Park Jaehyung is a strong believer. He believes that everything happens for a reason, that mishaps are part of one’s destiny, that life is about the bad as much as the good, that you can’t completely avoid misfortune, and when something is bound to happen, it does happen without delay. 

However, he also believes that certain things can be avoided if one is careful enough. Like you can’t go out on a rainy day without an umbrella and blame getting wet on the weather, or never attend a lecture or study for an exam then blame failing on the teacher. You get his point.

 

Anyways, when he came to realize that his immunity system is ty and his list of allergies is endless, he started taking cautious and extra measures with everything he does. He dresses thickly during winter, covers up really well during sunny days, and always has a face mask on during Spring. He never puts a thing in his mouth without questioning its origin, components and expire date. He avoids all kind of animals like the plague and makes sure he’s never out of allergy pills all year round. 

 

Admittedly, it’s a lot of effort, but Jae is used to it by the age of eighteen. Now, it’s a daily routine he does mindlessly. Being careful became a second nature for him. Which leads us to the question, why and how did he end up in such a ty situation? If we ask him he’ll blame it all on Wonpil. 

 

Or maybe, it is Wonpil’s fault. 

 

Jae always thinks that God threw that guy in his way to make him suffer. He’s doubted it since the first day he’s met him in their shared dorm room and through the four years he’s been friends with him. Wonpil’s latest stupid mistake has proven him right. 

 

It all started when Jae went on a vacation with his family after his graduation, meanwhile waiting for some response from the multiple companies he’s had interviews with. He wasn’t expecting much, only applied because Wonpil forced him to and literally dragged him everywhere he went. So when they were both accepted in the same company, he didn’t know whether to be relieved or stressed. While it’s nice having someone you’re close to at work, having Wonpil around almost twenty-four seven can be exhausting. 

 

But not being around Wonpil for those weeks ends up in a disaster whatsoever. 

 

Their apartment contract came to an end while Jae was away, so Wonpil took it upon himself to find them a nice place close to their new workplace. He’s looked for opportunities everywhere and visited multiple places, each time sending pictures and informations to Jae, keeping him updated and asking about his opinion. 

 

Each one of them was picky in his own way. Wonpil focused a lot on the location and the monetary side. He wanted a relatively cheap place close to the bus or subway station. He’s never been a big fan of walking, especially in the morning. Jae, on the other hand, is more interested in the size and architecture of the apartment. He hates how trapped he feels in tiny apartments. So when he sees the pictures of the spacious apartment with the big windows and the balcony with the french doors, he agrees right away. Even his roommate seems to like it, or maybe likes that it’s just a walk away from the company. 

 

Jae comes back from his Europe trip about two weeks before they start their new work. Fortunately, Wonpil has moved their belongings to the new apartment before coming to pick him up from the airport. 

 

“You’re going to love it!” he exclaims with a boxy smile during their taxi drive, “We just need to rearrange our things and buy some new staff and we’re done!”

 

Wonpil is as lively and excited as always, as if he’s the energy from Jae. Or maybe that’s what he does. Because Jae was exhausted from the long flight, but as soon as Wonpil fell asleep shortly after their arrival, a surge of energy runs through his body and suddenly he’s feeling energetic. 

He doesn’t realize how much time has passed since he started arranging his belongings until the first rays of sun peek through the window. He doesn’t have much left to do, but the fatigue is finally kicking in, and sleeping through the whole day sounds like a great idea. That’s exactly what he ends up doing. 

 

 

 

Jae has expected the jet lag. Two days of sleeping through the day and spending the night awake are nothing. His sleeping pattern has seen worse days during his college life. What he doesn’t expect though, is the late-summer cold he catches. Headaches, runny itchy nose, and uncontrollable sneezes are his long life enemies. His only reason to like Summer was because he could completely ditch his allergy meds without suffering through those. But a cold? In summer? way to go Park Jaehyung.

 

 

“Still not getting any better?” Wonpil asks in concern when he sneezes violently as soon as he steps foot in the balcony. 

 

Jae carefully puts his tea cup on the low table, then sits while unattractively blowing his nose. 

 

“It’s ing annoying,” he says in a nasal voice, “And it’s not going away.” 

 

He eyes Wonpil’s soda with so much envy. In such weather, he’d rather be drinking something refreshing with a lot of ice, not steaming tea that would make him hot and sweaty. At least there’s some cold breeze that could cool him down a little, and he can really enjoy it if he ignores how it makes his nose itch. It’s weird though, how he feels better during the night while it’s a complete nightmare in the daytime. 

 

Wonpil doesn’t wait for him to get better to go on that shopping trip he’s been nagging him about. Instead, he wakes him up on an ungodly hour the next day, and drags him out without as much as let him have his morning coffee. Jae tries to think of it as an opportunity to discover their new neighborhood. After all, he’s yet to see it in the daylight. 

 

As expected, his friend has almost tried all the shops in the area, so he takes him to his favorite coffee shop, points at the restaurant with the best service and to the one with the worst burgers, and shows him a shortcut to the subway. He also knows where to find everything they need, so the actual shopping doesn’t take a lot of time. 

 

In a matter of two hours, they have bags full of their purchases and they’re walking back to their place. Jae is still adjusting to the neighborhood, so he tries to take in all the memorable details around him, just in case he gets lost next time. 

 

His nose suddenly starts to itch with the promise of a series of sneezes in the way. Both his hands are occupied so he can’t do a thing about it other than hope for it to go away. That’s too much to hope for, it seems. And once the sneezing fit starts, it lasts for a while.

 

They come in front of their building and Wonpil stops walking to greet someone. Jae doesn’t see who is it, since he was lagging behind his friend and his eyes are teary. He feels irritated by whoever decided that this is a good time to hold them back, when he’s fighting every inch in his body not to release the bags and rub his nose until it stops tickling.

 

When his vision finally comes back to focus, and his hearing clears, he notices that Wonpil and another guy are looking at him, the unknown guy talking to him. 

 

“You must be Jaehyung, I’m Kang Brian!” the guy -Brian- cheerfully says, “I live in the apartment just bellow you and I’m the owner of Daydream Flower Shop. It’s really nice to meet you.”

 

This is probably the worst time for introductions, Jae thinks. His brain is completely out of focus, and it’s processing everything a minute late. His initial thoughts are more interested in the guy’s handsome face than whatever he was saying. But then, everything fades away, leaving exactly two words resonating in his mind. 

 

Flower shop.

 

Flower shop? 

 

Jae’s lazy, confused gaze drifts to the streaks of colors behind Brian’s head. He finally makes the shapes and realizes that it’s true. There’s a flower shop right behind the guy, two floors beneath his balcony. The sight itself is sneeze-inducing. 

 

Jae realizes a second too late that he actually sneezed. Right in the face of his handsome neighbor. 

 

He freezes on his spot, red with embarrassment as he watches Brian squeezing his eyes shut then wiping his face with the sleeve of his shirt, trying to mask his disgust. Jae can’t even open his mouth to apologize in fear of sneezing again, so he runs inside the building, leaving two confused guys behind. He registers Wonpil calling his name but he ignores it, too ashamed to turn back. He doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to face this Brian guy ever again after what he’s just done. 

 

However, the embarrassment washes relatively quick when the anger takes over. 

 

 

“What was that just now?” Wonpil enters the apartment a few minutes later in the same state of confusion he’s left him in. Jae ignores him from his spot on the couch and sends him a glare.

 

“We live above a flower shop,” he grits, trying to stay composed, “And you never cared to share that information with me because..?” 

 

Wonpil frowns, “What’s so important about it? Why would I have to tell you about it beforehand?” he questions, still oblivious to the disaster he’s caused. 

 

Jae huffs in disbelief, “Maybe if you did, I would’ve know the reason behind my sneezes a long time ago.” 

 

It takes his friend exactly one minute before he stops frowning, as his eyes widen drastically.

 

“You’re allergic to flowers,” he states with a gasp. 

 

Jae rolls his eyes, “No , Sherlock.”  

 

Wonpil opens then closes his mouth multiple times, rendered speechless by the new realization. After some long silent minutes, he speaks again, “You never told me that.” 

 

The response makes Jae scowl. It’s not exactly the apology he was expecting.

 

“This should be basic knowledge after living with me for four years, Wonpil,” he deadpans, crossing his arms. 

 

“Oh please!” his friend rolls his eyes, “It’s kind of hard to memoize that long list of allergies of yours.” 

 

 

Not wanting to keep this useless dispute going on, Jae retreats to his room to cool himself down. He has to accept the fact that what was done, is done. They can’t move out so soon, and finding another good place will demand a lot of time, which they won’t be having much of once they start working. Not that Wonpil will actually agree to move out, anyways. 

 

Jae will just have to take some extra measures. Like not opening the balcony or the windows while the shop is open, or wearing a face mask when going down, at least until he gets far from the building. It sounds like a pain in the , but he knows that he’ll grow accustomed to those habits quick enough. 

 

However, that doesn’t stop him from sending Wonpil pointed looks whenever they cross paths in the kitchen or in the living room. 

 

 

“Will you stop sulking and open the freaking door!” 

 

Jae is currently lounged in front of the tv. He totally ignored the constant ringing door bell, which infuriated Wonpil who’s busy in the kitchen. When he doesn’t even acknowledge him, Wonpil sighs in annoyance but goes to open the door nevertheless. 

 

“Oh, Brian-ssi, hello.”

 

Just hearing the name alerts Jae. He snaps into a sitting position, going through a state of panic when he hears Wonpil inviting the guy inside. 

 

If the first impression he left on Brian was disastrous, then his current state will only leave a worst one. His hair is sticking in every possible angle, he probably looks like he’s been electrified or something. He hasn’t showered nor changed today, and his tee has some questionable spots. And there’s a mountain of used tissues on the table in front of him that he was too lazy to throw away. 

In conclusion, he looks like a complete hobo, and if Brian wasn’t already disgusted by him, then he’ll certainly be now. 

 

In the short seconds their guest takes to come in sight, Jae tries to tame his hair a little and sit straight while staying casual. The way Brian walks in like a ing model only makes him look and feel worse. 

 

Now that his eyes are not watery and his mind is not too preoccupied with the need to sneeze, Jae gets a better chance to appreciate how handsome Brian is. Soft black bangs, smooth skin, shining bright eyes, pretty lips, a dazzling smile with perfect rows of teeth, and a nice body. He’s so attractive, objectively speaking. 

 

Too bad Jae has ruined all his chances with the dude. No matter how much he’d try to appeal to him in the future by putting some effort on his looks and behavior, it’s impossible to make him forget their first -and soon enough their second- meeting.

 

“Hi,” Brian greets him hesitantly. He’s awkwardly standing a few feet away from the couch, his hands behind his back. 

 

“Hello,” Jae manages to say, although the residual embarrassment he’s still feeling.

 

“I didn’t mean to barge in without notice,” Brian says, a sweet small blush dusting his high round cheeks, -is it weird if Jae wants to pinch them so hard?- “but yesterday Wonpil told me that you were sick, so I wanted to check on you?” he sounds a little bit shy and Jae would be thinking it’s completely adorable if not for the horror he feels when Brian brings his hand to the front, holding a small bouquet of flowers in his direction. 

 

Unconsciously, Jae’s body shifts to the side way too quickly he almost falls off the couch, and his hand flies to cover his nose and mouth instantly. Even Wonpil who’s been silently watching from the side, move to stand between the bouquet and Jae. 

 

Brian notices the shock on both their faces and his smile falls into a confused pout. 

 

“I’m sorry,” Wonpil starts, “I seriously didn’t know about it yesterday, I thought it was just a cold but it turns out that Jae is allergic to flowers,” he explains apologetically. 

 

Slowly processing Wonpil’s clarification, Brian’s eyes widen and he’s fast to walk backwards, getting the bouquet behind his back and as far away from Jae as possible.

 

“I’m so sorry!” he apologizes, his face getting shades darker, “I should throw this away!” 

 

And without waiting for Jae’s reassurance, he flees out of the door. Jae can’t hide his dejection when Brian doesn’t come back that night, or the next day. 

 

Brian was kind enough to pay him a visit as soon as he heard that he was sick. He even brought him a bouquet of flowers. And regardless the fact that he owns a whole flower shop and that Jae despises flowers, the gesture is still heartwarming. Leave it to Jae and his allergies to ruin a relationship before it even starts. 

 

“Maybe you should go and talk to him?” Wonpil has suggested when he’s noticed his depressed mood the next day. And maybe he’s right. 

 

So, after swallowing his antihistamine pill, and putting on a face mask, Jae musters the courage to actually pay Brian a visit. In the twenty-four years he’s been alive, he’s never went to a flower shop or even considered it. But look at him now, just right inside the lion’s den, surrounded by all kinds of despicably beautiful and colorful flowers. The sweet smell is already making his nose tingle, but it’s bearable so far. He thinks he can survive a while inside there. 

 

Surprise is evident on Brian’s face when he emerges from a back door, carrying a box of empty flower pots. He freezes on his spot, hundreds of questions flashing on his face. Jae loves how easy it is to read him.  

 

“Good morning,” he gives him a wide smile, which Brian can’t see because of the mask but it probably shows through his eyes. It works just fine at easing his frown. 

 

When realizing that Jae won’t break into a sneezing fit and is actually fine, Brian’s body visibly relaxes and he greets him back with a smile. 

 

“I’m guessing you’re here to buy flowers, right?” he says teasingly, and Jae chuckles. 

 

“If you have plastic ones, then maybe.” 

 

Brian releases a melodious laugh, and Jae can’t help but grin happily. Maybe there’s some hope left for them. 

 

“Actually,” he starts shyly, “I wanted to apologize for the two previous times, and maybe redo the introductions?” 

 

“You have nothing to apologize for, it was just bad timing,” Brian reassures him, his kind smile never faltering, “But I probably should reintroduce myself, I don’t think you actually caught much the first time.”

 

Jae flushes deeply remembering the few seconds following Brian’s first introduction, “I’m sorry about that,” he bashfully says. 

 

Brian laughs again, amused, “Let’s forget about it and start over, shall we?” 

 

Jae nods enthusiastically. 

 

“Well, my name is Brian Kang, or Younghyun, you can call me whatever you like, I’m twenty-three. I live on the second floor and I’m a florist,” he finishes with his billion-dollars smile and Jae is sold. He can’t help but notice how for the first time in ever he finds flowers beautiful, just because they accentuate Brian’s complexion and bright aura. They serve as the perfect background for such a perfect human being. 

 

He must’ve been staring for a while because Brian is starting to look concerned. Jae shyly averts his gaze for a second, trying to compose himself and maybe hide the blush creeping up his neck. He clears his throat before doing his own introductions.

 

“Well, Brian,” he presses on the name, to make him know that he’s chosen to call him by it, “My name is Park Jaehyung, but you can call me Jae -I’m a year older than you so you should call me hyung though. I live on the third floor, and I’m practically allergic to everything, especially pollen. So don’t take it personally if I start avoiding you during spring,” he jokes, enjoying the sound of Brian’s chuckle. 

 

“I won’t,” the other puts a hand over his chest as a promise. He then gives him a worried look, “But will you be okay? Are you really okay right now?” 

 

Jae smiles, the unexpected care making his heart flutter.

 

“As long as I take my meds I’ll be okay, and the mask helps too,” he points to his face. 

 

Although he doesn’t look that convinced, Brian mirrors his smile. 

 

“But seriously, why did you move to this building if you’re allergic to pollen?” he asks after a while, sounding genuinely curious. 

 

Before Jae get to answer though, Brian gets into a panic mood, “OH MY GOD! I didn’t mean that you’re not welcomed here- I’m really glad actually that you moved here and I got to meet you- I’m just wondering why would you choose an apartment where you’ll be constantly worried about your allergies,” he lets out in one breath, and Jae is an idiot to even find Brian’s rambles cute. 

 

He tries not to look too entertained, sticking with releasing a deep sigh before telling him about how everything wrong in this world should be blamed on stupid people- aka Kim Wonpil.

 

The story takes a lot longer than expected to be told, since whenever a customer comes in, Jae stops talking until Brian finishes with them. He’s not complaining though. Brian looks the most beautiful when he’s delicately handling flowers and concentrated on orders. If only Jae could take pictures without coming out as a creep, he would’ve snapped hundreds in the last hour alone.

 

“So you’re saying if it wasn’t for Wonpil, you wouldn’t have moved here?” Brian questions slowly once Jae finishes retelling him the whole story. 

 

Jae nods in affirmation, “If I knew there was a flower shop just beneath our balcony, I wouldn’t have agreed on this apartment at all,” he admits, deep down thankful that that didn’t happen.  Apparently, he’s not the only one having that thought.

 

“Then I should probably treat Wonpil to a meal for letting me meet you,” Brian kind of mumbles to himself while deep in thoughts. 

 

Whether he meant it that way or the other, Brian can’t seriously say such things without expecting Jae to blush and stutter like a stupid teenage in love. He’s only human after all. 

 

Noticing the redness on Jae’s face, an alarmed look settles on his face.

 

“I said that out loud, didn’t I?” he questions, his face getting redder than Jae’s. The latter doesn’t reply. Instead, he stands up abruptly.

 

“I-It’s getting late,” he lamely says, his voice getting a pitch higher, “I should probably go. I can’t keep you from doing your job any longer- BYE!!” 

 

Although the obvious excuse, Brian lets him go -more like run away- with a soft ’see you later’ and a dreamy gaze. 

 

 

 

A few days afterwards, Jae and Wonpil start their jobs, officially becoming responsible adults with well-paying occupations. It’s hard to get adjusted in their new working environment at first, but they manage just fine. 

 

Despite the fixed, daily eight hours of work, Jae still gets to hang out with Brian quite often. Whether it’s after work when he finds the younger closing his shop, or having dinner together with Wonpil. They even go out for walks during the weekend. 

 

Brian is very interesting, to say the least. He’s very funny and witty, always ceasing the chance to crack jokes, even if they don’t come out as funny as they sounded in his head. Jae would just give him an unimpressed, over dramatic eye roll, while struggling to hide his smile, because his very biased mind always finds whatever Brian says funny. 

 

But at times, when it’s just the two of them and everything is quiet and serene, he’d get very deep. He’d speak about his own life philosophies, and his most ridiculous fantasies. He’d tell him about his biggest dreams, his greatest fears, about his past and present and future. 

Brian would talk and talk, the glimmer in his eyes shifting according to the topic, his expressions changing million times a second, and his voice getting as deep and dreamy as his thoughts and words. 

 

Brian would talk, and Jae would watch and listen. He’d watch with close attention, try to take in every single detail about Brian. He’d listen with great concentration, fascinated by how on point each one of his conceptions and thoughts are. It’s usually too much to absorb at once, but around Brian, all of Jae’s senses seem to focus on him and only him. Sometimes, he’d go to the extent of holding his breath just so he won’t ruin a certain moment. 

 

There’s also the times when he talks about flowers. He’d go for hours and hours, whole face bright and voice excited. And Jae would care less about the signification behind each flower, and the difference between their life spans. However, he cares about how happy Brian sounds while he speaks about them or when he’s arranging bouquets. 

 

Jae cares about how ethereal Brian looks surrounded by flowers, how their naturally vibrant colors contrast with the fairness of his skin and the darkness of his hair. It’a at those moments that he looks nothing short of a flower prince -Jae is starting to sound cliché and cheesy but that’s what love does to people. 

 

Fortunately, Jae has managed to secretly snap some pictures of Brian while he was busy. He never misses the chance to dreamily stare at them during his lunch breaks or at night before going to sleep. 

 

 

 

 

“Jae, what the hell are you holding?” Wonpil demands in horror as soon as he lays eyes on him.

 

Jae smiles sheepishly, “They are tulips,” he answers happily, his grin too wide and the blush still evident on his cheeks.

 

“Are they real?”

 

He nods eagerly, “Brian gave them to me.”

 

Jae ignores the way Wonpil has his mouth hanging open, and just goes into the kitchen to get a tall glass of water to put the flowers in it. 

 

“We should get a vase,” he says, putting the glass on the table with a content smile. 

 

“Jae,” Wonpil finally speaks again, his voice grave and serious, “I know how whipped you are for him, but to the extent of bringing flowers home? What about your allergy?”

 

Jae rolls his eyes at his over dramatic friend, “Tulips are hypoallergenic.”

 

His friend gives him a stupid look, so he adds, “It means they won’t provoke my allergy.” 

 

Wonpil nods slowly, processing the new information. Jae doesn’t blame him though. He too didn’t know what that meant until Brian explained it to him. 

 

“But why would Brian give you flowers?” his friend wiggles his brows at him, grinning slyly, “Did he finally confess?” 

 

Jae scowls at him, “It’s just a token of friendship, nothing more.” 

 

 

Brian didn’t exactly say the reason behind the sudden gift. Jae has stayed with him overtime while he was busy preparing a big order for tomorrow. He refused to leave no matter how many times the florist has assured him that he was fine by himself and that he should go rest. 

 

Hours later, when they were finished, Brian said he had one last thing to do and disappeared inside. He reappeared a few minutes later with a small bouquet of pink, purple and red tulips, and Jae thought it was just another order. However, the hesitance in Brian’s steps and his shy gaze confused him. 

 

“This is for you,” Brian offered him the bouquet with a  shy smile, the tips of his ears red, “Thank you for always helping me.” 

 

There was a lot of things happening inside of Jae’s body and mind, all at once. The fluttering of his heart, the rushing of blood up his neck and to his cheeks, the annoying butterflies in his stomach, and the horrible realization that he had to accept the flowers. 

 

Thankfully, Brian seemed to notice his dilemma so he got into a long rant about how those flowers won’t harm him in any possible way.

 

By the end of the long explanation, Jae was still skeptical, making the younger pout, his arms retreating while still holding the bouquet. And no matter how adorable Brian’s pout was, Jae still preferred his smiles. So, choosing to trust his words, he accepted the flowers with a genuine, thankful smile. It was all worth it when Brian went back to grinning and blushing like an idiot. An adorable, handsome idiot though.

 

 

 

“Friendship my ,” Wonpil doesn’t seem to buy it, “You both are so obvious it’s actually torturous to watch. It’s about time one of you grow some balls and confess.” 

 

“You’re the one to talk,” Jae retorts, “Should I remind you what a mess you and Dowoon are?”

 

Wonpil’s whole face gets on fire at the mention of the intern. The whole department has been suffering while watching them being shy and flirty around each other. There’s even some bets going around about how long they’ll last before getting together. Jae has bet on the last day of Dowoon’s internship, knowing what a coward his friend is and what an awkward bean the younger intern is. Wonpil doesn’t say anything back and quickly changes the topic. That will teach him not to mock Jae’s love life when his is no better. 

 

 

After that day, Brian starts giving Jae flowers more often. Whether it’s those small bouquets on the weekends or when he helps him close the shop, or a single flower when he passes by in the morning before work, and they’re all so pretty and lovely, and most importantly, all allergy-friendly. 

 

That results in Jae buying not one, but three vases to keep the flowers in, two for the living room and one for his desk at the company. He gets a lot of teasing whenever he walks in the office with a flower. His colleague, Sungjin, is constantly asking him about his sweet lover and when they’ll have the chance to meet him. Wonpil just sticks to rolling his eyes and sending him mischievous looks. 

 

 

Being hypoallergenic, whatsoever, doesn’t stop the flowers from making Jae sneeze occasionally, but he’s too stupidly in love to care. He’s actually came to like them, caught himself admiring their beauty a lot of times recently. Of course they’re not as beautiful as Brian, but they’re highly correlated in Jae’s mind and heart. 

The simple sight of them floods his mind with pictures of Brian and make his heart beat faster. He’s ought to explode from an emotions overdose one of these days and he’s not the least complaining about it. 

 

 

“You should ing confess!” Wonpil has snapped at him the other day, “What the worst thing that can happen? You think he’ll actually reject you?” 

 

Jae nods dejectedly. He likes it this way. The last thing he wants is to ruin his friendship with Brian or make things awkward between them. 

 

“Which he won’t,” Wonpil insists, “Brian really, really like you and you’re so blind not to be able to see it or actually feel it. The guy looks at you like the sun shines out of your or whatever!” 

 

 

Okay, so Jae is not blind, thank you very much. And he’s way too focused with Brian not to be able to see the signs. First of all, the younger is very affectionate and has a horrible brain-to-mouth filter. Sometimes he’d compliment Jae about really irrelevant things, then dares to act shy about it, because he wasn’t supposed to say that out loud in the first place. 

 

Secondly, and most importantly, Brian is a florist, for God’s sake! He masters the flowers’ language like no other. So when he starts off by giving Jae flowers that says ‘I desire to deeply understand you’, or ‘I admire you’, or ‘I trust you’, and gradually moves to the level of ‘I like you’ and ‘I love you’, it’s not just a coincidence and Jae is not that stupid not to get it.  

 

But Jae is not very optimistic, and is always trying not to get the wrong idea. Which is stupid, really.

 

 

 

“Just like Dowoon looks at you?” he fires back challengingly, and Wonpil’s confidence flatters. 

 

“That’s not- he doesn’t- It’s not the same,” he stammers before pursing his lips together. 

 

“See? You can’t be so sure,” Jae can’t even feel the triumph about winning an argument against Wonpil. Deep down, he hopes that his friend will find a good response and feed the hope blooming inside of him. But Wonpil’s silence is just disheartening. Maybe Brian only consider him as a good friend. Nothing more than a platonic love.

 

“What about this,” his friend says after a long thoughtful moment, “I confess to Dowoon and you confess to Brian.”

 

“What?” 

 

“Let’s stop living like this. We confess. If it goes well, then it goes well. If it goes bad then we can move on,” Wonpil adds, expression and tone determined. 

 

 

It’s a horrible idea. 

 

A very horrible idea, Jae thinks. But he agrees to it, nevertheless.

 

Somehow, it works perfectly well though. At least for Wonpil. Two days later, he confesses to Yoon Dowoon and they’ve been dating ever since. Now, he’s waiting for Jae to muster the courage and do it himself.

 

 

Problem is, Jae is a certified coward. He’s never confessed to anyone in his life, and never considered doing it in the future. But that resolution has been thrown into the water since Brian has entered his life. Might as well just do it and hope for the best. And if he gets rejected, then he’ll make Wonpil pay for making him do it. 

 

 

Jae chooses to confess on a Sunday. He has a habit of picking Brian from his shop around noon so they can grab lunch together. The younger is already expecting him when he gets there. What he’s not expecting though, is Jae showing up in a formal attire -just a white button-up and dark blue plaid pants. There’s a brief look of surprise before he grins at him. 

 

“Going somewhere?” 

 

Jae struggles a little bit under the scrutinizing eyes before managing to say, “I have something important to do,” which is not totally a lie. 

 

He could feel the unasked question hanging on the tip of Brian’s tongue, even though he sticks to an understanding nod.

 

“Brian?” Jae calls hesitantly after standing stiffly for a while. Said guy raises a questioning brow, “I want to buy a bouquet of flowers.” 

 

If anyone has said that, someone that is not Jae, Brian wouldn’t be as shocked and surprised as he is right now. This time, he opens his mouth, but closes it without saying anything. He just smiles in amusement, and gives a teasing comment, “Did spending time with me cure your allergy?”

 

Jae chuckles, “I wish, dude. I wish.”

 

“So,” Brian gets into his professional mode, “What’s the occasion?” 

 

“Actually,” Jae hesitates for a second, “I want to do it myself,” another shocked expression takes over Brian’s face.

 

“I want it to be more special,” he further explains. 

 

There’s a small, almost undetectable, shift in Brian’s mood, but he’s fast to mask it with a smile -not fast enough to prevent Jae from noticing it though.

 

“Will you be able to do it all by yourself?” 

 

“I’ve learned from the best, I can handle it,” Jae reassures him, even though he’s unconfident about it.

 

Jae is thankful for the distressed customer who comes rushing in, demanding Brian’s whole concentration. It gives him the chance to compose the bouquet without being closely watched. Hours of watching and listening to Brian speak about flowers finally prove to be useful as all the information comes rushing to him, helping him in his choices. 

 

He picks nine white lilies -because Brian has a pure heart-, about seven dark red carnations and a handful of pink mini carnations -to express his deep love and gratitude-, ten gorgeous red roses -because what can say ‘I love you’ better than red roses?-, then adds some green lushes for the aesthetic of the bouquet. 

 

Brian has finished with the customer, but instead of interfering, he kept watching him silently as he cut the stems evenly. Jae concludes that the other’s silence has to do with the purpose of this bouquet, which should be as clear as the sun by now. 

 

Jae takes a while meticulously arranging the flowers until he’s finally pleased with their order. He struggles afterwards, when wrapping them with the white tissue paper. The easiest part is probably trying the red silk ribbon around the bouquet, and even that took him a good five minutes. However, all the effort he’s put pays off. The bouquet actually looks good.

 

“It’s pretty,” Brian suddenly comments, and Jae realizes he’s now standing very closely.

 

“So I guess you have a confession to make?” he then asks, his tone grave. 

 

Jae turns to fully face him, releasing a breathless, “Yeah.”

 

He sees how Brian’s face darkens, and notices the absence of the usual glimmer from his eyes. Jae has never seen him that sad and troubled. 

 

“Good luck.” 

 

Even his voice sounds soulless and hurt, and something inside of Jae breaks when he notices his hunched posture when he walks away from him. 

 

“Brian are you okay?” he dumbly asks, now more concerned about the other’s mood than his stupid confession. 

 

“I’m perfectly fine,” Brian lies, voice almost breaking. He’s refusing to face Jae though.

 

“You’ll be late for your appointment,” he stresses on the words bitterly, “You better not let your date wait if you’re intending to confess.” 

 

“But you sound upset, why?” Jae tries again, stepping closer to  him.

 

“I’m not!” Brian snaps, taking him by surprise. 

 

“No you obviously are, which you weren’t a while ago. Are you angry that I made the bouquet myself instead of letting you do it?” he guesses, his actions finally catching on him. He’s never considered Brian’s feelings when he did so. Maybe he should’ve. 

 

“I really didn’t mean to offense you,” he explains with a small voice, “I just wanted to make it special for the person I love.” 

 

“It’s not that they’ll know you’re the one who did it,” Brian snarls, finally turning to face him. There’s a barely controlled anger on his face, but he sounds more hurt than angry.

 

“He will,” Jae replies confidently, ignoring the lump forming inside his throat. He’ll deal with it later, after he finishes with what he came to do. 

 

“Because he watched me do it.” 

 

Brian’s whole body freezes, eyes widening a little and lips parting slightly. And he stays like that for a while.

 

Not standing the silence and the lack of reaction, Jae pushes the flowers into the younger’s arms, in hopes it will break him from his trance. It works. 

 

Brian’s gaze moves to the flowers, softening instantly. An affectionate smile settles on his lips, as he then makes eye contact with Jae. His eyes are shining again, brighter than Jae has ever seen them. 

 

“I can’t believe you made this for me,” he breathlessly says, expression oozing with affection, “I seriously can’t fall more in love with you. It’s physically and emotionally impossible.” 

 

Jae’s taken aback by the sudden confession, and more by the arms thrown around his neck and the lips on his. He can’t believe that this actually happening and OH MY GOD BRIAN IS KISSING ME!! 

 

It takes him some time to recover and reciprocate the kiss. The moment feels like a scene from a teenager’s wildest fantasies, what’s with them kissing slowly in the middle of a flower shop, Brian holding a bouquet himself while tiptoeing a little bit to be on the same level with Jae.  

 

It may a little bit too romantic, but it’s all he’s ever asked for and much more. Or maybe there’s something he definitely didn’t ask for, but got anyways.

 

The itching can’t be ignored so he breaks away, just in time for the sneeze to come out. This time, however, Brian is fast enough to step to the side so it won’t hit him right in the face.

 

“I guess the meds effect is washing off?” he comments teasingly.

 

Jae rubs his nose, already sensing the upcoming fit of sneezes, “ my life.” 

 

Brian dares to laugh whole-heartedly at his misery.

 

“We better get you out of here. You had your share of pollen for a month,” he fishes the shop’s keys, then grabs Jae’s hand, fingers intertwining, “Let’s go, I’m staving.”

 

It’s really ironic and a total twist of fate, but Park Jaehyung -the guy whose list of allergy is endless- is now dating Kang Brian - a freaking florist- and he wouldn’t have it any other way. 

 

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I've been meaning to write this for months. I hope you enjoyed it (it probably gave you cavities xD )

Thank you for dropping by and reading my story ^__^ Have a good day/night everyone! <3