flowers and ink » yoonmin

one.

Jimin unlocked the front door of his tiny flower shop, simply called Jimin's Flowers. He made his way to the back, towards the checkout desk, flipping on the lights as he went. Behind the checkout was a break room where he ate lunch alone everyday. The store was compact and square, boasting four short aisles spread out in front of the checkout. The large windows at the front had plants cheerfully taking up space on the windowsills, and more were sat on skinny tables pushed under the windows. Even more were suspended from the ceiling in hanging planters.

Jimin took pride in his shop; although business was slow most days, he made enough to live comfortably in the rooms above the shop. The rooms were really two apartments, but no one lived next to him, and he never touched the empty space; treating it as if it was hallowed ground. On some days, he longed to hear another set of breaths, but most of the time he was fine with the solitude. He had never been good in social situations; anxiety he had not felt since high school would flare up, choking him. So he stayed in the store, for the most part. It was quiet, at least. About an hour or so after opening the shop, a familiar face walked into the store, a little bell tinkling to signal their arrival. Jungkook emerged from aisle three, lively and grinning, although the edges of his lips were tight with panic. Jimin tried not to laugh as the black-haired boy approached him at an alarming speed.

"Still no luck?" He asked, and Jungkook's features crumpled as he shook his head, hair whipping around like a black halo.

"I need something different, this time," Jungkook insisted, dark eyes wide and earnest. He had been trying to win over his "crush" for a week now, but Jimin knew that when the flowers failed, so did Jungkook's affection for the crush in question. He was always forming crushes on new boys; every other week it seemed. The only way he knew how to get their attention was with flowers, apparently, and as a result, Jungkook was an irregular regular.

"Who's the boy this time?" Jimin asked, a grin forming on his features. He loved hearing Jungkook gush over every detail of his new love. Or maybe he was just living vicariously through Jungkook's stories. Either way, he knew he needed more human interaction.

"His name is Taehyung, and he came into my coffee shop and we were practically flirting," Jungkook enthused. "He asked for a hot chocolate, because they were romantic-" Jungkook made air quotations around the word- "and I said, "Anything for a cute boy" and he blushed and it was so cute! Then he said he'd have to come here more often if I was the barista, and our hands touched when I gave him his drink, and I swear there was electricity!"

Jimin bit back a laugh as Jungkook babbled and analyzed every word that had passed between him and Taehyung. The way he spoke about his new crush seemed different than the rest; Jimin's suspicions were confirmed at Jungkook's flower request.

"Can I have the palest pink flowers you have? I kinda wanna make a bouquet, with the pale pink to match the color of his blush, and then bright red ones to match the cherry I put in his hot chocolate," Jungkook mused, and Jimin felt his eyebrows lift. Jungkook looked dreamily into space, and Jimin wondered if maybe this time, Jungkook was feeling more than just a little crush. Usually, he just picked out some pre-made bouquets Jimin kept on the right wall of the store.

"I'll see what I can do," Jimin assured the younger boy, and disappeared into his back room. There were flowers on a large shelf against one wall; waiting to be dispersed into the store. Ribbon and paper and scissors cluttered the surface of a long table sat against the opposite wall. A small space was cleared for him to eat lunch, a few sad stools in a skewed line dotted the wooden table's perimeter. A fridge, microwave, and toaster(placed upon a rickety table) stood against the wall opposite the door; nestled between cupboards. Jimin selected light pink hydrangeas from the shelf and a few dahlias to mix in among the paler blooms. He cut the stems and arranged them in a plastic vase. The dahlias went in the center, the hydrangeas arranged around them. He dotted a few white roses in to offset the pinks and reds, then tied floral wire around the stems, hiding it with a large white ribbon. He filled the flute-like vase halfway with water and carried it back into the store. Jungkook looked up from his phone at the slam of the door, face brightening at the bouquet.