! I was simply thinking of the lovely color of your purple aprons. Whatever else comes to mind is your assumption, not mine.” The sarcastic smile quickly faded away as Yeong Gi turned around to see something—or someone—behind him. Without another word, he vaulted himself over the counter and ducked under.
“What the f—” she looked to see if any of the other employees were watching “fu—ern. Fern. Are you doing?”
Yeong Gi pressed a finger to his lips.
“Miss Yoo, might I have a word?” The new voice came from behind the counter, where Yeong Gi once stood.
“Can I help you sir?” She asked, trying to ignore the giant figure by her feet. Or the fact that this other person knew her last name.
“Did you happen to have a young man stop by your stand? Red hair?”
Shin Ae gripped her pen tighter. As troublesome as Yeong Gi was, she didn’t want to throw him to the wolves just yet. “Sir, that is the confidentiality of the customer. I cannot share anything with you.”
“I’m the owner of this building and the grocery chain itself. I’m quite sure you can. Especially if you value your job.”
Shin Ae’s face turned bright red. She lightly kicked the figure under, the only cry for help she could think of.
The man grabbed a handkerchief from the pocket of his coat to wipe a stain on the counter. “And before you embarrass yourself further, we have plenty of security footage to comb through. Get out, Nol.”
With reluctance, Yeong Gi stood up from under the counter.
He also hit his head on the way up, which led to a very loud grunt.
“The clock hasn’t reached the 12th hour and you’ve already found a way to embarrass yourself, I see.”
Yeong Gi gave a final glance back before leaving. “Sorry to get you involved, Shin Ae, I’ll buy you some Lemon Pepper Chicken to make up for it, okay?”
***
“I’m glad I was able to catch you on your break, Shin Ae.”
The two had met up in the parking lot behind the grocery store.
“It’s fine. I didn’t know your brother was such a… businessman. My boss thought he recognized your name. I guess because you’re related?”
“I don’t really go around telling people that I guess.”
“What did Kousuke call you anyway? Nol?”
“Yeah. I don’t like it very much.”
“Is it okay if I ask why?”
“Bad memories. And it’s weird.”
“I don’t think it’s weird.”
“You don’t?”
“Not weird, just different.”
“Is being different a bad thing?”
“It doesn’t always have to be.”
***
“Am I doing this right?” Yeong Gi had a stalk of goldenrod, and was struggling to place it within the arrangement.
“Try not to force it too much. If there’s not enough room you’ll end up crushing the flowers. You just need to find a different place for it.”
“Where else would it be okay?”
Shin Ae took a step back to look at Yeong Gi’s craft. He had two arrangements. One filled with a multitude of golden hues, and another filled with all white flowers. “Maybe you could try adding it to your second arrangement? It looks like it could use a pop of color.”
“No.”
It seemed even Yeong Gi was surprised by how fast the word had come out. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said. “I just know it needs to be in the first one.”
“Alright, I guess we can find a different spot,” Shin Ae considered. “Goldenrod is more of a filler flower anyway. Not a centerpiece, but just as important as even a rose.”
“I see.” Yeong Gi had occupied himself with trying to fit another rose in the second arrangement.
“You might want to try putting it there,” Shin Ae suggested, guiding his hand to a different spot.
The sudden contact made Yeong Gi grip the stem tighter, the thorns piercing his skin.
“Shoot! I forgot to remove the thorns,” Shin Ae said, quickly searching the drawers for a bandage. “Usually it’s just Jayce and I doing the arranging, so we don’t cut them off to save time. I should’ve been more careful.”
“It’s okay, really! Look, I found something to patch it up with,” Yeong Gi remarked, admiring a new tabby cat Band Aid. How he found it before her was beyond Shin Ae’s understanding. After watching him struggle for a minute—he must be using his nondominant hand—she finally offered her own help. She never realized how tiny her hands seemed compared to his, wrapping the bandage around his finger.
“I think these are about done,” Yeong Gi said, gesturing to the two arrangements. “These ones are for you,” he said, pointing to the golden bouquet.
“What?”
“They’re flowers for you,” he said, letting out a laugh, “or flowers for Yoo. Get it? Because your last name is—”
“I can’t accept these,” Shin Ae said, pushing the vase across the counter. “I don’t think your girlfriend would be too happy if you just gave flowers to someone else. Actually, I’m not too happy! I don’t want to be the reason you guys break up or something. I’d just feel miserable.”
“I know, I know, which is why I put a lot of thought into the kinds I put in. I did all that research on flower symbolism, right?”
Shin Ae could see him trying to catch her eyes, but she decided to let her eyes remain focused on the scratched etched into the wooden counter. “You and I both know things don’t work that way. How could you give a gift without thinking about these things?”
“Okay, yeah, I get where you’re coming from,” he finally admitted. “You don’t have to keep them. I just thought it would be nice. A thank you for the time we spent together. And a thank you for all your help on the flower orders. I didn’t think it would make you that upset.” He quietly picked up the white arrangement before leaving. “Maybe I should just go. Bye Shin Ae.”
She chose not to respond.
The silence was crushing as he walked away.
With Yeong Gi finally gone, Shin Ae finally let herself inspect the flowers he had left behind. While arranging them, she had mostly paid attention to only the colors and shapes. Now she could focus on all the different species.
Goldenrod was the first thing she noticed, obviously, but there were also sprigs of chamomile, yellow lilies, marigold, sweet pea, and of course an abundance of daisies—both regular and gerbera.
Shin Ae thought back to his speech on symbolism.
Curse his stupid smile.
***
Shin Ae was twelve again.
“Papa, please let me pick out some flowers for my friend! She isn’t feeling well. I’m really worried about her. I can pay for them myself! I saved up enough money.”
“Well of course, Shin Ae. We can do that. Let’s avoid the fancy arrangements though, okay? We can pick out some individual ones and make something ourselves. A little more personal, don’t ya think?”
“Okay! Which ones should we get, though?”
“Let’s see. Daisies are a classic. They mean friendship. So do sweet peas. If you’re worried about her illness, we can pick out chamomile and yellow lilies for good health. Try to pick only one of the lilies though, those are more expensive. And marigolds mean positive emotions.”
“What about the goldenrod?”
“Goldenrod?”
“Yeah! It looks super fluffy!”
“It means encouragement. I guess that one would be a good one too, huh?”
***
It had been a while since Yeong Gi made a visit. As much as Shin Ae hated to admit it, she missed his frequent check-ins. She hadn’t been able to eat her Lemon Pepper Chicken for a while now, not without it tasting strange. Like some kind of spice or seasoning was missing. Although, that was impossible.
Speak of the devil. He was back.
His usual smile was gone. His hands—which normally fidgeted with the strings of his hoodie—laid unmoving in the pockets of his jeans. He wasn’t at the flower counter; instead, he browsed the fruit stands nearby. His eyes were set straight forward, and Shin Ae wondered if he was actually shopping or just spacing out.
Would it be okay for her to call out his name? She had been so cold the last they talked. He went out of the way to get her something, to make it with his own hands, and she had thrown it aside.
Yeong Gi set down an orange he was inspecting only to make eye contact with Shin Ae. She hadn’t realized she had been staring.
Move, say something.
But the words were caught in her throat. It wasn’t until he had turned to walk away she finally managed to cough something up.
“Yeong Gi, wait!”
Shin Ae wasn’t sure who was more surprised between the two of them.
Yeong Gi slowly walked towards the counter.
“Don’t worry, I know where to find the produce counter for fried chicken,” he said, tugging at a sleeve.
Shin Ae took a deep breath.
“I need to apologize,” she started. “I know you were just trying to do something nice for me, and I overreacted. I could have communicated with you a lot better. I would just hate it if I was the reason other people split up. Somehow, after all this time, you’ve become a close friend. I don’t want to hurt you.”
Yeong Gi frowned. “It’s unfair to put all that blame on yourself, you know. I don’t blame you for freaking out. If I decided to give someone else flowers, it would be on me if that created a rift in my relationship. Never you.”
He paused for a moment, pursing his lips.
“I know it looked like I was ignoring you. I’ve just had a lot on my mind lately. The truth is, I actually broke up with my girlfriend the day before we made the two arrangements. Our relationship has been failing for a while. Honestly, the only reason why I was buying her roses every week was to try salvaging it. She held on for a really long time. I think… she loved being in a relationship more than she loved me.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“That white bouquet was a final parting gift, in a way. No matter what species of flower, the white ones almost always represent some kind of innocence or purity. It was my way of asking if we could start over. I still care about her, of course, but as a friend and nothing else.”
Shin Ae shuffled her feet. “I guess that means no more flowers today, huh?” she asked.
“Actually, I have a request to make,” Yeong Gi said, his voice softening to a whisper. “I still need something for someone who passed away.”
“Of course.” Shin Ae tried to make her voice as reassuring as possible. “White lilies are a good place to start. We can add dianthus and chrysanthemums too.”
Yeong Gi’s eyes caught on the stalks of thistles.
“Can we add these too?”
“Sure. It might not be the right symbolism, but it would look lovely with the rest. Just be careful with the spikes. I don’t know if we still have your tabby bandages,” she joked.
Finally, a smile.
“I’ll be careful. I actually picked these because it’s Scotland’s national flower. I know she wanted to visit one day. My mum, that is.”
“Maybe you can visit the place for her,” Shin Ae suggested.
“I’d think she’d like that.”
“That settles everything then. I’ll just have to write your name on the order form and you’ll be settled.”
“About that, do you mind putting Nolan on the form? Just this once.”
“I can do that,” Shin Ae said, scratching out the previous name.
“Thank you.”
“Hey Yeong Gi?”
“Hmm?”
“I hope you find happiness one day. You deserve it.”
***
“Does that redhead friend of yours buy anything anymore Shin Ae? Or does he just drop by and look at the flowers for fun?”
“Hey, he helps out sometimes! He made the bouquet on display. It looks quite nice.”
“I’d expect so with the amount of practice he gets from sticking around here. How long has he been helping? Months now?”
“Jayce, I thought you said you liked having a break.”
“I do, I’m just messing with you. I’m glad you make each other happy. Just as long as he keeps his brother away from here. I don’t wanna have to deal with the boss.”
“I’ll tell him to keep Kousuke away.”
“That reminds me, Yeong Gi left something for you.”
“The fried chicken right? I got it, though. Odd that he’d use it as a centerpiece for a bouquet. Especially one with a bunch of roses, tulips, and jasmine.”
“Shin Ae… the flowers were for you too. Did you miss the card?”
***
Two weeks.
That’s how long they’d been together, if Shin Ae was counting correctly. It still didn’t feel real. Yeong Gi—or Nolan, he let her use that name now—had her hand in his, swinging them back and forth. Shin Ae fought to keep them in place.
“What are we, schoolchildren?” she asked.
“Just kids holding hands, picking flowers on a sunny day.” He bent down to place a kiss on her cheek. “You’re scowling, sweetheart.”
“Not fair. I can’t reach you from down here.” Before he could stand all the way back up, she grabbed his chin and turned her face towards his, kissing him properly this time. She could still feel the corners of his lips perked up in a smile, and she couldn’t help but feel happy herself. Being with him in that moment filled her with a warmth that competed with the rays of the sun above.
“Just ask next time to reach me and I’m yours,” Yeong Gi said, placing another kiss on her forehead.
“You're so cheesy. What are you picking all these flowers for anyways? You know we can’t sell them in the grocery store.”
“Haven’t you figured it out by now?”
“I have, but I just wanted to hear you say it.”
Nol grinned.
“They’re flowers for Yoo.”