Chapter Text
Chan remembered it like it was just yesterday, when he produced his first "masterpiece". He had just opened his workshop, thinking that it'd be another day of parents taking their kids over for fun, or squealing school girls who would be soon disillusioned by the harsh discipline needed to complete the art. He wouldn't dare to say that his business was going well, but at least he was managing.
So he definitely hadn't expected a young man to come practically barging into his store, a bag of bright yellow petals in one hand, the other hand came slamming down on the counter, "How much is one session?"
"...What?" Chan had blinked, staring at the man in front of him.
He had a very slender built, sharp eyes, almost piercingly so as he stared earnestly into Chan's, "Please... I want to put these into some good use... Before it's too late."
Hanahaki Disease - An illness where the patient coughs or throws up petals. The cause - one-sided love. However, there were two methods of curing it. One, the other half returns the patient's love; two, go through an operation, which will remove both the illness as well as the feelings that were originally harbored.
Wen Junhui, Chan's current student, had decided to choose the latter. After all, it was far more easier than torturing himself with false hope, that his love would one day be returned. But before he forgot about his feelings completely, he wanted to put them somewhere, somehow, he needed some sort of closure. Chan watched as Junhui smoothed out his handpicked petals, spreading them out on a thin piece of paper with delicate touches.
"Let's start with what kind of pattern you want, shall we?" Chan prompted when Junhui simply stopped and stared at the randomly spread out petals, which were nothing but yellow blotches at the moment.
"...I know this is cheesy, but can I make it into a keychain? Something that I can carry around easily..." Junhui said slowly, rearranging the soft petals so that they formed tiny blooms in the middle of the paper, a very simple and straightforward design.
"Sure, of course." Chan replied, "It might take some time to get the final product though."
"That's fine." Junhui closed his eyes, "I guess there's really no rush."
Under Chan's close watch, Junhui pressed the petals, along with the piece of paper, between two pieces of wood and another sheet of paper, pushing down as hard as he could. In contrast to Junhui's almost clumsy and brutish actions, Chan skillfully drilled holes into the corners of the wooden sandwich, wedging them together tightly.
"This will take three to four weeks, but I'll help you change the blotter sheets if you want-" Chan paused as a puff of yellow petals burst out of Junhui's mouth right as the flower press was taken to the back, away from his sight.
"...Thank you." Junhui smiled. A pitifully painful smile.
Over the next few weeks, Junhui never failed to check on his work, even helping around the workshop when he happened to walk in on a class. Of course, that face of his was definitely attracting more female customers than ever, and Chan noted that some students only chose certain days to come just to admire his prince-like features. He shook his head. That girl he was in a one-sided love with had no idea what she was missing out on.
But at the time, Chan didn't think that he'd be the one who literally had no idea about how complicated things really were, and how tragically things could have potentially turned out.
It started out as a normal day. Junhui was helping him out by clearing out his storage space in the back, bringing out some of the unfinished products from previous classes, including his own, so that they wouldn't be accidentally thrown out. Chan had grown used to the occasional bursts of yellow petals coming out of Junhui, and because the latter felt like it was a shame for them to go to waste, Chan had pressed them into multiple artworks, some of which he had framed on the walls.
In particular, one artwork was done with the help of Junhui. It definitely wasn't the most beautiful or well-designed piece, but there was something about it. On a sheet of paper, there were multiple yellow petals of different shades, textures, shapes, morphing into a sunset. While making the piece, Chan had asked Junhui what sort of person his one-sided love was.
Arranging the piece with soft touches, Junhui's gaze grew gentle, and a glow almost lighted up on his face as he spoke, "They're like the sun. Maybe you wouldn't think so at first glance since they always have a stoic look on, but their actions are very warm. Their presence is calming, yet fleeting. Like the setting sun."
Chan shook his head at the memory. The more he spent time with Junhui, the more he thought his feelings were wasted on a person who couldn't even see his care towards them.
The sound of wind bells alerted Chan that someone had entered the store. Wiping his hands on his work apron, Chan left the storeroom to greet the customer, "Welcome..." His voice trailed off. The customer was busy staring at Junhui's sunset work, an unreadable expression on his face. Surprise, serenity, mixed with what appeared to be admiration.
"Ah, hello." Noticing Chan's presence, the customer greeted him hastily, "I was passing by, and this piece happened to catch my eye... Did you make this by any chance?"
"Partially. It was designed by my student, actually."
The customer pursed his lips, turning once more to stare at the yellow-orange gradient on the wall. "It's breathtaking."
Chan felt a sense of pride welling up in his chest. This was the first time someone actually bothered to stop and admire his students' handiwork. Despite the obvious rough edges, Junhui had truly poured his heart into the work. Chan would never forget the way his eyes sparkled when the artwork finally began to take shape under his mentor's guidance.
But as Chan was thinking about whether to call Junhui out so that he could experience the joy of being praised for his hard work himself, said person had already hustled out from the back with a fresh vase of yellow acacia, "By the way, Chan, your order came today-"
CRASH!
Chan whipped his head around to see Junhui staring blankly at the customer, ignoring the shattered vase.
"Junhui?" The customer raised an eyebrow.
"Wonwoo, w-what are you doing here?" Junhui stammered while grabbing a broom to clean up the mess, bowing apologetically to Chan in the process.
"Oh, I was actually just in here to take a closer look at this piece." The customer, Wonwoo, replied, indicating towards the sunset on the wall.
Chan could see a shade of red creeping up into Junhui's cheeks, then eventually put two and two together. Junhui wasn't pining after some girl, it was this guy. That actually explained a lot. "You know each other?" Nonetheless, Chan decided prompting was needed.
"Ah, yes, this is Jeon Wonwoo-"
"Hi, I'm this guy's best friend." A small smile appeared on the initially stone-faced man as he reached over to put an arm around Junhui, "I hope he hasn't been causing you too much trouble."
"Oh, not at all." Chan blinked, glancing at Junhui, whose lips had tightened into a thin line the moment Wonwoo mentioned 'best friend'.
Seemingly not noticing the tension, Wonwoo pulled Junhui closer in a teasing manner, "So this was where you've been ditching me to go to?"
"S-shut up. If you're done looking, get out!" With that, Junhui childishly pushed Wonwoo out while the latter merely chuckled as though it were an everyday occurrence.
Well, it soon became an everyday occurrence for Chan as well. Determined to meet the maker of the sunset artwork, Wonwoo began to follow Junhui every day after school to the workhouse. Chan wondered why Junhui refused to tell Wonwoo that he was the creator of the artwork, but decided that it wasn't his place to interfere.
However, Chan did notice the way Wonwoo would peek over Junhui's shoulder while the other worked with dried flowers, and the way Wonwoo's gaze would fall on the taller boy's side profile instead of the arrangement. In fact, sometimes Chan would even walk in on Wonwoo hugging Junhui around the waist while resting his chin on the latter's shoulder.
All this only made Chan scowl. To him, it was obvious that their feelings were mutual, but then it wouldn't make sense for Junhui to develop the Hanahaki Disease. Quietly, Chan walked up to the two while they were in another one of their oddly intimate cuddle sessions, "Junhui, I know it's been long overdue because of some shipment issues, but it's finally done."
Ignoring Wonwoo's narrowed eyes, Chan reached over and took Junhui by the wrist, dropping a keychain accessory into his palm. Junhui's eyes widened in delight upon seeing his first ever flower pressing completed, staring down at the blooming yellow acacia pattern lovingly.
"...Those petals... they're the same kind used for the sunset." Wonwoo mused, looking over Junhui's shoulder at the small art piece, "Junhui, you-"
"I'm sorry!" Junhui suddenly blurted out, shoving Wonwoo away from him. Before Chan or Wonwoo could do anything, Junhui had ran out of the workhouse.
Wonwoo stared after the retreating figure, his mouth almost hanging open at how dramatic of a scene he just experienced. Chan coughed lightly, "You know, Junhui channeled all of his feelings towards you into that sunset. I know it's not in my place to interfere with your relationship, but, I felt like you needed to know."
"...A sunset, huh?" Wonwoo mused, glancing over at the artwork he had taken such a great liking to, "...I guess he doesn't know me as well as I thought he did."
The next day, Chan was surprised to see Junhui return alone, his eyes were swollen. It wasn't hard to guess that he had spent a good chunk of last night crying himself to sleep. He wondered if anything happened with Wonwoo before he headed down there.
"You know, Chan, I went to get that operation after I left yesterday." Junhui croaked out after sitting down at the nearest worktable, fumbling with some fresh petals Chan had laid out earlier in preparation for their evening classes.
"...And? Are you cured?" Chan prompted gently, coming around the counter to sit across from his student.
Slowly, Junhui shook his head, but then nodded, then shook his head slightly again, "The doctor said I had been cured a long time ago. Come to think of it, I haven't been spitting up petals for a while, huh? Why didn't I notice...?" He let out a broken laugh, throwing the yellow acacia keychain onto the table, "My parents decided to move back to China. We won't be able to meet anymore..." He looked over silently at the sunset he had crafted with his own hands, "I suppose love is beautiful while it lasts, but gone in a flash. Just like that sunset."
Chan had remained silent throughout Junhui's vent, but his gaze had traveled to somewhere behind the older male. Junhui noticed the eerie silence too late, and before he could turn around, a strong pair of arms made themselves around him, pushing him back down in his seat.
"If you think a mere couple of miles is going to make me give up on you, I'm really going to rethink our entire relationship."
"W-Wonwoo...?" There was a tremble in Junhui's voice as he turned to look at the intruder, who still had his arms around him securely.
"To be completely honest, I only ever thought of you as a bro, since we grew up together and all..." Wonwoo spoke slowly, his voice low as he whispered in Junhui's ear, "But then you started to ignore me, hang out with other people, even doing things I didn't know you were into despite claiming to be your best friend... It made me realize just how much bigger of a presence you had in my life. In the sense that, I can't see my life without you in it."
"...Wonwoo, I-"
"Even if you move to China, we can still contact each other, right? I'll text you every day, call you every day, I'll even write to you the old-fashioned way if that's what will keep you thinking about me, even if we're miles away from each other..." Wonwoo moved away from Junhui slightly, cupping the older's face gently in his palms, "Just believe in me. I won't let you think of me as a fleeting sunset anymore."
Tears poured down Junhui's cheeks in a highly unattractive manner, but at least the smile on his face was no longer broken, "Stupid," he grumbled, putting his arms around Wonwoo's neck, "I've been thinking about you nonstop for over ten years, I can stand a couple more."
Kissing the top of Junhui's head, Wonwoo ran a hand through his dark locks, "You better come visit often."
A happy noise rumbled in Junhui's throat as he pressed himself into the crook of Wonwoo's neck. Chan simply smiled as he watched the sweet, and might he add, relieving, exchange between the two. He glanced down at the yellow acacias blooming on Junhui's key chain, droplets of water glistened upon the petals like stars in the sky.
Star light, star bright. First star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might. Have this wish I wish tonight.
May happiness be forever with these two.
...And many more to come.
Yellow acacia = Value of friendship, secret love