It’s a lovely cold spring day when Yongsun enters the candy shop.

The smell of licorice and toffees hits her nose, making water as Yongsun pads over to the counter. 

She’s been planning to ask Byulyi about the details of the animal shelter fundraiser, but a number of factors, including their busy work schedules have been putting those discussions off for the longest time. Much as Yongsun is busy with other projects, there is a deadline that she prefers not to miss. This includes working out the finer points and getting the right number of flowers so there’s no miscalculation or over-ordering on her end.

Weaving her way around shelves, Yongsun meets the eyes of one of the part-time workers there, Wheein.

“Hello Ms Kim!” The girl greets cheerfully, quickly stocking up the numerous jars of sweets before turning towards her. Yongsun notices the girl’s messy hair and dark circles ringing the undersides of her eyes, smears of chocolate still plastering her face.

“Good afternoon to you too, Wheein. Lots of orders?” Yongsun asks sympathetically.

Wheein nods, looking flustered. “There’s a massive one for this one wedding.” She leans in closer, dropping her voice. “Between you and me, they’re insane with the wedding favours. The bride is insisting on sparkly rose gold butterflies lollipops with gold flecks, 80% dark chocolate and milk seashells and silver dusted bonbonnieres.”

Yongsun mentally rewinds Wheein’s speech, having lost the better part of the conversation somewhere along the way. “Bonbon what? ”  she repeats, frowning.

“Bonbonnieres. You know? Candy-coated almonds representing happiness, wealth, prosperity and a long life?” Wheein groans, banging her head on the counter. “Oh god, I’ve been in here for too long and now I’m paying the price. Byulyi drilled those specifics into my head. Pretty sure I say it now in my sleep.”

“Ah.” Yongsun clears as she's reminded the purpose of her visit. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but I’m looking for her. I’ve been meaning to get in touch about the fundraiser for the local animal shelter…?” She trails off hopefully, crossing her fingers.

“Byulyi is out right now.” Hyejin suddenly appears from behind Wheein, swinging the heavy door that leads to the kitchens and confectionery rooms. She looks just as untidy and frazzled as the other girl. “Needed to check the details of some order. She’s going crazy over those wedding favours.”

“Oh, that’s fine.” Yongsun tries to not let it show on her face, even as she internally deflates at those words. The one day that she actually manages to make time to discuss the details, and Byulyi is conveniently missing from the shop. “I just thought she would be in here helping you guys, that’s all.”

“She does do a lot of candy-making, actually,” Wheein pipes up, grabbing a pitcher of iced water from the side and pouring a glass for Yongsun. She takes it gratefully. “She’s just so stubborn.”

“Really?” Yongsun raises an eyebrow, sipping the water. It’s wonderfully cold and slides down , waking her up from the sleepy afternoon. She stands up straighter, feeling more alert and refreshed.

“Yeah,” Hyejin drawls, untying the striped pink and white apron and tossing it to the side. She pours herself another glass, taking an extra long swig. “I keep telling her that she should really hire more people to help out, but she always refuses.”

“She’s already so stressed out by everything,” Wheein adds, wiping the sweat off on her sleeve. “Byulyi is the type who wants to do everything by herself. She told me she was reluctant on hiring me and Hyejin until she really couldn’t handle everything.”

“But of course not!” Yongsun can’t believe her ears. She’s scandalized. Sugar Rush Shoppe is a bigger business that’s been running for a far longer time than Yongsun’s own humble flower store, with more traffic and recognition. She was already surprised at the lack of workers, but really, is Byulyi crazy to think she can handle everything on her own?

“To be honest, she had her dad around last time,” Hyejin admits, looking thoughtful. “He used to manage the shop and she makes the sweets along with the older confectioners. He’s retired at home now though experimenting on new recipes, and the chefs have either retired or moved on to bigger opportunities. Her dad does pop in once awhile, but mostly he leaves everything to her.”

Yongsun nods in understanding, too polite to press further even if she's curious. “Ah, I see.”

“I noticed you’re working alone too, Ms Kim,” Wheein suddenly quips, startling Yongsun. “Why don’t you hire someone to help you as well? It can’t be easy waking up early in the mornings to go to the flower markets, or do everything by yourself.”

“I’m fine with being on my own,” Yongsun says, still surprised at the focus being shifted towards her. “I’m not established at all, and it’s still easy to manage the business on my own for now. I don’t see the need for another worker yet.”

Hyejin and Wheein exchange similar glances, before Hyejin breaks into a sly smile. “Why does that sound like someone else we know?”

“Exactly,” Wheein smirks. The pair of them positively look like a pair of hyenas, grinning so knowingly that it makes Yongsun uncomfortable.

She narrows her eyes at them. “What are you two talking about?”

“Oh, please,” Hyejin scoffs. “Our boss. Moon Byulyi? You’ll have to be blind to not see the way you two look at each other.” She waves her hands in the air, almost knocking over the jars Wheein has carefully arranged. “I swear, it’s like something out of a drama.”

Yongsun feels her face go hot, but she still refuses to jump to any conclusions. “We have nothing between us,” she replies, shaking her head defensively. “She’s my acquaintance and next door business neighbour, that’s all.”

Wheein stifles a laugh. "Sure, Ms Kim. It's not like Byulyi waits every morning to watch you open up the flower shop and water those flowers."

"Or how she had been plotting to