Work Text:
The heat of summer is leaking into the Birds and Bees store, and Aiah wishes she'd had the forethought to wear something lighter. She tugs at the collar of her sweater. God, she hopes she doesn't start sweating.
Right, focus. Aiah eyes the jungle of flowers, reading the names and hoping something will stick out; spider flowers, nasturtiums, monkshood, jonquil... she has barely heard of half of these. With a sinking feeling, she realizes that she has no idea what she's doing. She kneels down, eyeing the flowers to her left. Geraniums. Would they do?
"Hello. Can I help you?”
Aiah looks up, and her breath catches in her throat. The girl behind the counter is smiling brightly. She's tall, with dark hair curling down to her waist. She's wearing a rose-print skater dress, and clipped to her floral apron, she's wearing a sign which reads "Jhoanna". Aiah thinks that in usual circumstances, she would find the flower-on-flower dress too much, but it's oddly fitting on Jhoanna.
Aiah also finds her very, very cute.
Realizing that she has been quiet for a little too long, Aiah clears her throat.
"Yes. Yes please, naghahanap lang ako ng flowers.”
“Sure. Anong event?” says Jhoanna.
“Para sa sister-in-law ko. May engagement party siya mamayang gabi and— well, ngayon palang ako bibili. Any idea what I should get?”
Jhoanna hmm's softly. “Personally, ‘di geraniums ang bibilhin ko,” she says, gesturing at the geraniums. "They generally symbolize idiocy or folly."
"Not the message I had in mind."
“What if peonies? Uso ‘yan sa engagements,” Jhoanna says, showing her a pink flower which Aiah would have assumed was a pink rose. She nods anyway, figuring that Jhoanna knows what she is doing.
Jhoanna picks them out one by one, carefully considering every individual specimen. While she works, Aiah browses the rest of the store. There are a few pre-made arrangements waiting for collection, but pretty as they are, Aiah prefers the section of the store where the flowers are grouped by species. She may not know what they are, but it looks neater, somehow.
She lingers by the tulips.
“May gusto ka pa ba?”
Aiah stares; she hasn't realized how close Jhoanna is.
“A—alam ko kung ano ‘to!” Aiah wants to slap herself the moment she lets the words out, but Jhoanna laughs.
“Buti naman. Is this bouquet okay?" Jhoanna shows her, and Aiah nods. Jhoanna produces a roll of string from her apron and starts tying the flowers together.
She talks while she works. "I love tulips. Ikaw ba?”
“Mas gusto ko ‘yung stripes,” Aiah says. “Never pa ‘ko nakakita in real life, though.”
“Weh? Hindi ka pa nakakakita ng variegated tulips?” She sounds scandalized.
"Mas gusto ng mom ko ‘yung solids.”
“’Di bale. Akong bahala sa’yo.” Jhoanna reaches in, and gently pulls out a tulip.
“Wala akong—“
"On the house," Jhoanna smiles brightly, and Aiah can only stare as she twirls round and heads for the counter. She wraps the tulip quickly. Aiah hesitates when she hands it over.
“Sure ka?”
“Oo naman. Para babalik-balikan ako ng customers.”
Aiah supposes that it's a sound argument. She smiles. "Thank you."
"Always happy to please." Then Jhoanna winks. Winks!
Aiah stutters out some unacceptable form of reply and hurries out of the store. By the time she's out on the street, her face is burning, and she thinks she may have damaged the flowers in her death-grip. Glancing back in through the window, Aiah can make out the form of Jhoanna looking after her. I'm screwed, she realizes.
—
Aiah isn't even able to stay away for a week. She feels almost ashamed of herself as she steps through the door of the Birds and Bees florist, but her mortification fades as she catches sight of Jhoanna.
Jhoanna is tending to a potted orchid. She looks up at the sound of the store entry bell, and smiles brightly at Aiah.
"You're back!" she says. “Nagustuhan ba ng sister-in-law mo ‘yung flowers?”
“Oo, ang ganda daw,” Aiah says. “Buti naalala mo pa.”
“Syempre. Ganda mo kasi eh, hirap mo tuloy kalimutan.”
Aiah had come here with the intention of talking to Jhoanna, maybe even drop her number. Fueled by a sudden fit of panic, she finds an accidental lie on her tongue.
"I need help finding another present."
Jhoanna seems to shrink together slightly. “Ah, sige. Anong hanap mo?”
"Um..."
Shit.
“Nanganak ‘yung sister-in-law ko.”
“Nanganak? Wow. Dami niya naman ganap this week.”
Aiah tries not to look guilty; she's never been that good of a liar, at least not when put on the spot.
"A girl,” she tells her. Scrambling for a name, she goes for the first one that comes to mind.
“Menchielou.”
The unusual name caught Jhoanna by surprise and she let out a giggle. Aiah just looks at her, eyebrow raised.
Jhoanna cleared her throat.
“So, something pink ang hanap mo?” Jhoanna asks.
“Ayoko ng masyadong gendered eh. How about yellow?"
"Yellow it is,” Jhoanna agrees. “May ibang bulaklak ka pa ba na gusto isama?”
Aiah shakes her head. “May tiwala ako sa’yo.”
Jhoanna chatters away at Aiah as she picks out the flowers. Aiah finds it pleasant, and she's oddly glad that there aren't any other customers in the store to steal Jhoanna's attention. She tells Aiah about how her interest in floral arrangements started when she was a little girl, and would pick flowers from her mom's potted plants so that she could use them for her doll's weddings. Aiah finds that image adorable, and when she says as much, she catches Jhoanna's cheeks flush pink for just a second. Score.
When the arrangement is done, she sets it on the counter.
“Okay na ‘to?”
“Ang ganda.” It really is. She has kept the colors soft, using white roses as a base, with dashes of yellow roses, and the occasional gerbera. She's topped it off with a ribbon in a striking shade of lemon. Seated in the oasis, there is a small, fluffy teddy bear.
As she goes to pay for the creation, Jhoanna hands her a sparkly balloon, with the print It's a Girl!
"No extra charge," she tells her.
“Malulugi ka niyan kung palagi mo ‘kong ililibre.” Aiah tells her.
“Hindi naman. Pabalik-balik ka na dito eh, onti nalang magsa-sampung libo na profit ko sa’yo.”
Aiah laughs awkwardly, trying not to think about the needless dent this will leave in her account balance. Law student she may be, but she's a student all the same.
When Jhoanna hands her her items, their fingers touch. Aiah may be imagining things, but she thinks that Jhoanna's hands may be lingering for just a little longer than necessary. She leaves the store with a smile on her face. It's not until she's several blocks down the road that she realizes that she has no idea what to do with the flowers.
—
Aiah briefly contemplates the idea of sneaking into a hospital and dumping the flowers next to a random baby at the maternity ward. She quickly dismisses the idea as ridiculous, but she can't bring herself to bring them home or leave them on the street, either.
What she ends up doing instead is dropping them on to Colet's coffee table.
“May problema ako,” Aiah tells her.
Colet looks at the balloon, horrified. “Buntis ka?”
“Huy! Hindi ‘no!”
“Edi ano ‘yang hawak mo? Para kanino ‘yan?”
Aiah puts her head in her hands. “Impulsive purchase.”
“Pa’no?”
“I think.. I think crush ko ‘yung florist.”
“Hala ka diha.” Colet brightens noticeably. “Pogi ba?”
"She is cute. Very cute."
“Pa’no kayo nagkakilala?”
“Bumili ako ng bouquet for Ate Meg’s engagement. Then, bumalik ako to get her socials or something— pero nag-panic ako. And then this happened," Aiah says, making a vague gesture at the flowers. “Hindi ko alam gagawin ko, Col.”
“Ipapakilala mo siya sa’kin. ‘Yun ang gagawin mo.”
"No." She mentally shudders at the thought.
"Please!" Colet says, clasping her hands together.
“Hindi pwede.”
“Magpapakabait ako! Hindi kita aasarin, promise.”
Aiah is about to say no, but then Colet throws in a pout. And the puppy eyes. “Oo na,” she says. “Pwede ka na sumama.”
“Nice!”
Before Aiah can stop her, Colet's on her feet. “Huy, hindi ngayon—“
“Ba’t naman hindi?”
“Kasi kakagaling ko lang do’n!”
“Ano naman?”
“Baka isipin no’n stalker ako. Hindi tayo pupunta today.”
“Whatever, Aiah buntis.”
—
"Oh, andito ka ulit?” Jhoanna says. She has tied her hair back during Aiah's absence, and it leaves her neck exposed. A few strands have fallen loose, framing the left side of her face, and Aiah is filled with the urge to adjust it. She is left momentarily speechless, and she thinks she's going to have to kill Colet. Curse her and her skills of persuasion.
Luckily, Colet proves to be looking out for her after all. "Hi!" She greets. “Kinwento ka sa’kin ni Aiah. Ang ganda ng arrangements mo, pwede bang pagawa rin para sa girlfriend ko?”
“Sure. May ideas ka na ba?”
Aiah watches Colet and Jhoanna discuss the flowers, trying not to be too visibly awkward.
Her eyes drift across the stock, and land on the variegated tulips. She smiles.
“’Yan pa rin bet mo?” Jhoanna asks.
Aiah flushes; she hadn't realized that she and Colet had stopped talking. “Ang ganda kasi,” she manages. "I think they're my new favorite."
"Good choice."
“Anong meaning ng bulaklak na ‘yan?” Aiah asks, remembering Jhoanna's eagerness to tell her all about the language of flowers when she was here last.
"You have beautiful eyes," she says, not breaking eye contact. “Bagay sa’yo.”
Colet chooses that moment to clear her throat. “Pwedeng ipa-deliver ‘yung flowers?”
Aiah isn't sure if she wants to kiss Colet for saving her from having to think of a smooth answer, or kill her for interrupting. In the end, she does neither, settling back into her uncomfortable shuffling.
When they turn to leave, Aiah is stopped by a soft hand on her forearm.
"Wait lang,” Jhoanna tells her. “Para sa’yo. Kasi binubuhay mo negosyo ko.”
She hands over a small bouquet of variegated tulips.
"Thank you," Aiah says. “Ang ganda.”
“Balik ka ulit soon.” Jhoanna says, and then Colet is dragging Aiah out through the door.
—
“Aiah, sinasabi ko sa’yo. Bet ka nga niya!”
“Delulu ka lang,” Aiah says.
“Hindi ako delulu! Hinaharot ka niya,”
“Hindi nga,” Aiah insists, but then she adjusts her grip on the tulip and she isn't so sure.
Colet elbows her cheerfully, and starts chatting away about her social ineptitude. They're halfway down the street when Colet stops, clutching the pocket of her jeans.
“Piskit. Naiwan ko pala phone ko. Teka, balikan ko lang.”
“Samahan kita?”
“Wag na, okay lang. Haharot ka na naman eh,”
Aiah sighs, but doesn't put up a fight. She leans against the closest lamp post and watches Colet walk back towards Birds and Bees.
“Nakuha mo na?” Aiah asks.
Colet waves her phone. “Goods.”
As they continue down the street, Aiah can't help but notice that Colet is smirking. It's a slightly uneasy sight, but she doesn't dare ask.
—
Aiah wakes the next morning to the sound of her doorbell. She groans, flips over, and crawls deeper into her cocoon of blankets.
The bell rings again.
And then a third time.
By the fourth ring, she gives up.
“WAIT LANG!” she shouts, clambering her way out of bed. She slips into her purple nightgown and a pair of slippers. She combs her fingers through her hair to gain some sort of control over it, and then opens the door.
It's Jhoanna. Aiah feels a flash of mortification.
“Ay. Nagising ba kita? Sorry.”
Aiah glances at the clock to her left, and sees that it is half-past eleven.
“Okay lang,” she says, because what else can she say?
Jhoanna shuffles, and Aiah notices that she seems somewhat uncomfortable too.
“Okay ka lang ba?” She asks.
“Actually, ide-deliver ko ‘to sa’yo.” Jhoanna tells her, and then she's handing her an enormous bouquet of flowers. They smell exquisite, and it's a beautiful arrangement; consisting mainly of variegated tulips, lily of the valley, and white lilies.
The meaning of the last one, Aiah does know.
I dare you to love me.
“Parang ‘di ko naman ata in-order ‘to,” she says once she finds her voice.
“Gift ko sa’yo.” She looks vulnerable then, and Aiah suddenly realizes what is going on here.
Somehow, she finds the courage to do something she's been wanting to do since she first saw Jhoanna in the flower store; she leans in and kisses her.
Aiah is too nervous to kiss her properly, so she keeps it short and sweet. Before she pulls away though, she can feel Jhoanna responding, and she knows she hasn't misread the situation.
“Pa’no mo ‘ko nahanap?” Aiah asks.
“Binigay ni Ate Colet ‘yung address mo.” Jhoanna tells her.
“Talaga naman.” Aiah says.
Jhoanna glances down at her watch, and seems to deflate slightly. “Ano ba ‘yan, need ko na umalis,”
“Agad-agad?”
"Technically, dapat nasa shop ako. May bride na nagpapa-arrange. Pero bago ako umalis…” Jhoanna stands on her tip-toes, bringing their lips together again.
Aiah can't help but be overwhelmed by her delicate scent, and she thinks she makes some sort of noise in the back of her throat, because Jhoanna slows down.
“Okay ka lang?”
“Uhm…” Aiah trails off, embarrassed.
“Ano?”
“Wala, ‘wag na.”
“Sabihin mo naaa.” Jhoanna insists.
“‘Yung pabango mo kasi. It’s apple.”
Jhoanna looks pulls away slightly, puzzled.
“Ayaw mo ba no’n?”
“Gusto ko. Akala ko lang kasi—“
"Floral?" Jhoanna smirks. “May interests rin ako other than flowers, huy.”
“Talaga ba?”
“Punta ka sa shop mamaya.” Jhoanna tells her. “Mag-kape tayo after my shift. Para malaman mo hobbies ko.”
She starts walking away, but pauses.
"Oh, and Aiah? Hindi ako nagbibiro kanina. You really do have beautiful eyes."