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The chime of the door was Yuuji's least favorite part of the day. Watering the flowers, and arranging orders weren't too bad, maybe it wasn't what he planned for himself, but he could muddle through the day. The bell jingling from the door though? Disgusting. Customers were the worst.
It's what he probably deserved. By 25 he had grown to realize how terrible he had been throughout high school. Pushy would be putting it lightly. He tried to apologize to anyone he had wronged throughout the years, but "I'm sorry" only goes so far, and karma has a way of making things right within the universe.
When his grandma called to tell him it was his turn to run the shop he thought she meant temporarily. Maybe she needed to rest, surely she would relieve him of his family duty soon.
He was sorely mistaken. With his grandmother retiring, his sister raising a young daughter, and his parents fully established in their careers, it fell to Yuuji. Did he want this? No, of course, he didn't, but he was not going to disappoint his Grandmother and he didn't exactly have a career path chosen either.
A few months later he had resigned himself to paying penance in the form of dealing with the flower shop for the rest of his life. Surely the universe would accept 40+ years of customer service as an apology, right?
So here he was on a Tuesday, his first real day in the shop by himself which meant that he couldn't just hide in the back and prepare the orders and arrange bouquets that would later be placed in the shop windows. He had to actually 'engage with the customers' and 'charm them into returning' as granny would say.
In hindsight, if he had known he would spend his days convincing old ladies to buy more plants for their windowsills he may have paid more attention to where he was getting tattoos. Having full sleeves wasn't exactly helping him in the 'charming the elderly' department, and the tongue piercing was just the pinnacle of professionalism in their eyes, he was sure of it.
So upon hearing the chime that has slowly begun haunting him he sighs, pushing off the stool he had been working from, and dusting off his pale blue apron as he heads to the front to help the customer who he was hoping had already made a selection. Turning the corner to see a customer, bouquet in hand thankfully, he heads to the register.
"No hello even? Don't tell me I'm that forgettable Terushima," a soft voice rings through the nearly silent shop.
Terushima's step faltered slightly, caught off guard by his lack of awareness. He knew that voice, the same voice that he used to daydream of leading up to their games.
"Freckles! What brings you by?" he asks, pretending he hadn't just been caught running on auto-pilot moments ago.
A bouquet is waved in his face. "Flowers?" The taller man smirked, knowingly. As if he can hear Terushima internally scolding himself.
Smooth Yuuji, you only sell one thing here.
The darker-haired man pauses to give the shop one last look over before heading to the register. This gives Yuuji a moment to take him in fully. From his hair that looked disheveled from the wind to his casual jeans and a T-shirt that had seen better days, he surmised he wasn't heading for a date, but maybe to visit a relative or friend.
As he heads towards the counter Yuuji notices Yamaguchi admiring the hanging baskets scattered around the walls of the shop.
"Changing your mind? I can get one of those down if you want?" he says as he nods toward the basket full of Black-Eyed Susans. "The yellow can really brighten up a room."
"Ah, I can only admire those. They won't quite work for me. Thanks though!" Yamaguchi chirps before tossing down enough money to cover the bouquet and then some and scurrying out for the store quickly.
Terushima shrugs, brushing it off on the assumption that the other man may just be in a hurry. He never was the most social from what he could recall.
A few days go by before Yamaguchi returns to the shop, taking a moment to admire the flowers out on display before he eventually walks up to the variety of bouquets wrapped in paper near the register. His presence doesn’t go unnoticed for long, as Terushima’s eyes catch sight of him as he seems to be taking a long moment considering his options.
"Special occasion? Or maybe a date?" Terushima asks as he waggles his eyebrows playfully while waiting for the freckled man to make his selection.
Yamaguchi looks over at him, a grin on his lips. "Oh I'm sure you'd have a fit if I told you the truth,” he starts, teasingly,” so let's pretend I have a date instead."
Terushima laughs before ringing up the bouquet of sunflowers Yamaguchi had chosen for today, looking up in time to see the other man already handing over the exact amount.
"How did you-"
But of course, the universe seems to still have something against him as Yamaguchi doesn’t offer Terushima anything to answer his question. No, instead he looks up at him, taking the bouquet he had paid before, that same grin on his face as he turns on his heel and heads to the door.
"See you later Teru, gotta run, hot date you know?"
And then just like that, he’s gone.
The next week went by in a similar fashion, with quick visits every few days from a man who seemingly always sought out the same sort of bunch. It was a nice surprise at first, finding Yamaguchi walking into the shop and slowly becoming the most regular customer he’s had so far while working here, but with each new visit, questions started to form in his head. So many questions that he started a list to keep track of all of the details he had been picking up.
What he knew so far:
Yamaguchi only buys flowers individually or in wrapped bouquets. No vases, no potted plants, and no hanging baskets. He also seemed to favor brighter colors, although he hadn't gathered which were the favorites just yet. Oh, and he had memorized most of their pricing, so that means this has been going on for some time.
Customer service still sucked, he spent most days trying to explain to brides that their flower of choice may not be in season during their wedding, or to elderly men that he would not be sending roses to both their wives and mistresses. They could go elsewhere to be scum.
But the chiming of the bell didn't seem to bother him as much as the weeks went on. If anything it brought a bit of hope. Sorting out the puzzle of his favorite freckled customer was quickly becoming his favorite way to pass the time throughout his workday. Not that the other boy ever stayed long, but when he did stop by it seemed to occupy Yuuji's mind for the rest of the day.
He was working on putting together a few more bouquets to add to the basket near the register when the bell chimed one morning.
"Just a minute" he called, gathering the bouquets in his arms and heading towards the front.
He finds Yamaguchi leaning on the counter by the register, eyes lighting up at the sight of Terushima's arms full of flowers.
"Oh, there they are. I knew you'd have more," he says as he leans forward, plucking a bouquet of sunflowers from Terushima's arms before the blond can finish placing them in the basket. Smiling, he brings the bouquet near his nose and inhales deeply.
"More sunflowers?" Yuuji queries, ready to add to his growing list of facts he has stored about Yamaguchi over the past few weeks.
"Yellow in general, it's always been one of my favorites you know? That and green, but the stems always take care of that for me," he replies, a fondness to his voice.
"Is that why you're always buying flowers from me? For the color they bring?" Terushima asks, hoping to solve the riddle today.
A sheepish look crosses the other's face, and Terushima could feel it coming. He quickly leans over the counter and snatches the sunflowers out of Yamaguchi's hands. "You aren't running this time freckles," he grins, knowing he has won this round.
"You want to know why I buy flowers from you?" Tadashi's smile turns dark, catching him off guard for a moment with the sudden change.
Maybe Yuuji had miscalculated his approach.
"I buy flowers from you to keep your grandmother's shop running. She was concerned you would scare off the customers Teru, and look at you now. Refusing a sale,” Yamaguchi says, disapprovingly, though that smile never left his face as he spoke.” She would be so sad, maybe I should visit her to catch up.”
Terushima stands still, jaw slack and mind frozen.
Yamaguchi pulls an almost identical bouquet from the display basket, dropping a few bills on the counter before turning and exiting the shop without another word
Terushima lets himself breathe a sigh of relief as he hears the door close. "Well that backfired," he mutters to himself as the conversation that just took place in his head repeats itself.
The universe, apparently, really doesn’t want Yuuji to have victories, even when he’s repenting.
Another week passes and Yamaguchi comes with barely more than a word spoken between them. The bell rings and within moments a bouquet is chosen, money left on the counter, and the chime rings again signaling his departure. He didn't expect the other boy to be angry, maybe an apology is in order for this too?
So the following week Terushima comes to the shop early. He speeds through his order list so he can be out front waiting for the arrival that he isn't sure will come.
Friday is the breaking point. He has put together bouquets almost exclusively of yellow by the time he realizes how much he is missing the easy banter of his newly reacquainted friend.
He didn’t even realize it at first, how his hands subconsciously felt drawn to the brightly colored petals, bundling them up together and even tying it all up with emerald green ribbon. Just a few days ago he wouldn’t have ever thought so much of the color yellow but now he sees it everywhere, and it means a lot more than he’d want to admit.
As he tries and fails, to push back the odd feeling of loss he’s grown to have recently the bells at the door chimes, his only savior, and suddenly that feeling is replaced with one of hope as his eyes land on Yamaguchi now approaching the counter.
It’s now or never, Yuji thinks, starting to walk over to him.
"Hey, I'm sorry if-"
"I kill plants," Yamaguchi simply states out of nowhere.
Well, this wasn’t how he was expecting things to start.
"You kill plants?" Yuuji can barely contain his laughter as he repeats the statement back to ensure he has heard it right.
"I kill plants. All of them. I could buy a cactus and it would die. It doesn't matter what type, if I try and care for it then it goes to the great greenhouse in the sky."
By now Yuuji is clutching his sides, tears forming in his eyes as he laughs loudly, everything finally falling into place. All this time he thought there had to have been some complicated reason to why Yamaguchi came in to buy things so often, but knowing how much the universe loves tormenting him, he should’ve seen it coming. It had all been so simple.
"I have been driving myself crazy for weeks because you kill plants," he musters out through his laughter.
"Driving yourself crazy….?"
Terushima straightens up before heading to the back of the shop, motioning for Yamaguchi to follow. "I've got something for you, now that I know what your problem is"
"I've already solved my problem, thank you very much. I buy a bouquet for my office on Tuesdays, and some for my house on Fridays" Yamaguchi chirps as if that was the solution, spending money on flowers twice weekly for the rest of his life.
Yuuji tries to keep it together, he really does, but after a few moments, the laughter bubbles up again. "You could've just asked"
"Asked what exactly?" Yamaguchi asks, tilting his head in confusion.
"Me for help? Obviously"
"I already told you I've killed a cactus,” He reminds him, a little embarrassed to have to repeat this. “ I'm not sure what you think you'll help me with"
Terushima can't quite find the succulent he had in mind as he checks through the inventory, so he's left with only one option.
"Come back next week?" He asks hopefully, as if Yamaguchi doesn't come in more often than anyone else.
"I mean, I'll need some flowers I'm sure. Why are you asking though?"
"I'll have something for you, most likely by Tuesday. Friday at the latest."
Luckily enough Yamaguchi agrees, so maybe things are starting to look up for him.
By Tuesday Yuuji was practically vibrating by the door waiting for Yamaguchi's arrival. He had tried to calm himself by arranging extra bouquets and ordering some supplies this morning but nothing was working.
The chime rings and he deflated upon seeing an elderly couple stroll in to pick up their order. As he's handing off their arrangement the door chimes again and in strolls The highlight of his day.
He watches as Yamaguchi's eyes scan across the store, clearly looking for something new or out of place.
"You won't find it you know," Yuuji grins, noticing the blush rising to the other man's cheeks when he realizes he has been caught.
"I'm not sure what you're talking about," Yamaguchi huffs, reaching for a bouquet of sunflowers that he suspects were arranged with him in mind.
"Well then you can have the bouquet you picked out for today or you can have what I've ordered for you.”
"Okay you win, what did you get me?"
Terushima finally pulls out the small succulent from behind him and nudges it across the counter to Yamaguchi who picks it up, inspecting it questionably.
"A plant… for me to kill?” He finally says. “ How thoughtful."
"What little faith in me,” Terushima replies, pretending to be offended. “ This is a plant that I think you can actually keep living. It's called Echeveria, and you only need to water it once every 7 to 10 days."
"But you don't understand I-"
"Killed a cactus, yes I am painfully aware,” Yuuji sighs before saying what may scare away his best customer, "but that was before you had me"
An audible gasp leaves the dark-haired man's lips, leaving Terushima unsure if he had read their playful interactions wrong.
Surely this had been flirting right? He couldn’t handle messing things up a second time now that Yamaguchi was finally here again.
Before he had time to play it off as a joke, Yamaguchi dips down to drop a quick kiss on Terushima's lips before dashing out of the store, yelling behind him, "Dinner after you close the shop Friday okay?"
"Wait you forgot your-" the bell chimes, leaving Terushima holding the succulent.
Terushima softly smiles to himself, realizing that the chime he once hated had quickly become the thing he associated with some of his happiest moments in the shop.
So maybe karma had punished him with a life of customer service running the flower shop, but it also brought him the chance to get to know Yamaguchi, so maybe it wasn't all bad.