Chapter Text
Jimmy was tired of the same old boring customers. They were always the exact same, and they were always only there for a beautiful yet meaningless bouquet. No one cared about the symbolism of flowers nowadays, only that they could be beautiful. This annoyed Jimmy. Why did he bother learning about the beauty of symbolism along with the natural beauty of the flowers if no one was going to care?
The bell above the door rings, jerking Jimmy out of his thoughts. He manages to stop himself from literally jumping from being startled, though he does still flinch.
“Welcome to Petal and Bloom! Is there something specific you’re looking for, or are you just browsing?” Jimmy says with a practiced smile, brightening his face as to not scare away the customer.
The second he fully looks at the customer though, the brightness is washed away by shock. Shock at how beautiful this man is. He has bright cyan hair and matching teal eyes. His skin is a pale milky white colour, and every feature on his face is just perfect.
“Oh, hi!” The customer responds with a gorgeous smile, making him even more beautiful than before, which Jimmy didn’t think could be possible. His accent is mostly Scottish, though there’s a hint of a British accent mixed in. “I actually am looking for something specific.”
Jimmy can’t hide his surprise at that response, which makes the customer chuckle.
“I’m assuming that expression means people normally come in and just look at the pretty flowers?” The man asks with a grin. “And the pretty man at the counter.”
Jimmy just nods, flushing slightly, still taken aback by everything about this man. “Uh, I- um, yes to the flower thing. Not sure about the other part.”
“Well, I need a bouquet with lots of hidden symbolism,” The customer declares, his face still lit up by amusement.
“Oh, uh, of course! What kind of symbolism?” Jimmy finally regains his composure, his surprise being replaced by excitement.
The man walks up to the counter and smiles at Jimmy.
“Well, I’m glad you asked.” The man grins. “I need a passive aggressive hate bouquet for my ex-boyfriend.”
Jimmy lights up even more, both at the idea that he gets to make a hate bouquet, and at the thought that this man swings the other way. “I can do that! I love making hate bouquets. I find they usually end up the prettiest, though the symbolism is rarely lost on anyone, which makes them the perfect gift for someone you’re angry with.”
“Well I’m glad you’re experienced with it, because this needs to be perfect.” The customer says.
“I’m Jimmy, by the way.” Jimmy smiles, offering the man his hand to shake..
“I’m Scott. It’s lovely to meet you, Jimmy.” The man- Scott- takes Jimmy’s hand, though rather than shaking it, he brings it up to his face and lightly brushes his lips against the back of his hand. Jimmy fails to hide the slight flush that appears on his cheeks, and Scott gives a small smirk at the sight, though he doesn’t say anything as he lets go of Jimmy’s hand.
“It’s wonderful to meet you too, Scott.” Jimmy says, finding himself staring into Scott’s teal eyes, feeling as though he’s drowning in their beauty. He clears his throat and shakes his head slightly to snap himself out of his daze. “Right, well, shall we get started?”
“Let’s.” Scott responds with a smile, leaning on the counter with his elbows
“Alright, I find the best thing to start with is a colour palette. What are some colours your ex doesn’t hate, but doesn’t love? Just tolerates.” Jimmy asks, grabbing his notebook to write notes in.
“He’s rather indifferent to red and orange, and he dislikes pink and purple, but doesn’t hate them.” Scott responds confidently. “He likes most other colours.”
“That’s a perfect start.” Jimmy smiles brightly, writing down those colours. “Do you know anything about which flowers he does and doesn’t like?”
“He’s never really said anything about his favourite flowers, though I know he likes roses.” Scott explains, still leaning against the counter as he watches Jimmy jot everything down.
“Alright, then flower meanings will matter more than the actual flowers themselves.” Jimmy decides, writing that down as well. “So far we have anything red, orange, pink, or purple that has a meaning of hate with a side of passive aggressiveness.” He reads out, looking up at Scott after to confirm if that’s correct.
Scott nods, smiling. His smile is infectious, and within seconds Jimmy is smiling just as brightly. Jimmy moves away from the counter, flitting between flower displays as he grabs multiple flowers in the colours Scott chose. Scott watches him with a smile, clearly finding Jimmy’s enthusiasm cute.
“Okay, I’ve got some options.” Jimmy says as he walks back over to the counter, dropping his armful of yellow, orange, purple, and pink flowers in front of Scott. “They all have meanings that work with what you want. For example,” He holds up a red tulip, “This one symbolises aggression and wrath.” He grabs an orange lily. “Whereas this one signifies underlying hate, disdain, and contempt.”
Scott grins at the options. “Both are perfect. I like all of these, but you’re the expert. Could you pick the ones you think would be the best?”
Jimmy nods enthusiastically. “Of course! I can narrow it down so we can choose the final flowers together.” His expression turns to one of focus as he starts to sort through the flowers he brought to the counter, choosing which ones to keep based on both aesthetic and meaning.
“There, these are the ones I think will work best.” He finally says after a few minutes, gesturing to one of two piles. Scott quickly glances away from where he was staring, which was Jimmy’s face. His gaze lands on the pile Jimmy is gesturing to, and his face brightens.
“Wow, those colours work perfectly together. I didn’t expect them to look so pretty.” Scott smiles.
“This here is a pink petunia, it symbolises disdain. This is a pink peony, it symbolises anger when given as a gift. Here’s a dark purple petunia, this one shows anger, dislike, and resentment. The rest all mean similar things . So, which ones do you think match your feelings for your ex the most?” Jimmy asks, glancing back up at Scott.
Scott points at the ones he likes best. “Those ones work perfectly with how I feel, and they look gorgeous together,” He says with a mischievous grin.
Jimmy laughs at Scott’s grin. “Perfect. Let me just make them into a bouquet for you then.”
Jimmy grabs the flowers Scott chose, pushing the others to the side. He reaches under the counter and pulls out some plastic and a handful of different coloured ribbons.
“What colour ribbon should I use?” Jimmy asks, spreading the ribbons out to show them all to Scott.
“Hmm, I like the dark red. It reminds me of blood and that’s what I want to see come out of my ex every time I’m forced to interact with him, so it’ll work perfectly for this.” He grins even wider.
“Morbid, but I like how you’re thinking.” Jimmy says with a laugh, putting the other ribbons back under the counter and wrapping the flowers in the plastic and the chosen ribbon, expertly making a bouquet.
He hands it to Scott with a smile. “There. I think it turned out perfectly.”
“I agree. So, how much do I owe you?” Scott asks, grabbing the bouquet in one hand and pulling his wallet out of his pocket with the other.
“Since it’s your first time here, and this is a very important cause, you can have it for free. Just don’t tell anyone.” Jimmy says with a smile.
“Thanks, that’s sweet of you.” Scott says with a matching smile. He looks over Jimmy’s shoulder at something, and Jimmy turns to look at whatever it is. He hears the bell above the door ring, and when he turns back, Scott’s gone, and there’s a hundred dollar bill left on the counter.
Jimmy stares at the bill, then at the door, his eyes wide and his mouth open in shock.
“That was certainly an… interesting man. I hope he comes back at some point.” Jimmy murmurs to himself, still in complete shock.