Yoongi curled up further into his bomber jacket as he crossed the street, the obnoxious bleeping sound accompanying the crosswalk muffled from his consciousness as he was buried deeply into his thoughts. With a gruff half-grunt, half-sigh, he dug his keys out from the depths of his pockets and unlocked the front door, frowning at the fingerprints on the glass paneling. Just above his head was written the words Spring Day Bouquet in pastel pink and green paint. He slipped inside, out from the overwhelming grip of the early spring wind, and turned the CLOSED sign around so it said OPEN to the outdoor world. Normally it would be at least a few more hours before any customers would come to the flower shop, but this month was a little extra special - it was February, the true start of the flower season and their biggest selling time.

It had been three years since Yoongi had decided to open the shop, and none of his family had really understood why it had to be a flowershop, of all things. But Yoongi was not in the habit of explaining himself to others when they wouldn’t really get it, anyways. Once the business had picked up, they had been supportive enough, and that was all he needed.

Yoongi was checking that everything was settled in the cash register when he noticed that some of the Cymbidiums behind the counter were looking a little wilted. He slid open the large chiller cabinet (a large, black refrigerator-like contraption with sliding glass doors they used to keep the flowers fresh) and took a moment to notice the lack of appropriate ‘chill’ that should have been hitting his face. Squinting down at the temperature gauge, he sighed when the glowing green number wasn’t there at all. Upon inspection the other chiller cabinets along that same wall were off, as well. It must have been a tripped breaker. Yoongi ran a hand through his black hair, the blue streaks in it mussed and standing up a little as the door opened with a little croaking sound, and Seokjin entered the store.

“Why does our city smell like boiled eggs today?” was his morning greeting, a little irritable and mostly puzzled. He tugged off his bright red scarf, Yoongi pursing his lips into a tight line as he watched Jin. Any member of his family could have volunteered to help him with the shop, but in the end, the person most supportive of him had been his childhood friend Jin. As obnoxious as Jin could be, he was a quick worker and he had a way with the customers, so Yoongi had had no reason to refuse him when he asked if they could be partners. It also didn’t hurt that Jin’s family was much better off money-wise than Yoongi’s, since they had had to borrow quite a bit of capital before the place took off and settled into a comfortable non-red zone.

If there was one thing about Jin that irritated him the most, it was his looks. There was the first fact: that Jin was tall and broad-shouldered, while Yoongi (who had been sure he was supposed to keep growing) had stopped several centimeters below his friend, making Yoongi feel like an evil sidekick rather than an equal partner. The second: Jin was really, really good looking. Objectively speaking, that is. Yoongi mostly saw Jin during his ridiculous moments, when he laughed so much his face turned red and blotchy and the veins popped out of his neck, so he hadn’t noticed it until it was too late, but when neither of them were looking Jin had grown (dare he say it) handsome. And it was the most annoying factoid, even moreso than Jin’s horrible sense of humor or his habit of nagging Yoongi beyond belief.

“Hell if I know. The desk chiller cabinets are all off, so I’m gonna go down and check the breaker. Watch the front for a minute.”

Jin hummed his acknowledgment, pulling off his coat without meaning to look like a model in a photo shoot (but succeeding anyway), and went behind the counter. “I’ll make the coffee.” The statement was highly unnecessary, in Yoongi’s opinion, as he was no longer allowed to touch the coffee maker after Jin had whined that he made coffee thrice as strong as any normal human deserved to bear, but this was their daily ritual.

Yoongi slipped downstairs, feeling his way along the walls of the cold concrete until he found the light. The basement served not only as a good back-up chiller cabinet in the rare event of a blackout or a storm, but it was also their storage-room-slash-office as well. In all honesty, it was not the best situation for either of them, as the basement was always too cold to stay in very long, and unfortunately they had had to spend some over-nighters crouched over the small hand-me-down desk together, pouring over bank statements and shivering. There was only a cheap desk lamp that Yoongi had bought at a home improvement store on sale and several colorful box containers that Jin had managed to fish out of his parent’s storage facility. They now contained various writing implements and office supplies, plus a large collapsible folder they used for organizing the daily paperwork needed. They didn’t need much - both of them spent more of their days upstairs around the real work: the flowers themselves.

Yoongi strode past the little desk at the entrance and went over to the rows of shelving made out of palettes they had salvaged, half of them filled with bags of soil, containers, fancy wrapping and decor. Yoongi scrunched his nose as he walked past a box they had used to hide away the remains of their Halloween party. A huge flower head piece, its bright red petals (bigger than Yoongi’s face) stuck out of one corner of the box, and Yoongi scoffed at it. Opening up the breaker box behind it, he flipped the switch, pausing for a moment to listen. For some reason, he always expected something a bit more… like a rising hum signaling the reconnection, but all he got was silence.

He trudged back up the stairs and found Jin already chatting with Kiara, one of their regulars, who was ordering more petals for a photoshoot she was planning later that week. Jin had not only started the first pot of coffee, (which made a lovely scent when mixed with the flower-and-earth smell that permeated throughout the shop) but he had also the music playlist, and an upbeat classical jazz song bounced along in the background.

“Your brother is one of the best models I’ve ever had, to be honest,” Kiara was saying with a smile, tucking her short hair behind one ear as Jin leaned over her order slip, filling it in. Jin glanced up and sent her a little smile. Yoongi pursed his lips together in a bit of distaste at their pseudo-flirting, and slipped past so he could tend to the newest batch of Casablanca Lilies. He went to each container, checking that the water levels were suitable and dropping a bit of preservative into each container. Each one spilled out a beautiful bluish-green cloud of magic, and Yoongi found himself tapping his foot a little to the music playing in the background.

“Well, that’s a relief to me. Our parents could use a little reassurance that he’s staying focused, too. A year ago he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. It’s tough these days, figuring out your path. To be honest, there are still some days I wonder if Spring Day was the right path for me, you know?” He casually printed out her receipt as if he wasn’t spitting deep philosophy in layman’s terms. “Tell Tae I said to behave and be home on time for dinner, it’s his turn to help cook. 

Kiara took the receipt and her order slip with a coy expression. “So do you regret it? Spring Day? You were gonna go into acting, after all.”

Jin sent her a warm smile that seemed to tuck neatly, tightly into the corners of his mouth, as if he was holding back a delicious secret. “I’m still here, aren’t I?” 

“Yeah, you are,” she smiled back with an unspoken softness. “And I’m glad. Who else could I trust with my petals?”

“Not Tae, that’s for sure,” Jin warned with a chuckle. “But really, keep an eye on him for me.”

Kiara walked out, and Yoongi looked over at Jin, who still had a little grin pulling at the corners of his lips. Yoongi thought for a moment, and almost remained silent. But curiosity is a strange animal.

“So is there something going on with you two?”

“Hm?” Jin turned around to get out their coffee cups - Jin’s a tan mug with a cartoon fat, gray cat on it he said was ‘Pusheen,’ and Yoongi’s a plain black one. Because his broad back was turned to Yoongi, he couldn’t make an attempt at reading Jin’s expression.

“You and Kiara. She comes in twice as often now, and I doubt it’s because she really has to do a flower-themed photoshoot every other week.”

Jin gave a shrug, the clanking of spoons against the sides of their cups a brash sound as he stirred both cups simultaneously. “She’s nice, but I don’t think there’s anything there.”

“Well, you should be warned not to lead her on or some like that,” Yoongi scowled, accepting the cup Jin held out and using it mostly to warm his palms. “People get romantic as hell when they walk into flower shops.”

At that, Jin gave a little chuckle. “You say that like I don’t already know, Yoongi. But thanks, I’ll be careful.” Yoongi was sure he wouldn’t be.

They had finished their second cup of coffee when the next customer walked in. He was a newcomer, based on the fact that the tinny sound like a frog croaking that served as their doorbell actually startled him. It was actually a recording Tae had made that weekend, but it was convincing enough that the young man walking in jumped and looked for the source of the sound. Yoongi tried in vain to suppress a smile. The newcomer had dark hair that was styled up and almost spiked up in the front, revealing a handsome forehead and bright eyes. There was something about the way he held his arms that seemed graceful and reassured, even though his expression looked more concerned and worried.

“Can I help you?” Jin offered, as Yoongi slid past to continue his rounds.

“Um…” the boy looked around uncertainly, stepping up to the counter. “I need flowers that say…” The boy worked his mouth a little, his bright teeth brushing against his bottom lip.  “That say, ‘thank you for trusting and supporting me always…’?”

Jin looked curiously at the boy for a moment, as if reading into him, and Yoongi called over his shoulder, “We don’t do floriography here, sorry to tell you. A flower is a flower, not pig latin.” His voice was irritated, trying in vain to reach up into a top shelf vase without succumbing and going to get the footstool Jin had surreptitiously placed against the corner. He didn’t know that while his back was turned, Jin gave the boy a reassuring smile and gestured for him not to worry. Jin moved to step out from behind the corner, waving for the other to follow him as they went toward the front of the shop.

“Who are the flowers for, if you don’t mind me asking?” Jin offered a warm smile, and the boy smiled back, creating soft dimples in his cheeks.

“For my mother, actually,” the boy said quietly, almost flushing as he hovered, Jin sliding open the glass door to the foremost chiller cabinet. “A year ago I told her I wanted to join a dance academy, and she’s been working two jobs since then. Today I’m going to be able to tell her I got offered my first big part in a show at the theatre I work at. It’s not good enough that she can quit her second job, but… it’s a start, and I wanna thank her with my first paycheck.”

“That’s fantastic! I’m really happy for you.” Jin cooed, picking up a bouquet and holding it out. Yoongi grumbled on the other side of the shop, cursing under his breath as he went to the corner to fetch the footstool. While he was preoccupied, Jin pointed a long, bumpy and crooked finger to each flower as he whispered conspiratorially, “Dark pink roses are for gratitude, lilies-of-the-valley for humility and a return to happiness, white heather for protection of wishes to come true and lavender heather: admiration.” He winked at the boy, whose smile grew into a full-on beam that was as eye-catching as the bouquet he was holding. His teeth almost seemed too big for his face, and Jin could have sworn the room was a little brighter for his expression.

Jin cleared his throat a little, speaking again but at his normal volume as he stepped towards the counter, “Does that work for you?”

“It’s perfect, thank you so much!”

“Great, let’s get you squared away,” Jin slid up to the computer, “Would you like to be put into our member database for the future? It can get you discounts, and it doesn’t cost anything.”

“Sure,” the boy nodded, still beaming into his bouquet. Jin smiled, tugging the keyboard closer.

“I’ll need your name and a phone number?”

“Oh, it’s Jung Hoseok,” the boy rattled off his number quickly. He seemed almost chest-explodingly proud, the way he swiped his credit card through the machine.

An annoying beeping sound resonated through the air, halting their mirth. The smile on Hoseok’s face fell completely.

“Um…” Jin’s voice seemed to drop to the floor, after they awkwardly fumbled through a third attempt. “Your card was declined.”

“Oh, um. I guess the money hasn’t hit m-my account yet.” Hoseok’s lip was visibly starting to quiver, and his face burned crimson. “Sorry. They said it would be in this morning…”

Jin’s lips curved up at the edges, but the expression on his face was less of a smile and more of an apology. It was a Friday morning, so there was no guarantee he’d have the money until after the weekend. Hoseok started to pick up the flowers again, to put them back into the chiller cabinet, but Jin stopped him with a hand. “Hey, why don’t you just take them today and come back tomorrow to pay me? I mean, we have your contact info here and all, and I’m sure you’re good for it.” 

Hoseok’s mouth dropped open a little in surprise - frankly, Yoongi’s did, too.

“Seriously? You would do that? I mean, I couldn’t, but--”

Yoongi stepped down from the footstool and walked over to the counter with a frown. “Jin,” he started, speaking deep and somber. “No.”

“Oh, come on, he’s trying to get flowers for his mother, you gotta-”

“No, Jin. We can’t just let people walk out with I.O.U.s and an $80 bouquet. It’s just not good business.” To Hoseok, he frowned, “I’m sorry. It isn’t anything personal, really.”

“It’s okay,” Hoseok waved his hands in front of his face with a small, broken smile. “It really is!”

“Why not have him work for it?” Jin suggested candidly. Yoongi arched an eyebrow at the taller man..

“What?”

“Well…” Jin paused for a second, pouting his lips a bit, then reached below the counter for the pile of flyers that was still in its thin plastic covering. “He could help hand out those Valentine’s Day flyers.”

“T-that works for me!” Hoseok said, an amazed sparkle lighting up his eyes again as he realized he may still be able to take the flowers home.

Yoongi wanted to open his mouth and retort with sarcasm, but he had no good argument why not, so he just snorted with amusement. “Fine, that works for me. Keep track of his hours and all that, though.”

Jin saluted with a pout of his lips, sending Hoseok a wink.

The rest of the morning flew by pretty quickly, and when Yoongi went out to check on Hoseok and let him know he could break for lunch, he was a little startled. Hoseok was standing just outside the door, his thin tanned arms clinging to the heavy stack of glossy flyers, and he was positively beaming at everyone who passed.

“Hello! We’re having a special in honor of Valentine’s Day coming up! Would you like a flyer?” He shot a toothy grin at the woman walking past, catching her eye as she took hold of the flyer.

“Hey,” Yoongi called out, stepping over to Hoseok’s side with his hands in his pockets. It was so cold out, but the boy didn’t look deterred in the least. “It’s about twelve, so if you wanna take a break to go eat something, that would be fine. There’s probably some pizza left inside, so you’re welcome to it.” It wasn’t a ‘probably’ and Yoongi had actually suggested they leave some for him, but he wasn’t going to admit that. He didn’t want the kid offering to stay on long-term - they just didn’t have the budget for something like that.

“Oh, okay! Thanks!”

Yoongi watched Hoseok walk past him, a strange curiosity in his gut. The kid seemed so eager to please, so ready to do whatever it took for his flowers… The pure vivacity of Hoseok’s chipper behavior made him wonder.

Later he came back to find Hoseok eating his pizza off to the side of the shop, balanced on a stool. Casually, Yoongi leaned on the counter, set the box he had been carrying down and sent him a deadpan expression. “Hoseok, the flyers are doing well enough that I think we should add in a little extra for the afternoon. Are you up for it?”

“Sure, what were you thinking?” Hoseok took a long gulp from his water, still smiling.

Wordlessly, Yoongi reached into the box and pulled out the flower headpiece from Halloween. Hoseok arched one eyebrow, his eyes unbelievably wide.

“Um…?” was all he said. Yoongi smirked.

“No good?”

“I mean, I guess. If you think it’ll help.” Hoseok shrugged, one shoulder lifted up near his cheek as he took the last bite of his lunch and then slipped off the footstool. Yoongi stood in mild shock as Hoseok took the bright headpiece and slipped it on, walking past the elder.

He actually did it, without a word of complaint? Yoongi gaped as Hoseok, halfway visible through the glass of the door, started to eagerly dance and call out even more energetically to passersby. Some of them laughed, some ignored him, but he didn’t seem to hesitate at all. Yoongi shook his head as Jin came back up from the basement and took his usual place behind the front desk. He had really only asked Hoseok to do it as a sort of dark joke, making fun of the boy’s enthusiasm, but now he was a little shaken by his sincerity, and unsure of how to react.

Yoongi slipped - or clambered, rather - into the high stool at Jin’s side. “He seems like a hard-working kid.”

“Yeah, it’s nice to know that sometimes that hard work pays off, you know?” Jin crossed his arms, and Yoongi took another sip of his lukewarm coffee.

“Make sure he gets one of the fresher bouquets, that one he had earlier didn’t look any good.” Yoongi mumbled. Jin looked over at him in question - it was typical policy to give away the older flowers first, since their lifespan was so fleeting, so having Yoongi request such a thing was more than a little odd. “He hasn’t complained once. That says something about what kind of person is mother is, too.”

Inwardly, he thought back to his own family’s lack of support in the flower shop. He wondered if things would have been different somehow, if they had given him support. As far as finances and success, it probably wouldn’t have changed anything. But wouldn’t it have been nice to have even an unspoken encouragement? Yoongi pursed his lips together, not seeing Jin quietly smiling at his side in understanding.

At the end of the day Hoseok looked exhausted, but his smile was still going like he energized it via nuclear power. He joked with Jin and thanked them both profusely, hugging the flowers to his chest with the lightest touch of his fingers, as though the petals were made out of glass.

“I really appreciate it, she’s gonna be really happy.” Hoseok breathed in the dark pink roses, his eyes fluttering shut briefly.

“I know she will be,” Yoongi said, the softest smile on his lips as he handed the receipt over to Hoseok.

Seokjin slid a little card across the table with an elaborate butterfly decorating the corner, holding out a purple pen to Hoseok. “Here,” was all he said. Hoseok leaned forward and wrote a little note to her, and thanked them one final time before leaving, the distant croak of the frog above the bell signaling his departure.

“And you call me a softie,” Jin chuckled, watching Yoongi’s face carefully. Yoongi just shrugged.

“You only get one mother,” was all he said.