#027
“…Congratulations.”
“You can scratch double-up if you want.”
What’s with this petty double-up? I was thinking about scratching fifty thousand won once, but got annoyed for no reason and gave up.
“Forget the double-up, just come over here.”
I entered one hundred thousand won on the card machine. When I held out the electronic pad, Woo Dohwan carelessly drew a long line with a screech.
“Do you need a receipt?”
“Why do your eyes hurt?”
“If you don’t need it, I’ll throw it away.”
“Why are you being so cold today?”
Woo Dohwan propped his arms on the table and leaned his upper body forward, looking up at my face from below. He seemed to think that if he looked like this, he might be able to see my eyes.
“I’ll throw it away.”
Of the two receipts, I threw one straight into the trash and kept one inside the counter. My head was throbbing because I hadn’t slept properly.
“Dohwan-ah, aren’t you leaving?”
Kim Yujin-ssi, who was holding a bouquet and smelling its fragrance, called out to Woo Dohwan.
“Go wait in the car.”
Without even looking back at his words, she looked at me with an awkward smile on her lips while holding the bouquet. I reflexively bowed my head slightly, and she also bowed her head toward me.
“Take care.”
“The flowers are so pretty. I can come again, right?”
Her tone, which even showed traces of ecstasy, didn’t seem like empty words. I wanted to say no because I couldn’t keep gaining customers like this, but I couldn’t bring myself to do so and nodded my head.
“Of… course. Anytime. If you have favorite flowers, you can pre-order them too.”
“I really like roses.”
“There are so many types of roses. Among the flowers I brought in today, there’s something called Clarence rose. Should I show it to you?”
Words flowed smoothly from my mouth, bypassing my brain – it seemed that business was just in my nature, regardless of my will. She seemed to like my suggestion, smiling brightly and nodding her head.
Kim Yujin-ssi, who had been standing behind Woo Dohwan’s shoulder, quickly took the spot next to him again. Seeing her eyes full of anticipation, I naturally smiled.
“This flower is really pretty.”
I opened the showcase and took out a single rose with an exquisite mix of orange and pink, holding it out toward Kim Yujin-ssi.
“Wow, so pretty!”
“The color is unique, isn’t it?”
“This one is amazing, but that one is even more amazing.”
She gazed at the Clarence rose as if enchanted, murmuring softly. I took out three roses and a handful of matricaria to make a mini bouquet.
“Next time, if you tell me about your favorite roses, I’ll make it even prettier for you.”
Whether it was an occupational hazard or what, I smiled as I made a mini bouquet as a service and handed it to Kim Yujin-ssi. Woo Dohwan, who had been staring intently at my actions, frowned so only I could see. She held both large and small bouquets in her arms, bowed her head with a very satisfied face, and turned her back. The clicking sound of her heels gradually faded away.
Ding-a-ling- the wind chime rang, and in the space filled with awkward atmosphere, a sticky gaze clung to me. I don’t know why, but words poured out of me as if making excuses about my condition.
“My condition is… a bit off today. My eyes hurt, and my head hurts too. My face looked so awful that I needed something to cover it-.”
“You know how to smile? You’re always angry, so I thought you didn’t know how to smile.”
“What do you mean I’m always angry?”
My words naturally trailed off.
“Are you only cold to me? I like you though. You know that, right?”
“…I don’t know.”
It felt strange to face each other with the table between us, so I lowered my head and cleaned up the cut branches and leaves. Over my busily moving hands, neat hands that looked like they’d never known hardship reached out. Woo Dohwan deliberately held out his ring finger in front of me.
“Make me a ring too.”
“……”
“A ring that glows.”
Asking me to buy him something was so natural. As expected, was this a habit from demanding things from rich noonas showing up at moments like this? I tidied up the table and quickly scanned inside the showcase. While looking for flowers with soft stems, I saw campanula and impulsively took out a few stems.
Looking closely at the hand that was still shamelessly held out, a famous poem came to mind. Something about needing to look closely to see beauty. However, Woo Dohwan’s hand was one that didn’t suit that verse. It was a hand so elegantly beautiful that even a glancing look would leave it vividly etched in memory. The clearly visible half-moons of his nails and even the neat cross-section of the trimmed nails under the plump flesh caught my gaze.
His fingers, without a single unpleasantly protruding joint, moved like waves. I must have been staring blankly again. I quietly grabbed Woo Dohwan’s hand, which was confidently spreading his fingers as pretty as his face, and pulled it forward. I made the knot of a flower ring that anyone who had picked clover as a child would know, and gently pushed it onto the inside of his smooth finger.
“You said it would sparkle.”
“That one isn’t pretty unless you’re drunk.”
“What kind of ring is it that makes people so anxious?”
His low voice, tinged with laughter and spoken softly, rang out pleasantly. At Woo Dohwan’s voice tickling my ears, I unconsciously looked up to meet his eyes, then focused on making the ring again.
“There is such a thing. Today, instead of a sparkling ring, a flower ring. This one is pretty even when you’re not drunk.”
I wove the stems under the fairly full flower bud so it wouldn’t come undone and tightened it firmly. After adjusting the size so it wouldn’t squeeze his finger too tightly, I let go of his hand.
“It’s pretty. Right?”
I grabbed Woo Dohwan’s hand and pulled it upward. When I put my nose to the fully opened petals and inhaled the fragrance, the pinwheel’s body visibly trembled.
“…Do you also do this with other people besides me?”
“Huh? What?”
Was he asking if I act this kindly?
“Well. I do this with all customers.”
“…Wow.”
“Why? Were you afraid I’d only be kind to you?”
“You.”
I heard him mutter that I was really something else. I couldn’t understand what that meant and furrowed my brow sharply. But even at a glance, it didn’t seem to mean anything good. At my expression, Woo Dohwan also furrowed his brow sharply.
“Still, these are people who come to my shop to buy flowers, so of course I should treat them well.”
“Haah… Ranho-ya. I’m also one of the people who comes here to buy flowers, but you’re still overcharging me.”
“……”
That’s…! I’m selling expensive to make you stop coming, but you keep coming without any sense. But I couldn’t say it straight out and kept my mouth tightly shut.
“Plus you don’t treat me well.”
“I treat you really well. I even make rings for you. Has anyone made flower rings like this for Woo Dohwan-ssi? I doubt it. Especially someone who made them this prettily.”
“Honey.”
He keeps calling me that, making it seem like we’re actually something to each other, like the pinwheel and I are somewhat close – anyway, it gave me that kind of feeling. Why does he call me in a way that makes people misunderstand?
“You’ll only do this for me, right?”
“What?”
“This ring. You gave sweet peas to that kid too back then.”
Woo Dohwan, who had been putting his nose to the flower petals that had been tickling my nostrils until now, curved his lips in an arc. The white fingers and the purple petals tied prettily at the end and swaying looked particularly well-matched.
“Well… And why do you call me that? Keep…”
I trailed off and answered as if I couldn’t promise. At my ambiguous answer, Woo Dohwan’s brow furrowed.
“It’s my heart. But… couldn’t you sleep?”
“Huh?”
He who had been looking down slightly lifted only his pupils upward and asked an unexpected question.
“Your eyes seem swollen too.”
“…Ah.”
“Are you busy today too?”
At his languid question, I unconsciously shook my head. Today I had brought flowers to use tomorrow, so it would be fine to end the day with this. Actually, I was tired and wanted to go in early to rest.
“That person who came to check on the part-time job interview results had crazy eyes. Unpleasantly.”
“……”
“So… how about going in early today?”
An unusually cautious voice flowed out.
“Ah. I was actually thinking of doing that because I’m tired. But why aren’t you leaving? She must be waiting.”
When I asked while scraping together the leaves I had removed from the campanula stems, Woo Dohwan’s eyes widened greatly.
“Ah. Right.”
“……”
“I forgot. Kim Yujin’s going to curse me out.”
What, did you really forget? My eyes also grew large.
“I want to see you close the shop and go in.”
“It’s fine, so go. Quickly.”
“Ah, just in case I’m saying this, but there’s nothing between me and her.”
“?????”
Why are you telling me that? I’m not curious though? Woo Dohwan, who confirmed my expression full of question marks, seemed embarrassed as he reddened the tips of his ears and coughed several times.
Maybe. Maybe…
“…I’m asking this out of concern, just in case.”
“……”
“Do you perhaps like me?”
“…No.”
He seems to like me though.
Woo Dohwan answered no with a face that was clearly not a no.
“…No? No, that’s not what I meant-.”
“Oh, it’s Kim Yujin-ssi.”
Kim Yujin-ssi’s figure was visible through the glass window. Her pretty face was somewhat crumpled as if annoyed. Her fine, long hair fluttered in the wind with a rustling sound.
“Anyway, let’s talk about that again later.”
“About what? The ring?”
“No, not that. …I’m going.”
Woo Dohwan let out a deep sigh and turned his back. Kim Yujin-ssi saw Woo Dohwan coming out and spat out curses that couldn’t be heard but were familiar enough to recognize. Right, they had the same tone as what I heard from Gyoyeon.
‘This damn bastard finally crawls out and throws a fit.’
It might not be exact, but seeing how her round lips didn’t close immediately, it’s probably similar. Is she not a girlfriend but the same kind of relationship as me and Gyoyeon? I’d like to introduce Kim Yujin-ssi to Gyoyeon. I think they’d get along quickly.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
