[CONTENTID1]Petunia[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]Chapter Twenty-Seven[/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

A month passed and summer slowly transitioned into fall. The temperatures dropped, so Yoonhee exchanged her light summer clothes for long pants and elegant sweaters. The flower assortment in her shop also changed with the seasons. She and her two employees, Bora and Siyeon, had decorated the cozy shop with golden leaves and pretty ornaments that matched fall.

It was Monday afternoon and no customers were in the shop, so Bora and Yoonhee used the opportunity to rearrange the displays, cleaning up and sweeping the floors in the process. Yoonhee was a little nervous, and her restlessness didn’t stay unnoticed by Bora who commented on it.

“What’s up today, Yoonhee? I’m getting the feeling you have something on your mind,” the young woman remarked. Bora was rather shy compared to Siyeon, but her calm nature was pleasant to be around.

Yoonhee looked up from her work and paused, sheepishly smiling at her. “Yeah, that’s true.”

“Is there a particular reason? If you don’t mind me asking.”

Yoonhee’s fingers played with a strand of her dark hair while her gaze darted over the roses on the table nearby. “I will visit my… uh… boyfriend’s parents this evening after work, and since I haven’t seen them in a while, I’m nervous.” She left out any and all supernatural details, so Bora ended up misinterpreting her words.

“Oh, are they mean to you?” Bora frowned.

“No, they’re very kind. I just haven’t met them often,” Yoonhee answered, looking for a plausible excuse but not finding one. She was jittery because today would be the first time she met Baekhyun’s parents in person since the bond had been sealed, and she was sure his mother would and Baekhyun all evening.

“No need to be nervous then, have fun later,” Bora smiled and swept some dust off the window sill. Silence settled in the shop until she brought something up that had been stuck in her mind since this morning. “By the way, have you heard the news?”

“Huh? What news?” Yoonhee put down the broom and took a deep breath—this kind of work was tiring.

“You should be careful when you’re going home tonight,” Bora elaborated. “The police found a dead body near the Han River. It was discovered yesterday, and apparently, it could be a drug-related crime, but the perpetrator hasn’t been found yet. Luckily, crimes like this don’t happen often in Seoul.”

“Yeah, it’s rare but not unheard of. Huma—I mean people need to be careful who they trust. They likely got in trouble with the wrong crowd,” Yoonhee replied. She took the broom and brought it to the storage room since the floor was spotless after she had cleaned it diligently.

Bora sighed to herself when she spotted a speck of dust she had missed before. “But if it really was drug-related… why was the body completely drained of blood? Something about this doesn’t add up.”

Bora’s shift had already ended when Baekhyun arrived, knocking on the locked door of the shop. Yoonhee had been waiting for him and met up with him.

“How was your day?” she asked as she stepped through the door and kissed his cheek.

“It was great, I played a new multiplayer game with Chanyeol this afternoon and bet his . He gave up in the end,” he snickered, b with malicious joy. “What about you, hm?”

“I had fun too! Bora and I chatted a lot and cleaned the shop,” she recounted.

“I’ve never seen someone so happy about cleaning,” Baekhyun commented, snorting in disbelief and shaking his head.

“Well, my flowers were happy about it too.”

“I bet they were,” he chuckled and patted her head. “You’re adorable, sweet pea.”

He led her to his car which was parked close by, and they drove toward their destination; his parents’ home. His mother had practically begged him to bring his soulmate over soon because he was apparently “keeping her to himself.” Baekhyun had sighed and given in pretty fast since his mother wouldn’t stop pestering him until she got what she wanted. Luckily, Yoonhee had agreed to the planned dinner with his parents, so Baekhyun had one less thing to worry about.

His eyes were fixed on the road while he drove, city lights flashing by in vivid neon colors after the sun had set behind the towering buildings. Yoonhee had witnessed this sight so many times she barely paid attention to it, propping up her chin on her hand and staring into space. They reached Incheon without encountering any big traffic jams and arrived at 8 pm.

The couple left the car in the large parking garage beneath the building and took the lift to the penthouse where Jiho and Sobong were awaiting them. When Sobong opened the door, she was a picture of perfection, her hair styled immaculately and the bun decorated with little white pearls. Jiho on the other hand was dressed in a more casual way which relieved Yoonhee who had been worried about being underdressed.

“Yoonhee darling,” Sobong chirped without even a glance in her son’s direction and hugged the witch, fondly patting her back. “Finally you’re here! We have so much to talk about!”

“Of course you do,” Baekhyun sighed in defeat and rolled his eyes at his dramatic mother. She ushered Yoonhee into her home, and Baekhyun was forced to follow them with his father. The latter was observing his wife’s behavior with a good-natured smile.

His mother had ordered food from a restaurant again—Baekhyun smelled it from afar, so he wasn’t surprised when they reached the rooftop terrace where a whole dinner was prepared on the table. His nonchalance contrasted with Yoonhee’s reaction—her jaw dropped upon discovering the feast.

“Y-You prepared all this just for me? Sobong, that wasn’t—”

“It was necessary, darling! Sit and have as much as you like. Baekhyun told me what happened to you and how much weight you lost because of it. It’s very important for you to eat a healthy amount of food! Nobody should go hungry in this house, vampire or not,” she insisted and pulled out a chair for Yoonhee.

The witch was flustered by the exuberance, sitting down and eyeing the different Korean dishes on the table. The food was quite distracting—it must have been ridiculously expensive—hence why Yoonhee didn’t spare the amazing view beyond the terrace a single glance. 

“Thank you,” Yoonhee said and inclined her head at the vampires.

Baekhyun took a seat next to his soulmate and his parents sat down across from them. They didn’t eat any of the food and hadn’t even prepared plates and cutlery for themselves. This time they also didn’t drink any blood—which was good for Yoonhee since seeing it normally decreased her appetite. Sobong struck up a casual conversation while she ate.

“Baekhyun told me you reopened your flower shop,” she remarked with a glance in his direction. “He said it’s a beautiful place, so I got curious. Do you mind if I drop by?”

“You’re always welcome to visit,” Yoonhee smiled, guiding her glass to her lips to take a sip of her drink.

“Perfect! Jiho and I were considering adding plants to our home—they would be a lovely sight. You should give me advice.”

“Gladly! I’m sure we’ll find flowers that you’ll like. Blue ones would match well with your living room furniture. Bellflowers would be a good example.”

Baekhyun arched his brow, recognizing the name. “The ones you showed me? They’re pretty indeed.”

She beamed at him when she remembered the moment he referred to. She had been in the garden and practicing a new creation spell, making bluebells sprout from the earth under her hands. They had grown and revealed their vibrant blue hues within minutes. Baekhyun had joined her and listened to her gushing about her new flowers—it had been a relaxed and pleasant afternoon. He had sat down with her and hugged her from behind.

Yoonhee didn’t notice Sobong’s and Jiho’s amused expressions, too caught up in her soulmate’s eyes—their color matched well with the shade of a bellflower. “My, you’re so cute,” Sobong giggled and hid her smile behind her hand. “Yoonhee darling, don’t forget about my offer from last time, yes? Your wedding dress will be a gift from us.”

The change of topic was sudden and ripped Yoonhee’s startled gaze away from Baekhyun. “Wedding? There are no plans for a wedding,” she mumbled unsurely and glanced at her soulmate for the fraction of a second. He was holding in a chuckle.

“Yet,” Baekhyun added and winked at her, the gesture sending off happy sparks in her heart. They had never talked about marriage before—it would be a wonderful idea in Yoonhee’s opinion.

“You haven’t proposed yet, Baekhyun?” Jiho said. “Do it soon, your mother has been bothering me about this wedding dress for weeks. She’s been searching magazines and websites.”

Sobong looked scandalized and hit his arm. “Honey! You weren’t supposed to tell them!”

Baekhyun and Yoonhee laughed when Jiho winked at them. They spent the evening on the terrace and enjoyed themselves—Yoonhee found that she liked visiting Baekhyun’s parents since they gave her the feeling of being part of a family. It was something she had been missing since her own parents had died, and she was grateful to be a part of their little family now. Initially, she had believed her nature as a witch would make fitting in with vampires impossible, but she had been proven the opposite.

It was late when Baekhyun and Yoonhee said goodbye to Jiho and Sobong. They walked the couple to the front door, but before they could leave, Sobon