flowers and ink

When people meet Kim Kibum they usually think he’s the average Korean man. They assume he’s married to a young woman and that he’s living in a small apartment. They assume he works as an office worker or perhaps as a waiter. Sometimes a kind person guesses he’s a model.

They’re all wrong, though.

Kibum hears the small bell above the door cling when he enters the light shop. The walls are beige and the counter is made of mahogany. There are modern chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, spreading soft light in the shop. On the counter is a scented candle lit and a bowl of hard candies are placed next to it. The waiting area is made of soft grey chairs and large potted plants. It looks nothing like what it is. Behind the counter is a young woman working on a piece of paper, her fingers cramping around the pencil. Kibum greets her and laughs when she lazily looks up. Kibum owns the tattoo shop and he’s proud of it.

Most people thinks he’s joking when he tells them he’s a tattoo artist, especially because he doesn’t have a tattoo himself. It’s not that Kibum never wanted one; when he was 15 he yearned for a tattoo. The older he got, however, the more he realized that he loved drawing on other people, rather than himself. He also prefers tattooing over any other art form.

Kibum sinks into his seat behind the desk and grabs a magazine. Junghee turns to look at him with a raised eyebrow before she turns back to her drawing. Kibum doesn’t look up from his magazine.

The day goes by slowly with appointments in between breaks and Junghee has a majority of customers today. That is until a man Kibum knows all too well steps into the shop and sends them a dazzling smile. Junghee subtly rolls her eyes and leaves for the backroom so Kibum can talk to the customer. He curses her observant personality because Kibum would rather nobody knew of his relationship with the florist in front of the counter.

“What can I do for you today?” he asks and Jinki leans in a little, closer, and Kibum feels his heart speed up, just a little.

“I was thinking of getting a new piece on my hand,” Jinki says and Kibum takes a look at the hand he’s stretching out towards him. Kibum knows that he hasn’t been getting tattoos on his hands because of his work and it would be difficult to bind bouquets during the healing period so he raises an eyebrow.

“Are you sure about that?” Kibum asks and Jinki nods. “Okay, very well then. Any ideas?”

He gestures to a binder on the far end of the counter with inspiration-drawings him and Junghee have made together. Jinki looks at the binder but doesn’t make any move to get to it and look through it.

“Make an extension piece that follows the one on my underarm,” he says instead and Kibum just looks at him.

“You’re crazy.”

Jinki just sends him another smile that has heat rising in Kibum’s cheeks.

Kibum is in a bad mood when he enters the florist next door a couple of days later and grumbles to himself. He looks at the flowers and the plants but his day is horrible and it cannot be mended by the fresh air in the shop or the colors.

“How may I help you?” a voice asks to his left and Kibum glares at the person. The young boy takes a step away and nods his head a little before he turns around. Kibum browses through the pre-made bouquets when he hears another voice behind him.

“It’s not nice to scare my employees,” Jinki says and Kibum looks over his shoulder and sighs a little.

“I’m sorry.” He looks around in the shop and finds the young employee behind the counter. “I’m sorry!” he shouts towards him but it only makes the young boy seem more intimidated. The man behind him chuckles a little and with a hand on the back of Kibum’s back leads Kibum towards the counter. Kibum leans over the counter and Jinki sends the young boy away to the back room.

“I’ve had the worst day ever,” Kibum says and Jinki hums sympathetically. He pats Kibum’s hair and Kibum grabs his hand and pulls it away. “Not in the mood,” he mumbles and Jinki sends him a soft smile and says nothing.

They stay in each other’s presence, the silence stretching on in the flower shop. It isn’t until an elderly lady steps inside that Kibum leaves, but he feels better than he did when he entered.

“Hey Kibum,” a soft voice says and it wakes him up from his slumber on the couch.

“What?” he croaks, voice hoarse with sleep. Kibum rubs his eyes and gets eye contact with his tattooed boyfriend with a bouquet of roses in his hand. “Why the flowers?” he asks when he’s handed the flowers. Jinki sits down beside him and nuzzles into his side. Kibum just reaches out to grab his hand and lace their fingers together.

“I can’t believe you’ve forgotten,” Jinki hums and Kibum looks at him with surprise.

“What?” he asks and Jinki just keeps quiet, nuzzling closer to him. Kibum looks at his boyfriend but he can’t for the life of him remember any occasion that could be the reason he has gotten flowers.

“Today is Thursday,” Jinki says as if that’s a hint and Kibum squeezes his hand a little to tell him that he’s being unhelpful. Jinki doesn’t say anymore and Kibum shakes his head and stops trying to remember. He puts the flowers in water and then places them on the coffee table.

When he turns to look he finds his boyfriend asleep. He leans closer and kisses his forehead with a smile before he finds the blanket. When he has unfolded the blanket he pushes Jinki towards the back of the couch and climbs in next to him. It’s cramped but it’s also soft and safe and he falls asleep next to Jinki.

When people meet Kim Kibum for the first time, they can’t imagine that he’s a tattoo artist with his own shop. They can’t imagine that he’s in an established relationship with a tattooed florist either. There are many things Kibum’s appearance doesn’t give away - but the one thing that is obvious with just one look at him is how happy he is to be exactly who he is and to be with the man he is.

Kibum wouldn’t give his life up for anything in the world.

author's notes

Oh my, I struggled with this but I actually like how it turned out. -ish. I like the idea of tattoo artist Kibum who owns a light and nice tattoo shop instead of the stereotypical dark one. This is just a really nice store, really. Light and nice and warm. Nice. Jinki's flower shop is sometimes a little cluttered. Taemin is a new employee and he doesn't know that Jinki and Kibum are dating because they never really bring their relationship with them when they go to work. It's like it's a secret even though it doesn't have to be. Both men just prefer being super professional when they're at work. But they're just really cute and Jinki loves Kibum's art work and Kibum loves Jinki's flowers and they complement each so well. A+ relationship.