this is originally written for a kryber fic that i posted here years ago! ahhaha enjoy the seulrene version!

seulrene painter au

“Good morning, miss beautiful!” the painter greeted her as she walked pass by the small gallery next to her flower shop. Irene paid her no mind. It’s been like this ever since that stupid gallery opened next to her shop. That stupid looking painter would always call her beautiful, cute, pretty, and sometimes gorgeous (much to the painter’s chagrin and Irene’s irk)

“You look annoyed.” Jennie remarked when Irene entered the shop. The older woman rolled her eyes, “Who else is the reason?” she inhaled the scent of flowers hoping to calm her down which successfully worked—she exhaled the bad vibes away and inhaled the sweet scent of her products which were bred and grown in their family farm.

Jennie, who was manning the counter smirked, “Ah, that painter next door again? What’d she say?”

“Called me beautiful. I hate her guts.” She sighed under her breath, fixing a small bundle of dahlias properly back to its place.

“Then should you just file a complaint to the association? That thing still works, right?”

Irene faced the smaller woman. “I could do that but the process is too—hectic. I don’t want to waste my time. She also probably would like it when I give her an ounce worth of my attention—so I’d pass.”

“And she also helps with your income,” Jennie pointed out matter-of-factly. Irene groaned. “That, too.”

Irene doesn’t really mind whenever the painter calls her cute, pretty, and/or beautiful—sure she finds it annoying but she thought that maybe it was her way of making friends—(the painter’s insanely popular in the shopping district for unknown reasons, Irene doesn’t know she barely communicates with them) really, she doesn’t know why the painter annoys the hell out of her. Is it because the painter would give out freebies whenever someone buys from them? Or is it because the painter would always welcome her customers with a nice and dorky smile that makes Irene knees wobble? Or that heart warming voice laced with honey whenever she spoke? Irene doesn’t know and it’s the constant source of her annoyance that the painter next door is getting into her head. (and possibly in her heart)

“What time is it, Jen?” she asked her friend/temporary employee (until she finds a replacement—the last one quit due to personal reasons)

Jennie opened her phone and signalled Irene to go back to the break room which was a door away behind the counter. “She’s coming in a few minutes.”

Irene shook her head, trying to fight the drowsiness away (due to the lack of customers) and went to the break room and as if on cue, the painter next door ducked inside. Irene peeping into the peephole and made a small tsk when she saw the painter.

“One red rose?” Jennie asked expectantly. The painter bobbed her head, smiling wide. “Yes, please.” She, as usual, was looking around- as if she was looking for something… or someone.

“Alright,” Jennie picked a single rose and wrapped it in a nice brown kraft paper. “Here, that’s 6000 won.”

Upon receving the payment, Jennie couldn’t help but say (since it’s been like 2 weeks since the painter would always buy a single rose from their shop) “Your lover must be lucky,” she started, this caught the attention of the painter, “you give them a rose everytime you go home to them.”

“Ah, no,” Seulgi shook her head indicating a no. “I don’t have a lover.” She nervously laughed.

Jennie tilted her head. “Oh, family member then? but—roses signify romantic love… that’s weird.” She furrowed her eyebrows at the taller woman who waved her hands in defense.

“This is getting worse.” The painter remarked, “It’s for no one, really.” She chuckled, “I just want to buy something from you guys. I like the owner of this shop.”

Jennie blinked. “You do?”

“Yeah, she seems nice.”

The older woman scoffed. “Sure, she is.” There was a long silence after that—after Jennie processed the payment the painter bid her goodbye and walked out the door silently. When the coast was clear, Irene emerged from the break room looking like a ripe tomato—Jennie just had to at how clueless the painter was about Irene.

“Shut up, I’m nice and that painter’s weird.”

Jennie laughed, “I don’t think so.”

“Hey, wrap this for me please.”

Irene rolled her eyes, she was facing her back on to the front door and heard the painter’s voice (every time she comes over to buy a rose, Jennie was always the one who mans the counter but Jennie wasn’t around at that day ( her gilfriend, someone from Thailand named Lalisa is finally coming over the country and she have to pick her from the airport)

Irene faced the painter and raised her eyebrows at the lavender coloured rose which was on the counter. This is new.

“That’ll be 6000 won,” she said as she wrapped the delicate flower in her signature kraft paper leaving its head out and gave it to the painter who smiled at her.

“Here,” she smiled as she handed her the money, “May I know your name?”

Irene blinked, unable to answer the request of the painter.

“I’ll pay for it.” The painter’s smile grew bigger, cheeks were filling up like a squirrel. Irene raised an eyebrow at how confident this woman looked.

“Why?”

The painter then leaned on the counter, Irene remained still, frozen at the sudden action since their faces were only a few centimeters away from kissing.

“So that the next time that I’ll buy a rose from here, I’ll finally have someone to give it to.”

Irene perplexed, leaned out. “My name’s Joohyun. That’s an additional 6000 won.”

“Your number then? I’ll also pay for it.”

Irene crossed her arms, eyebrows furrowed. “Don’t push your luck with me, lover girl. Pay up.”

Jennie scratched her cheek at the three tulips in front of her. “This is new.” She commented. The painter grinned at her. “Yes. It is.” Bobbing her head proudly, “You have a delivery service too, right?”

The smaller woman nodded her head, “Uh yeah but we’re closing in a few minutes. We’ll have it delivered tomorrow.”

“Oh, you can actually do it now.” the painter grinned. Jennie raised an eyebrow (a common action that the two ladies in the shop would like to do whenever they’re intrigued—the painter observed)

“Send these to one Joohyun? The owner of this lovely shop.”

Jennie cleared . “How did you know her name?” it was weird. The shopping district knows only of Irene—not Joohyun (which is Irene’s korean name)

“Uh that’s what she said to me yesterday, that her name’s Joohyun.”

The smaller woman pursued her lips together in thought. “Is that so.. that’s unusual.” while Jennie was preoccupied, the painter grabbed a small card which was put on display and wrote something— this caught Jennie’s attention and started wrapping the flowers in a special cotton paper.

“You think she’ll like it?” the painter asked her, placing the card on the side of the small boquet, “It’s the thought that counts.” Jennie winked.

“If she asks who is it from, tell her it’s from Seulgi—the cute painter next door.”

Jennie couldn’t help but giggle, the painter’s very cute in nature. “Very well then,” she winked at Seulgi who smiled at her in return, “Oh, and your name is?”

“Jennie, Jennie Kim.”

Seulgi was silent for a moment before she spoke, “Do you happen to know Lisa Manoban?”

The smaller woman nodded, “She’s my girlfriend. Why?”

“What are the odds?” Seulgi chuckled, “So you’re the infamous Ruby Jane who tamed our Lalisa.”

Jennie’s girlfriend, Lisa, is a photographer who recently opened her photogallery in Thailand and she was there for a couple of months. Lisa doesn’t have a plan of going back since she just went to South Korea to study but all of it changed when she met Jennie Kim and the rest was history.

“How do you know her? I don’t remember Lisa talking about a painter friend..”

“Because we’re dance buddies.” She grinned. Jennie raised an eyebrow, “still doesn’t ring a bell.”

“Uh,” Seulgi rubbed her chin, “How about Ddeulgi? She calls me that.”

“OH!” Jennie breathed, “You’re Ddeulgi?! the underground dancer?!”

Seulgi shyly laughed, “The one and only.”

“Wow,” Jennie breathed, “You’re amazing.”

“Ddeulgi? why are you with my girlfriend?” Lisa asked Seulgi who she saw ducked inside the small bar with her girlfriend towing behind her.

“Hey, turns out your girlfriend is an employee of the woman that I genuinely like.”

Lisa faced Jennie whom she hugged when they arrived at the booth were Lisa was sitting. “You still work at Irene’s?”

Jennie pulled away from the hug, “Until she finds a replacement I’ll be staying there indefinitely.”

“That’s actually really nice of you to stay with her.” Lisa remarked, “Of course. She’s been with me since college I just couldn’t leave her like that.”

Seulgi was sitting in front of them and smiling, she liked how happy and content her friend looked with her girlfriend. She wished that she has someone with her too at the moment—specifically a certain flower shop owner.

“So how did you guys meet?” Seulgi asked