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“Hyung, if you don’t get me anything for graduation, I’ll cry. And then kill you.” These words had been said by one Choi Yonghyuk towards one Heo Su 48 hours before this very moment. They had been very concerning words, especially for the elder party involved. He really didn’t want to be murdered. He wanted to deal with a crying Yonghyuk even less.
Which was why Heosu was now standing outside a flower shop, frozen in place and gripping onto his phone like a lifeline. He stared at the blank phone screen as if it would be able to save him from this situation.
It wasn’t that Heosu didn’t want to get Yonghyuk a gift. Yonghyuk was essentially Heosu’s little brother, despite the lack of blood relation. He moved into Heosu’s neighborhood when they were little kids and ever since then had never left him alone. So obviously a gift made sense. And Heosu was a good hyung, who knew when to pay for his younger friend’s food or to give some wise advice. A gift was par for the course.
The issue was more that Heosu’s usual gift of video game currency would not work for such an auspicious occasion that was high school graduation. So he went to his mom for advice about the problem, and what did she say? She told Heosu to get Yonghyuk flowers. Which was all well and good. Except Heosu did feel a bit awkward. Flowers felt like… a bit much. But his mom had already insisted on it and how could he go against that? If Yonghyuk made fun of him for it, oh well, that was better than a disappointed or angry message from his mom.
Deciding he could no longer put off the inevitable, Heosu walked through the glass door into the flower shop. An instant wave of aromatic scents overwhelmed Heosu for a moment. He paused and took in the bright colors of the flowers on display. It was like a vibrant rainbow, a sharp contrast to the cloudy weather outside the store. Heosu was a bit overwhelmed by it all to be honest. He had never been inside a flower shop before, a new experience for him. Despite that, he could tell that this one seemed pretty put together. Everything looked organized and clean, but the atmosphere was somehow homey.
There were no other people in the small shop to be seen, just flowers. Unsure of what to do, Heosu began walking along the wall and looking at the bouquets on display. Even to someone like Heosu (who had never bought flowers in his life), you could tell a lot of effort went into them. Every detail seemed to have been planned to create a stunning collage of colors and shapes. Heosu found himself staring at one with a mix of white and blue flowers. The only word fitting to describe it was beautiful. Heosu would admittedly be pretty touched if someone gave him a gift like that. Like that would ever happen. Heosu huffed out a laugh at that idea.
“Can I help you with something?” a voice suddenly asked from behind Heosu.
Heosu yelped, whole body jolting as he turned around. He found a tall man standing a few feet away from him, wearing a brown florist apron. It seemed like a worker had shown up while Heosu was distracted. In most cases Heosu would’ve immediately made a snappy remark to cover up his own embarrassment upon getting scared. But he couldn’t really bring himself to once he got a proper look at the worker.
This might just be the cutest man Heosu had ever seen in his life. He wasn’t just some average attractive guy, he caught Heosu’s eye immediately. His features were round and soft, with gentle eyes and naturally pink cheeks. His face reminded him of a polar bear, all round and indescribably adorable. He was taller than Heosu, requiring him to look up slightly to face him. That sent strange butterflies through his stomach.
It took Heosu a moment to notice he was staring and hadn’t uttered a single word yet. Trying to salvage the situation, he responded, “I, yes… um, I need flowers.” Upon realizing how dumb that sounded Heosu could feel his face heating up. Anyone coming to a flower shop would obviously want flowers. In terms of conversation starters, that had to be at the bottom of the list.
The worker seemed unperturbed by Heosu’s awkward stuttering, simply blinking before tilting his head and humming. It was like he was actually trying to think of how to fulfill Heosu’s dumb request. Cute was all Heosu could think. “Oh. What kind of flowers?” The man asked. His tone of voice matched his appearance, calm and reserved. It soothed Heosu's nerves a bit, if ever slightly.
“I’m not exactly sure,” Heosu responded, regretting not doing some more research on the store beforehand. He had just found the place closest to his apartment and gone there. Now he looked like an idiot in front of this handsome worker. He continued to explain, “It’s a gift for someone, I don't really know what they’d like.”
“Oh, I see.” The man started looking around the room. His expression betrayed nothing as he gestured towards some nearby bouquets filled with roses. “Roses are the classic for dates and they’re still quite popular. Some people might prefer something more creative though.”
“Ah, it isn’t really like that! It’s for a graduation,” Heosu corrected quickly, waving his hand ‘no’. If Yonghyuk had been there he probably would’ve started laughing hysterically at the misunderstanding.
“Oh really? I see,” the worker stuttered, repeating himself in his panic. And if Heosu thought he was cute before he watched in amazement as a blush dusted over the man’s cheeks. Oh, dear god. They were so pink, like one of the flowers that decorated the shop. Heosu wouldn’t be able to stop staring if he tried. And he did try. He just couldn’t help the thought of bringing a hand to the side of the man’s rosy pink face, seeing if it was warm against Heosu’s cold fingers. This was really bad.
While Heosu had a small crisis, the worker started looking around the room nervously, obviously trying to get his mind off his little mishap. Changing the subject he continued, speaking fast, “So graduation, right? Can you tell me anything about the person? Maybe that will help with finding something.”
Heosu accepted the distraction readily. He directed his thoughts away from the man in front of him and towards Yonghyuk. “The most annoying person you’ll ever meet. He’s kind of like my little brother,” he described. After thinking a bit more, Heosu laughed. “But… I guess you can’t help but smile when he’s around. Just the kind of person that likes to make people laugh, you know?”
The worker’s brow furrowed at the description, deep in thought. He looked to be calming down now that they were on task again, but the blush hadn’t left his face. “I’m not sure if we have anything that matches that vibe out here. If you want I have some pictures of past orders I can show you, maybe there will be something that stands out more to you there?”
Heosu took another look around the shop, before nodding. The worker quickly took out his phone and pulled something up. He shuffled a few inches closer, bending over slightly to show Heosu the phone screen. It looked like a social media account for the shop, with what seemed like a never ending collection of pictures. The worker began scrolling at a slow pace. Heosu tried to pay attention, but it was a bit difficult when the handsome man was bending over so they were only a few inches apart.
In the end, there was one picture that caught Heosu’s eye. A small bouquet with yellow flowers, something bright that reminded him of Yonghyuk in a way. “Could you possibly do one like that?” he asked, pointing to the picture.
The worker tapped on the photo to make it bigger, looking it over before nodding his head. “Of course. It won’t be exactly the same since some of the flowers aren’t in season but I can do something similar.”
Heosu was happy to find a solution, but the statement made him pause. He hadn’t realized this worker was someone who actually arranged the flowers. He thought he was just a part timer given he seemed around Heosu’s age. But now the image of the man softly yet expertly crafting a beautiful bouquet filled Heosu’s head. It was like a scene from a romantic drama and he couldn’t help the little fluttering feeling in his heart as he imagined it. All he could do was force out a small “Thank you.”
“It’s no problem. I’m just glad we could find you something,” the worker said with a smile. It was the first time he had smiled and it made him even cuter somehow, all soft and bright. As Heosu tried to recover from that, the worker began tapping away on his phone, probably making note of the order. When he was done he looked back up at Heosu. “I’ll just need you to sign some order forms.”
“Ah, that makes sense,” Heosu mumbled. He followed the worker to the desk and was handed a piece of paper. It was a simple order form, but Heosu made sure to use his best handwriting. He didn’t want it to look messy. When he was done, the worker took the paper from him.
“Looks good. Would you like it ready on the day of?” Geonbu asked.
“Yeah, that works.”
“Great, we’ll send a text when it’s ready.”
“Thank you,” Heosu responded. The worker replied with a mumbled ‘no problem’ before the conversion fell into silence. Heosu wasn’t sure what to do now. Leave? He was a bit reluctant to do that. He looked down at his phone, awkwardly pretending to be busy. There was a crazy part of him telling him to ask for the worker’s number. It was a bit rare for him to be so attracted to someone on first meeting, it would be a bit disappointing to let the opportunity pass. However, the introverted side of him wanted to die at the thought of being the one to ask someone out.
After Heosu stood stiffly in front of the desk for almost a whole minute, the worker looked up. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
Taking a deep breath, Heosu made eye contact. He could feel his increased heart rate and he tightened the grip on his phone. “I was wondering…” he paused, biting his lip nervously. “What’s your name?” he finally struggled out. Heosu cursed at himself in his head. That wasn’t what he wanted to say but it was the best he could do.
The worker looked surprised at the question. He lifted a hand up to his chest before looking down. “Ah, I forgot my name tag again,” he mumbled to himself. Heosu thought he saw his ears turning pink. Clearing his throat, the worker looked back up at Heosu. “My name is Kim Geonbu.”
“It was nice to meet you Kim Geonbu,” Heosu said.
Geonbu smiled, “It’s nice to meet you too…” He looked down at the order sheet. “Heo Su.”
Hearing his name sent a thrill through Heosu’s body, from his head to his toes. He left the shop satisfied, although a bit shy about the level of attraction he felt to a virtual stranger. Still, he desperately hoped he’d get to see Geonbu next time.
Much to Heosu’s disappointment, Geonbu was not there when he went to pick up the flowers a week later. Instead, there was a young boy, probably close to Yonghyuk’s age. His eyes reminded Heosu of a fox and interestingly, his voice was as similarly serene as Geonbu’s. Heosu accepted the flowers graciously but he felt a bit bitter he hadn’t gotten to see his crush again.
Once we walked out of the shop, Heosu couldn’t help but admire the bouquet. It was even better than the one in the picture, not one thing out of place. He wondered if Geonbu had arranged it, like he said he would. Heosu hoped he did.
Yonghyuk cried when Heosu gave him the flowers. It was a reaction Heosu hadn’t expected, leaving him still as stone when Yonghyuk threw his arms around him and cried into his shoulder. It was hard to understand anything that the graduate said beyond the whines of “hyung” and sobbed curses. When Heosu finally pulled him away he complained about Yonghyuk ruining his shirt but tried to comfort him by patting his back. Yonghyuk sniffled pitifully. “Our Heosu hyung is so cute,” he said with a wobbly voice, lifting his hand up to pet Heosu’s head. Heosu shrugged the hand off, cursing at the younger boy.
Yonghyuk used the hand Heosu dodged to wipe the tears off his own face. “You’re not supposed to be this thoughtful, hyung. I thought you were just going to get me more RP or VBucks or something.”
“It’s not that big of a deal,” Heosu shrugged. “I just did it so you wouldn’t cry. Obviously it isn’t working.”
Yonghyuk laughed at the annoyance in Heosu’s voice but it was short lived as the next sob replaced it.
After Yonghyuk calmed down, they went out to eat some food. Yonghyuk’s parents would be taking him out for dinner, so they allowed Heosu to get their son lunch. Yonghyuk still seemed enamored with the flowers, which did make Heosu feel quite embarrassed. He didn’t know the boy would like them so much. He wouldn’t even put them down in the restaurant, still looking through them and taking pictures.
Suddenly, Yonghyuk made a noise of interest. “Oh! Hyung you left me a note?”
“What? No I didn’t,” Heosu responded, confused. He looked over to see Yonghyuk holding a small card. He had already flipped it open and was reading it. Slowly, a devious smile formed on his face. He looked over at Heosu and let out a giggle, which couldn’t mean anything good. Heosu felt a growing unease.
“Who did you get these from?” Yonghyuk asked, flipping the card around as if there’d be a name on the back.
Heosu shrugged. “Just a normal flower shop. Why, did they write something?” Now he was a bit curious, after all what if it was Geonbu that wrote it? Heosu scooted closer to Yonghyuk, reaching to take the card. Predictably, the younger boy raised his arms to keep it away, but Heosu already knew his tricks. He shoved his elbow in Yonghyuk’s side, earning himself a groan and the card returning to grabbing distance.
Casually plucking the card away, Heosu opened it up to see what was making Yonghyuk smirk. It was a note written in pen, the handwriting simple. It was a very short message, but Heosu couldn’t help but hold his breath as he read it.
For Heo Su,
I did my best on them, I hope you like it.
I hope the person you’re giving them to likes them too.
-Kim Geonbu
It was a very innocuous note. Most people wouldn’t read too much into it. But weren’t cards usually written for the receiver of the flowers, not the buyer? Not to mention the way the writing was so much smaller for the second line, how the lettering got squished near the edge of the card really stood out. It was like the second part was an afterthought, tacked on after a second look over. Heosu could understand why Yonghyuk thought something of it.
Heosu himself was thinking something of it. Could this be some kind of indication that Heosu’s attraction wasn’t as one sided as he assumed? Had they had some legitimate chemistry? A bit of hope bloomed in his chest.
Heosu tried to subtly fold the card up and put it in his pocket. “It’s nothing. Just a note from the worker that helped me.”
“Oohhh. I see,” Yonghyuk drawled, a shit eating grin plastered on his face.
Heosu rolled his eyes. “Stop it. Eat your food.”
“Yes hyung~” Yonghyuk responded gleefully. Even though he wasn’t saying anything, the look in his eye still told Heosu he wasn’t letting this go. Oh well, what could Heosu do about that? He had his own things to worry about related to the note.
The weeks that followed Yonghyuk’s graduation were fairly normal. Unfortunately, Heosu still couldn’t stop thinking about Geonbu. It was so strange, he had never had such a big crush on a stranger before. He wasn’t much of a believer in love at first sight, but what else would you call this? It had to be infatuation or something like that. Maybe Geonbu was exactly Heosu’s type. Or a lover from a past life, who knows.
His little crush led Heosu to follow the flower shop’s social media. He felt a bit embarrassed but he couldn’t help it. He really wished he could see Geonbu again without it feeling weird. Maybe then he could get the courage to ask for the guy's number. He had looked at the card several times, hoping the number would appear there magically.
The flower shop’s account didn’t really show the worker’s faces, which was understandable but unfortunate for Heosu. Meanwhile, his feed quickly became filled with pictures of flowers and videos showing the process of bouquets being assembled. Which was fine, Heosu only used social media to occasionally scroll and watch whatever random brain rot videos Yonghyuk sent him. He kind of was starting to like it too, the flowers were beautiful after all. Sometimes he was even able to guess which bouquets were put together by Geonbu based on the one he gave Yonghyuk.
A few days went by like that, Heosu staring at videos of bouquets being assembled as he imagined the beautiful face of a man he met only once. Sometimes throw in a few distraught sighs and annoyed whines. It was a dumb situation. Why couldn’t his crush work at a convenience store? Or a coffee shop? Somewhere he could realistically go without being obvious about his crush? It was embarrassing to admit he had considered ordering another bouquet, but his wallet and lack of good excuse vetoed that idea quickly.
It all came to a head when Heosu was hanging out with Yonghyuk. They were supposed to be helping the younger graduate think about college, but that plan lasted around ten minutes tops. Now they were just watching some random show in the background while they snacked and chatted, sitting next to each other.
“Hyung, I sent you a video yesterday. Did you watch it?” Yonghyuk asked, looking up from his phone.
“No,” Heosu said with zero remorse, chewing on some chips.
“Hyungg,” Yonghyuk whined. He leaned his whole body weight onto Heosu, squishing the poor smaller man into the wall. “Stop ignoring my videos! They’re funny.” Heosu highly doubted they were that funny, but he sighed in defeat anyway and pulled out his phone. He could see the younger’s look of triumph out of the corner of his eye as he opened the app.
Heosu’s homepage opened, a new post from the flower shop popping up right away. Without even thinking, Heosu scrolled through the photos. When he didn’t catch a hint of anything interesting, he liked the post and clicked on his messages. “Wait hyung, what was that?”
“What?”
“The post on your feed? Why are you getting flowers in your feed?” Yonghyuk asked, leaning over Heosu’s shoulder.
Heosu opened his mouth to fight back but paused. How could he explain this? He couldn’t think of a good strategy, so he reverted to classic diversion in his panic. “Stop staring at my phone! You like invading people’s privacy Hyukie? I thought I raised you better,” Heosu said loudly, glaring at Yonghyuk.
Yonghyuk’s eyes were full of suspicion but he miraculously gave up and returned to looking at his own phone. Heosu sent him a side eye before looking to see what dumb video he had sent. It was some obviously fake gaming video, but it wasn’t the least funny thing Yonghyuk had ever sent him so Heosu took it as a win.
The video was right about to finish when Yonghyuk’s phone was suddenly shoved in Heosu’s face. “Is this the place you got my flowers from?” Yonghyuk asked.
“What?” Heosu said, grabbing onto Yonghyuk’s wrist and pulling it away from his face so he could actually see the screen. Heosu’s mouth dropped open slightly upon seeing a familiar social media page and account name. “How did you find that so fast?” Heosu didn’t even try to lie, a little dumbfounded he had been caught so quickly.
Yonghyuk just sent him a smirk, taking his phone back to scroll through the pictures. “Ooh I think they posted mine on here!” he noticed, ignoring Heosu’s question. “I pressed some of the flowers by the way. Now I’ll always have proof of hyung’s love for me.”
“Answer the question Yonghyuk,” Heosu demanded, scowling.
Yonghyuk laughed at Heosu’s expression before giving in. “I looked at the accounts you follow. Idiot,” he said. Heosu gave him a whap on the arm for that, indignant. Despite Heosu barely putting any power into it, Yonghyuk grabbed onto where he was hit, whining and leaning away dramatically. “Ow! I’ll tell your mom.”
“No you won’t,” Heosu dismissed. Ignoring Yonghyuk’s pout, he looked at his own screen and went back to the flower shop’s new post.
Yonghyuk let out a few more pathetic whines before flopping his head back onto a pillow. “Anyway, is there a special someone who works there? Did your secret lover write that note?”
“None of your business,” Heosu huffed. He could feel a blush rising on his cheeks.
Yonghyuk laughed. “So there is. Man, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you in love, this is weird,” he said, disbelief spilling into his voice.
“I’m not in love. You’re such a kid.” Heosu tried to kick his leg at Yonghyuk in retaliation, missing by a mile.
Obviously, Yonghyuk wasn’t listening to Heosu as he suddenly made an excited noise and sat up. “Hyung, they have flower arrangement classes!”
“The shop?”
“Yeah!”
“Sounds dumb,”Heosu said, trying to get away from the topic.
“You can have a secret meeting with your forbidden lover hyung!” Yonghyuk began waving his phone in front of Heosu’s face again.
Since when did it become forbidden love? Heosu thought exasperatedly. Feeling a headache coming on, Heosu kicked out his leg a second time. This time it hit its mark, pushing Yonghyuk off the bed with a yelp. Heosu smirked in satisfaction. Although, thinking about it some more…
Did Yonghyuk have a good idea for once? This might be the chance Heosu had been looking for.
Heosu stared at the flowers placed in front of him, foot tapping rapidly on the floor. His eyes flicked around the room full of couples, sitting at their own tables as they chatted away. He felt more and more out of place every second that passed.
Thinking about it some more, the whole flower arrangement class thing might not have been the best idea. Heosu hadn’t even caught sight of Geonbu since entering the flower shop nor the side room the class was held in. He might just lose it if his entire reason for doing this wasn’t there. Maybe he should’ve just bought another bouquet, even if it felt less natural. At least then he wouldn’t have to deal with a whole room of couples on dates. Unfortunately, he was stuck with his own poor planning now. At least he wasn’t alone.
“Remind me why I need to be here again?” Daegil asked with a bored expression, leaning back in the chair next to Heosu. There were eyebags under his eyes, the telltale sign of a sleep deprived senior college student. And yet, much to Heosu’s disappointment, Daegil’s face could somehow still be considered good looking.
“Because there’s no way I can do this by myself. You’re my wingman,” Heosu reminded his friend.
“Why not bring Yonghyuk? Wasn’t he the one that gave you the idea?”
Heosu cringed at the thought. “That sounds like a nightmare. I’m never taking Yonghyuk to a flower arrangement class. Especially not when I’m trying to get someone’s number,” he explained. “That’s like giving your murderer the knife to stab you with. I’d never hear the end of it.”
“Ah, yeah, makes sense,” Daegil conceded. He yawned and closed his eyes, looking like he was about to fall asleep. Heosu sighed at his college friend and began to rehearse the possible ways he could ask Geonbu out in his head. He’d obviously have to test the waters first, make sure he was interested. Hopefully he’d remember Heosu, it’d be awkward otherwise. Assuming he even showed up.
As Heosu stewed in his thoughts, an older woman wearing a brown florist apron at the front of the room got everyone’s attention. “Alright, since it seems everyone is here, let’s get started. I’ll be the instructor for today. We’re doing something new this time, flower crowns.” Daegil looked over at Heosu and raised an eyebrow.
“Where’s your crush?” Daegil asked. “The class is starting but I don’t see him.”
“Well…” Heosu trailed off, worried himself. As if on cue, the one he’d been waiting for walked into the room. Geonbu looked exactly the same as when Heosu first saw him and the feeling upon seeing him was also familiar. It was an unmistakable feeling of attraction and anticipation, like there was a magnet drawing Heosu’s eyes to the other man. He watched as Geonbu set some supplies down on a table in front of the instructor. He looked a bit overwhelmed, maybe because he got there late.
Geonbu organized some of the materials on the table before looking around the room. Heosu felt a jolt of surprise when he suddenly made direct eye contact with him from across the room. Geonbu’s eyes widened slightly and Heosu felt his own heart rate pick up a bit. To Heosu time seemed to freeze for a second before he got a hold of himself. It seemed his crush hadn’t gone away. Breaking eye contact, Heosu looked at Daegil. His friend was staring at him knowingly. “Ah, I see,” his friend said, smirking.
A bit embarrassed by Daegil (wondering if it would’ve been less humiliating doing this by himself) Heosu turned his focus back to the instructor. She had started to explain the basics of arranging the flowers but Heosu found himself distracted only seconds later. Geonbu had started handing out materials to the other tables, things like metal wire and tape. He’d be at their table soon. Daegil patted his shoulder, “You got this,” he whispered.
Geonbu got to their table last, placing the materials down like he had done for everyone else. Unlike the other tables though, he stopped and looked at Heosu. “You got a bouquet from us a few weeks ago, right?” he asked.
“Uh, yeah. I did,” Heosu answered. All of his smooth conversation starters were forgotten upon seeing Geonbu up close again.
Geonbu thought for a moment, before letting out a small smile. “It’s good to see you again.”
Heosu was flabbergasted. He did know how to respond for a moment but he eventually struggled out, “You too.” With that Geonbu walked away, never looking at Daegil even once.
Heosu was frozen for a while before Daegil elbowed him. “Hey, are you going to spend this whole time staring at him? Aren’t you being a bit obvious?” Heosu looked down to see that Daegil had started working on his own flower crown. The instructor was a little ways into giving the class directions, leaving Heosu in the dust. The flowers may not have been Heosu’s reason for taking the class, but he might as well put some effort into it. He had paid for the class after all. And spending the whole time staring at his crush was likely a bad idea. And so he picked up his own flowers and tried to listen to the instructor.
Heosu tried to copy what Daegil had already done, although it was a bit difficult. It was unfortunate that Heosu couldn’t put his full concentration into the task. He couldn’t stop himself from sneaking looks at Geonbu every now and then. He was helping some of the other people, explaining things or pointing out issues.
It took a few minutes but eventually Heosu saw Geonbu coming over to their table again. “Do you need some help?” Geonbu asked.
“Ah, yeah probably,” Heosu admitted. He lifted the partially started flower crown up so that the worker could see it. Geonbu tilted his head slightly while looking at it.
“May I?” Geonbu asked, reaching for the crown. Heosu nodded his head, passing it over. Somehow, their fingers brushed during the exchange. Geonbu’s hands seemed to jump a bit at the touch, surprising Heosu. The worker carried on like nothing happened though, inspecting Heosu’s work seriously. “You need to trim the stems shorter for a few of these. That way they won’t stick out as much.”
“I see,” Heosu took it back (with no brushing of hands this time) and found some of the flower stems that looked especially long. He took the shears they had been provided and lined them up close to the flower itself. Before he could do anything, Geonbu spoke up.
“A little longer than that.”
“Like this?” Heosu said, moving the blade down a bit.
Geonbu hummed before reaching forward. Heosu was shocked as he grabbed Heosu’s wrists gently. He slowly moved Heosu’s hands so they were at the right length on the flower stem. “Like this,” Geonbu explained, voice soft.
“Ah, I see,” Heosu said, staring down in disbelief. Geonbu’s hands fully encompassed Heosu’s wrists, and yet the hold was so light he wouldn’t be able to tell it was there if not for the warmth the hands gave off. Barely registering what he was doing, Heosu squeezed his hand and snipped the stem of the flower. As soon as he did, Geonbu’s hands moved away. The loss of warmth made Heosu feel disappointed. Geonbu stayed to watch him cut another, nodding in approval when Heosu did it the right length this time.
Once Geonbu walked away, Heosu heard a cough next to him. He turned to look over at Daegil and was met with the most exasperated face Heosu had ever seen on his friend. Heosu guessed he could understand why. He didn’t even know what to call what just happened.
“You better ask for this guy's number. If you don’t I’m going to do it for you, I’m not dealing with you backing out after I had to watch that,” Daegil hissed under his breath.
Heosu decided not to pay him any mind and went back to working on his crown. He was still lost in thought though and soon enough he could see some of the couples finishing, putting on their flower crowns and taking pictures. All while Heosu was far from finishing. He looked down at his own incomplete mess and couldn’t help a surge of annoyance. He hadn’t even come here for this and yet he had gotten strangely invested in making it look good. Maybe he wanted to impress Geonbu a bit or maybe it was his own pride. It was probably a mix of the two.
Daegil was also finished, leaning back and scrolling on his phone. He hadn’t offered to help Heosu once. Why did Heosu bring him again?
Heosu continued to struggle with the crown, focusing in when he felt a presence next to him. Maybe it was obvious how much he was struggling. “Do you want me to help you finish that?” Geonbu asked.
Heosu blushed, a bit embarrassed with his shoddy work. “Yeah, probably,” he mumbled. He passed the crown to Geonbu who began looking the crown over, adjusting anything that was out of place.
Heosu felt Daegil’s gaze next to him, so he side eyed his friend. Daegil sighed before standing up. “Excuse me but do you guys have a bathroom?”
Geonbu stopped working for a second to nod. “Yeah, there should be a sign for it in the main room. It’s to the right.”
Daegil left, leaving Heosu with his crush. Geonbu stayed standing, his eyes never leaving the flowers. Making a small noise to get Geonbu’s attention, Heosu patted the chair Daegil had been sitting in. “You can sit here,” he offered.
“Ah, thank you,” Geonbu said before sitting down next to Heosu. He had sat down at an angle, which ended up resulting in his knees brushing against Heosu’s. While he didn’t seem to notice, Heosu certainly did. He tried not to think about the physical contact as he watched Geonbu do his work.
Gradually, couples finished up and filtered out of the room. Even the instructor disappeared at some point, leaving only Geonbu and Heosu by themselves. Daegil never came back.
It was kind of amazing watching Geonbu arrange the flowers. There was an intense focus in his eyes, but his movements were so precise and gentle. It was obvious he knew what he was doing. Sometimes he would explain certain things to Heosu but he mostly kept quiet. Heosu didn’t mind the quiet though, happy to watch the process.
“How long have you been working with flowers?” Heosu asked, curious enough to start a conversation.
Geonbu looked up at Heosu for a moment before returning his attention to the flowers. “Probably my whole life. This is actually my family’s flower shop.”
“Oh,” Heosu was surprised to hear that. It made sense though, given Geonbu’s age and how knowledgeable he was. “Do you like it?”
Geonbu smiled. “Yeah, I do.” He tilted Heosu’s flower crown around in his hands, looking at it from various angles. He nodded his head, satisfied. “There, it’s done.” He stretched his arms out to show Heosu. The crown had been transformed from an disorganized mass of petals into a beautiful mix of blue and white.
“Wow, it looks great,” Heosu praised, leaning forward to look at it. Unexpectedly, instead of returning the crown back to Heosu’s hands, Geonbu placed the wreath on his head. Heosu let it happen, a blush rising on his cheeks as Geonbu positioned it. Afterwards, he met Geonbu’s gaze. It was soft, and Heosu couldn’t help but try to read into it. “Thank you,” Heosu said.
“No problem. I think it looks good,” Geonbu said. This had to mean something right? There was no way Geonbu just did this with customers. He really didn’t seem like the type. Geonbu started cleaning up the table as Heosu thought about his next move.
While Heosu was thinking, Geonbu suddenly murmured, “Your boyfriend isn’t back yet.”
“What?” Heosu blinked.
“Your boyfriend. He went to the bathroom but never came back.”
Sputtering, Heosu waved his hands around. “No! No no. Daegil is not my boyfriend, he’s just a friend. I wouldn’t date him in a million years, he’s not my type.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Geonbu said, although he didn’t look that shocked. It almost seemed like he already knew Daegil wasn’t Heosu’s boyfriend. Instead, it seemed like there was a different emotion in expression. Maybe something more… shy? Geonbu began to rub the back of his neck bashfully, Heosu noticing the obvious red on his face.
Heart racing Heosu decided to take the chance. “Actually, I’m not dating anyone right now,” he said slowly.
“Ah,” Geonbu responded, refusing to make eye contact. His hands began playing with a cut off flower stem.
Heosu waited for a moment, expecting Geonbu to say something but nothing happened. An awkward silence fell over them. Heosu was sure he was picking up on the signs right so he pressed on. “Like, no one. I’m single.”
“Mn,” Geonbu hummed. He looked over at Heosu but still said nothing. His cheeks were once again a rosy pink.
Ah, right. Heosu should’ve known by now that Geonbu was a reserved guy, why did he ever think hinting would work? Stealing his nerves, he took a deep breath. “Do you want to go out sometime?”
“Huh?” Geonbu’s eyes widened at the question, mouth dropping open slightly.
“I mean… like on a date?” Heosu tried to clarify.
Geonbu was quiet for a while, frozen while he stared at Heosu. Heosu was beginning to get nervous when he finally responded. “I’d really like that,” Geonbu said, his voice quiet.
Heosu felt all the tension in his body immediately melt away, replaced with warm excitement beneath his skin. He smiled before asking, “Then… Can I have your number?”
“Uh sure,” Geonbu said. They were both blushing, hands shaking as they exchanged phones to put each other’s numbers in. While passing his phone back to Heosu, Geonbu looked even more nervous. “Can I be honest about something?” he asked.
Heosu nodded, a bit curious what Geonbu had to say. “The first time I saw you, in the shop, I thought you were really cute. So, when I saw you in the class today, it made me really excited.”
Heosu swore his heart would beat out of his chest. He laughed before smiling at Geonbu. “I’m glad, cause I think I liked you the moment I saw you too.”
Heosu walked out of the shop with what could only be described as a skip in his step. That had gone ten times better than he ever thought it could’ve. Now he not only had Geonbu’s number but also a date scheduled for next week. He was so happy that he almost passed Daegil, who was waiting outside the flower shop, without a second thought.
“Hey, where are you going?” Daegil called out, looking up from his phone.
Heosu stopped and looked back. “Oh, right. You were still here?” he asked.
“Rude,” Daegil scoffed, walking over. “So, did you do it?”
“Who knows?” Heosu said, smile wide and cocky.
Daegil raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “Well I’m glad my efforts weren’t worthless,” he shrugged. The two of them began walking again, Daegil hanging back slightly. Heosu was so happy and oblivious he didn’t notice his friend walking behind him nor the pictures he was taking.
A minute or so later, Daegil tapped Heosu’s shoulder and said to him, “Your flower crown is still on by the way.”
Heosu immediately froze. They weren’t in the busiest neighborhood but there were still people that had walked past them. Heosu could feel his face heating up as he carefully took the flower crown off his head.
Daegil laughed as they started walking again. “I better be the best man at your guys’ wedding.”
“You’ll have to fight Yonghyuk for that position,” Heosu mumbled. In that moment Heosu decided he’d have to thank Yonghyuk for his unintentional matchmaking. Maybe he’d have to get him some more flowers.