hi (hello)

with a hello (you and i became we)

Hiding behind a fake palm tree really isn't the smartest decision Felix has made in his whole nineteen years on this planet, but it was the only thing there and he was too busy panicking to think everything through, okay?

That doesn't really explain why he's hiding behind a fake palm tree in the middle of the sidewalk, but Felix swears he can explain it to everyone who's currently giving him questioning looks.

Alright, so here's the situation: Felix is a tattoo artist who moved to Korea from Australia because he wanted to work with his cousin, Bang Chan. Felix got along well with Chan's other employees, Han Jisung who also does tattoos and Hwang Hyunjin who does piercings alongside Chan, and everything's all swell and dandy for the first month of Felix's stay in Korea.

Then He walked into the shop.

Felix knew Chan had other friends, he's seen them come and go around the shop after all, but what he didn't know was that Chan was friends with someone so breathtakingly handsome and cute that the mere sight of the man sent Felix into a Gay Panic.

Of course, when the man had started talking to him, Felix had tried to play it cool. He even managed to choke out a coherent sentence when the man asked if Chan was in. Sure, he'd been slightly disappointed the man hadn't asked for him, but Felix filed that thought away before he can dwell on it. Everything was fine, he told himself. Felix can handle being in the presence of Cute and Handsome while said man waits for Chan. He's got this.
But then the man sent him the cutest smile he's ever seen and Felix swore he had a heart attack and a stroke at the same time.

And maybe suddenly choking on thin air wasn't the best first impression Felix could have given Cute and Handsome, but hey, at least it was memorable, right?

When Chan finally came out from the back, Felix had never been more glad to see the older man, even if Chan just gave him a slow, confused and judgement filled blink, wondering why his cousin was currently trying to cough his lungs out.

Later, Felix will discover that the man's name is Seo Changbin and that he's been friends with Chan since forever and that Changbin also works at the cute pastel flower shop across their tattoo shop. And if Felix spends the next few days staring at the flower shop across theirs at any given opportunity, well, that's his business and Chan should stop giving him the look immediately.

Moral of the story is that Seo Changbin is Felix's ideal man and him standing in front of the tattoo shop may or may not be the reason why Felix is currently hiding behind a fake palm tree.

Okay, so Felix never did get over the fact that he gave Changbin the worst first impression ever, and maybe he's also way too shy to even think of approaching the other man after that fiasco. Chan would call him a pussy but his cousin is a hypocrite anyway, so his insults don't really have any weight in them and-

And oh my God, Felix is totally, utterly screwed because Seo Changbin just turned around and he most definitely noticed the scrawny kid hiding behind the fake tree while staring at him like some kind of creeper.

Felix is just about ready to yeet himself into the void when, wonder of wonders, instead of maybe scowling and getting angry just like he expected, Changbin flashes him a tiny smile and starts walking towards him and oh my God, what the fuck, why is he walking towards me-

"Hey," Changbin greets, giving him a tiny wave. "You're Felix right? Chan's cousin?"

"A-ah, yeah, it's nice to meet you." Felix weakly replies, clinging onto the palm tree. It must be quite the sight, a fully tattooed kid, clinging to a fake plant in the middle of the sidewalk as a cute florist in a navy blue hoodie talks to him. "Uh, Changbin-ssi."