Chapter Text
star·ga·zer
a lily that faces the sky, innocence and purity.
Wonjin had never been one for dark color palettes, while his friends would gravitate to blacks, blues, and purples, he had always been drawn to yellows, greens, and pinks. (Despite being told he didn’t have the brightest personality on first impression.) His best friend- Seongmin- appreciated a soft pastel aesthetic, but it wasn’t the same. The others didn’t get the colors the way Wonjin did. Only the flowers understood colors the way he did.
He supposed it made sense, now that he was where he was, jean covered knees in soil as he helped transplant the flowers in the shop. They were his favorite, Stargazers . The majestic pinks brought a joy not even himself could understand. Sometimes, when Wonjin was on trimming duty, he would snip one of the beautiful blossoms and take it home with him.
In similar fashion, Wonjin was going to snip this customer's head off. He knew combining the nursery and the cafe would bring in more money, but at some points it felt ridiculous. The clumsy gentleman who was now kneeling in front of him with paper towels, had spilled his coffee over Wonjin’s precious stargazers.
“I-I am so- I am so sorry.” The man spoke poorly, attempting to clean up the spilled coffee by gently patting the now stained petals and sticky floor. He didn’t seem to notice that the scalding coffee had also landed on Wonjin himself.
As calmly as he could, Wonjin stood up, brushing the soil off his jeans. Gently he picked up the now planted stargazers and walked away. He didn’t fail to notice the delicate tattoos on the gentleman’s hand, if he didn’t want to snap the boy's neck, he would’ve loved to hear about them.
Jungmo hated that he had to move for college. None of his friends were going to come with him, and he wasn’t exactly one for small talk, especially not with strangers. But here he was. A new city, a new school. He’d be fine, Hyunbin always said his bright personality spoke far more than any words the boy could say.
Now all he needed was a new coffee shop. His dorm mate - a kind man named Woobin- had suggested a place a few blocks from their dorm. Daisy Lane . It was a locally owned business, the main staff was high schoolers and college kids. It seemed like the perfect place. Besides, what could go wrong at a coffee shop?
When he had made it to the cafe, he was greeted by a blonde boy with a soft voice. As he looked around the shop he noticed a brown haired boy, elbows deep into soil and stargazers.
“That is the nursery part of Daisy Lane!” The blonde smiled wide. “Wonjin-hyung and Liz are in charge of the nursery. Feel free to ask them any questions.”
“A-ah.” Jungmo smiled, running a hand through his hair. “Uhm, c-can I have a caramel latte? Please.”
“That’ll be right up!” The blonde smiled again.
With intrigue Jungmo paced around the small shop. Despite all the flowers his eyes kept landing on the plant caretaker who was cursing under his breath as he delicately moved the flowers. Bright yellow gloves went up to his elbows, and a round pair of glasses lay on his nose, just above a smear of soil.
He assumed the boy must be the Wonjin the staff had mentioned earlier, the girl with bangs watering daisies had to be Liz. Startling the male he heard the three staff members burst into laughter. Despite Seongmin being closest to him, Jungmo’s eyes stayed on the elusive Wonjin.
“Your coffee is ready, sir.” Seongmin spoke between light giggles. “Will we be seeing you around again?”
“Yes!” He smiled. “Jungmo. My name’s Jungmo!” He spoke, as he walked. Before anyone could respond, Jungmo was stumbling and his drink was flying out of his hand.
There was only one thought going through his head as he saw the brown haired boy’s smile drop.
Shit.
Wonjin waited until he heard the final apology slip out of the man's mouth, in unison with the door chime before he did anything. He could see the way Liz and Seongmin were staring at him. The duo knew he had a bright side, but it took some time to get that out of him.
“Can one of you get some ice?” Wonjin finally mumbled, tears burning at his eyes as he pulled off his gloves, his skin wet with coffee and a bright red in color. “An-And the first aid kit.”
“Hyung!” Seongmin shouted as he saw the mans arm. “Holy shit, how did you- Jesus! I’m calling Ruby-hyung. Liz, get the ice and stuff.”
As the younger pulled out his cellphone and Liz carefully cleaned the coffee off the burn, Wonjin couldn’t get his mind off the clumsy asshole’s tattoos. One in particular. The majority of it was covered by the sleeves of the boy’s white tee shirt, but Wonjin had identified it immediately. A single daffodil was tattooed on the man's bicep.
Daffodils meant new beginnings. Wonjin wondered if the jackass knew that. Another part of him wondered why he cared. Before he could dwell on that horrifying thought any longer, Woobin bursted into the cafe, Serim close behind him.
“What the fuck happened.” Woobin panted, walking over to where Wonjin and Liz sat at one of the tables.
“A new customer came in, tripped over the air and spilled coffee on Wonjin-oppa.” Liz explained, getting up to give Woobin her chair. “We didn’t even know until the customer left, Oppa hid it well.”
“What type of idiot trips over air while holding scalding coffee?” Serim shook his head as he grabbed Wonjin’s uninjured hand.
“He said his name was Jungmo.” Seongmin piped in, untying Wonjin’s apron for him.
“Oh boy.” Woobin sighed lightly. “You’re going to hate this.”
“What? Do I have to go to the hospital?” Wonjin panicked, looking at the older male with fearful eyes.
“No, I can take care of this back at my dorm.” Woobin reassured, tapping the boys knee lightly. “It’s just that Jungmo is my new roommate.”
“You’re fucking kidding me.” Wonjin deadpanned.
To Wonjin’s luck, Jungmo had a job interview as he, Woobin, and Serim were in the dorm. Wonjin definitely let out more than a few curses as Woobin applied cream and bandages, but anything was better than Jungmo knowing he had hurt the barista.
Wonjin could feel in his heart that the taller man would refuse to let it go.
Another feeling in his heart was that, somehow, he’d know sooner rather than later.