#012
It was very busy from the morning. Making the corsage and boutonniere took longer than expected. I had planned to finish the small items first and then seriously make the bouquet… Did I distribute my time wrong? I anxiously checked the time.
The fortunate thing was that the lily of the valley was in good condition. There were about forty minutes left until pickup, so I had to pour all my attention into the bouquet. I carefully placed the boutonniere and wedding party corsage in the flower box without overlapping them and spread out the lily of the valley.
Following the groom’s request to only include lily of the valley, I made it abundantly with lily of the valley as the main flower. I was glad I had ordered plenty of flowers. Since the bouquet needed to be something the bride could hold in one hand, I didn’t put in too many flowers excessively. The lily of the valley imported this time had rather large flower buds, so it looked more abundant than lily of the valley from other seasons or the photos the couple had sent. I gathered the stems of the lily of the valley, removed some leaves, and secured it with hemp string. Since lily of the valley itself is a species that needs to be handled very carefully, my fingertips were numb from applying so much pressure. After tying it so the stems wouldn’t get damaged, I wrapped it with pure white ribbon and secured the knot with pearl decoration.
I was glad I removed the leaves. Even after removing leaves, it was made abundantly and I personally really liked it.
I took a photo of the bouquet with my phone and sent it to the bride in advance. I should save the photo and show it as a sample when someone comes wanting a lily of the valley bouquet later.
I checked the overall flower condition once more. I filled the edges of the pre-prepared flower box with light pink piano roses and secured the bouquet in the round frame.
There were 5 minutes left until the time they said they’d come to pick up the flowers. I thought if I finished within time, I’d also prepare a flower crown together, and busily moved my hands.
Fortunately, the bouquet pickup was delayed by about 5 minutes, so I also completed a lily of the valley flower crown and packaged it separately in a box. I didn’t know if it would be used or not, but thinking it would be good to use at least for photos, I sent a message and waited for pickup. At 9:05, someone from the bride’s side came to pick up the bouquet, and I handed over the beautifully packaged bouquet.
“Here you go.”
“Thank you!”
“Please tell them congratulations on their marriage.”
“Yes! Take care!”
As I watched the back of someone walking carefully with the flower box in their arms and a joyful face, a sense of pride spread throughout my body.
Ah, I’m glad I opened a flower shop.
***
I cleaned up the table that was messy with cut stems and leaves. I gathered everything and threw it in the trash, then checked the condition of flowers in the showcase. All the flowers brought in yesterday were fresh, but I removed some wilted bunches among flowers that had been stored a bit longer. Among flowers stored at room temperature too, I picked out wilted flowers and put them in vases placed in the store, placing them on tables.
The randomly mixed flowers looked quite nice, so I was looking at them for a moment when my gaze was drawn to globe amaranth occupying one spot.
Should I make dried flowers? Even though business is good, there are inevitably flowers that don’t sell. Some couldn’t be used in time, and there were flowers I brought in because I liked them but couldn’t sell because they didn’t match customers’ tastes.
I selected globe amaranth that I brought in because I liked it and flowers among those I brought in but couldn’t use much that maintain good color when made into dried flowers. I took out one bunch of misty blue and one bunch of statice and put them on the table. Thinking the color might be too blue only, I additionally took out golden ball and piled eucalyptus on top.
“They’re pretty, so why don’t people like them?”
I gently caressed the globe amaranth petals and then plucked the leaves with a touch full of regret. Too much moisture makes mold grow easily. I loosely tied them so the flower buds wouldn’t overlap and set them aside, then also divided and tied misty blue and statice little by little. I trimmed golden ball so they wouldn’t overlap, tied the stems, and also gathered and tied the eucalyptus stems. Eucalyptus has almost no difference between when dried and when fresh. Since it’s a leaf often used in dried flowers, I decided to dry plenty and chose an appropriate spot.
The entrance side had a full window facing forward, so a lot of sunlight came in. When I looked around once, the back of the table where I make bouquets was the most shaded. Since it needed to be cool with good air circulation, I decided to leave the long window slightly open and found a spot. I hung all the trimmed flowers upside down on a temporarily connected string and opened the window a bit more. Although it had gotten quite chilly in the past few days, autumn was a dry season and quite good for drying flowers.
After spending the whole morning drying flowers for dried flowers like that, it was well past 1 o’clock. During that time, I also made and sold bouquets intermittently and turned away several customers who came in wanting to buy potted plants. Since I was too busy, I impulsively put up a part-time job recruitment ad at the entrance. Without a computer or printer, it was a handwritten recruitment ad unsuitable for these times. I wrote the working hours, hourly wage, and working days in tiny letters on kraft paper.
“Agh… I’m tired.”
After standing the whole time, I finally sat down and looked at the flowers hanging upside down. Watching the flowers swaying in the breeze coming through the open window gap gave an autumn feeling. Making dried flowers after a long time was fun too. I was quenching my thirst with coffee bought from a convenience store and blankly keeping my gaze on the drying flowers when…
The sound of the door opening rang along with the wind chime sound. Perhaps having gotten used to it, I habitually stood up and turned around to see,
“Hyeong.”
A drunkard who made me question whether I was really the hyung was coming in dangling shopping bags.
“Why do you keep calling me hyung? It’s disgusting.”
“Don’t I look younger to anyone who sees me?”
“?????”
What is that drunkard saying? He familiarly sat across from me and spread out the shopping bags he brought on the table.
“Did you eat lunch?”
“……”
“The sushi here is really delicious. The wait was two hours.”
Ju Isin laid out packaging containers with an excited face. But unfortunately…
“I don’t eat raw food.”
This was true. Apart from not wanting to eat lunch together with a drunkard, fish was the only food I didn’t eat.
“……”
“Ju Isin-ssi, you eat and go.”
I said while sipping lukewarm cold canned coffee. The hands that were excitedly opening lids stopped, and his pupils covered by long eyelashes rolled around as if reading the mood.
“So if you gave me your contact info, wouldn’t that be nice… What is this?”
Ju Isin closed the lid of the sushi that he said had a two-hour wait and pushed the shopping bag to one side. Today too, his handsome face looked more atmospheric perhaps because it was set against the background of dried flowers. Ju Isin was obviously sharp but really a handsome good-looking man.
“Why are you staring at me like that? I’m embarrassed.”
Ju Isin blushed his cheeks red. Ah… why…?
“Since you’re not drunk, you’re incredibly handsome.”
“…No.”
“Hyung is handsome too. Since a handsome man is making bouquets, it’s really heart-fluttering when you hand them over.”
Looking at his grinning face, I involuntarily dry-heaved. Ju Isin pulled up his lips refreshingly and smiled. He leaned his back fully against the backrest and only lifted his head upward while opening his mouth.
“But that looks pretty. What are you doing?”
“For dried flowers… I hung them to dry flowers. I brought them in but couldn’t really use them.”
“Dried flowers? What’s that? The round yellow thing.”
Following Ju Isin’s pointing fingertip with my gaze, I saw golden ball.
“Golden ball.”
“What about that?”
“Globe amaranth.”
“What about that?”
“Misty blue. Next to it is statice. The purple is Ohio blue.”
Every time I told him flower names, Ju Isin smiled and lit up his eyes like a child receiving birthday presents.
“I’ve been thinking lately.”
“Yes?”
“About causing a scene drunk in front of here that day, I really did well.”
“What. I guess you don’t think about me.”
The drunkard blinked remembering what kind of disgraceful behavior he had shown that day.
“If I hadn’t come here that day, I wouldn’t have met hyung either. The thing I did best this year was causing a drunken scene in front of hyung’s store.”
“…I’m going crazy.”
As I closed my eyes and leaned back fully against the sofa, Ju Isin put his chin on the table and looked up at me with sparkling eyes. Why is he being so burdensome, really.
“That butterfly flower.”
“Yes.”
“Can you make dried flowers with that too?”
“There’s nothing I can’t do… But I haven’t tried it either.”
Maybe because I was tired from doing so much work since morning, Ju Isin was becoming increasingly bothersome.
“It’s a flower that’s pretty when fresh. When dried, the color becomes dull and fades. And since it’s a flower with fully opened buds, the petals might fall off when dried. Still… hmm. If you want to try, remove the leaves and hang it upside down in a cool place.”
Despite my annoyance, when I explained step by step like to a young child, Ju Isin nodded his head greatly up and down.
When the explanation ended, the conversation was completely cut off. When the flow was interrupted, I wish Ju Isin would tactfully leave… He must have sold his tact somewhere because he had no intention of getting up.
“But are you hiring part-timers here?”
“No.”
“This hyung starts with denial the moment he opens his mouth.”
“Ah…”
I put up a recruitment ad in front. I smiled awkwardly and straightened my body. I should make a mini bouquet with pretty flowers that the drunkard likes and send him away quickly.
“It’s true that I’m hiring, but I won’t hire a drunkard as part-time.”
“I have no intention of working part-time here either. It’s just pure curiosity. Whether you’re really hiring part-time or not. And when did I become a drunkard? I’m abstaining from alcohol.”
Oh my, how admirable. I opened the showcase and took out several light pink spray roses, misty blue, and golden ball. Wanting to give it quickly and send him away, I moved my hands busily. I removed the spray rose leaves, trimmed the stems, and shaped them as if wrapping the outside with misty blue. Then I inserted two golden ball stems in between.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
