Flowers

She smiled to herself. 

Proud of the arrangement she made. How she chose the colors and the leaves, then the wrapper to finish. She thought about adding a little more to make the bouquet dazzle and shine, but she knew that Mina just wanted something simple and Sana made sure it was simple.

Sana took one good look at the bouquet and sighed in content. 

It was perfect. 

She had to take a photo.

Right when she took one good one with the perfect angle, the doors to her shop opened. Sana kept her phone in her pocket, turned around, a smile ready on her face. 

“Good morning!” she greeted the customer. 

Sana was always ready to face the day, handle her customers with care and to arrange flowers because it was the only thing she loved doing. 

Her mother said she was made for this job. Her father said she herself was part of the many beautiful flowers they sell. They were words that Sana lived by since she was little. She always spent her days here, arranging flowers with her mother and grandmother, watching the till with her father and listening to his knowledge about flowers and flower arrangement. 

Momo and Mina had always believed that she loved flowers more than anything. And she had to agree. 

It made sense that her parents decided to let her manage the shop while they prepare for retirement. Sana didn't need a high paying job and lavish lifestyle to be happy in life. 

All she needed was the smell of her shop in the morning, how the colors made the hardwood walls of her shop mean something and the smile on her customers' faces whenever she gave them their orders. 

Customers come and go. Her day always passed by so quickly; flowers upon flowers, some with red wrapping, some pink or yellow. The glitter that was scattered on her arms, hands and maybe even her face. The length of ribbon that she memorized by heart. 

She loved her job. She loved her flowers. She loved the fact that she had a reason to always get up in the morning. 

“Hello,” a small voice greeted her. The familiar, sweet voice made her look up immediately, she felt her heart thrumming wildly in her chest when she saw Tzuyu standing in front of the counter. 

Her favorite customer. 

And the other reason why she loved to get up in the morning. 

“Tzuyu!” Sana greeted her, her smile was from cheek to cheek and her excitement was too hard to contain. She placed everything, patted her hands hurriedly and approached the counter. “What can I get you today?” 

The college student looked at her carefully, then to the display of flowers behind the counter. But she didn’t say anything yet. Just thinking thoughtfully. Which was new because Tzuyu always had something in mind and said it off the bat. 

Sana still didn’t know why Tzuyu came in almost every day buying a small bouquet of flowers. All different each time she came in. 

It happened randomly last two weeks ago. She came in with a bunch of friends, one of them was looking for flowers for a girlfriend and Tzuyu was just training behind, keeping quiet and not touching anything. 

She thought that Tzuyu wasn’t interested at all. But seeing her the next day and asking to buy flowers took Sana by surprise. Tzuyu introduced herself, asked for a small bouquet of roses and when Sana prepared it and sold it to her, Tzuyu bowed and left. 

The next day she came by again, asked for daisies and when Sana handed it to her, she decided to introduce herself too. 

Sana, 25 years old and loves flowers. It was risky because she didn’t know if she should be doing that. But Tzuyu smiled at her for the first time, there was a cute dimple that showed on her face and that was when Sana knew her feelings were in trouble. 

Each day since, it was a different flower, different facts about themselves exchanged and a different feeling each time it happened. Feelings that bloomed like the flowers she was tending and selling. 

Despite them exchanging little tidbits about themselves, Sana never bothered asking why Tzuyu always bought flowers. But it wasn’t like it was her business of knowing, Sana was able to cater to a customer who wanted her service and that was all that mattered to her. 

Plus, it was just a harmful crush. She had a crush on Tzuyu. And that was normal. 

It wasn’t like she was going to do anything about her feelings. It wasn’t like Tzuyu was one of the reasons why Sana loved doing her job or getting up early in the morning to open and clean and sort out every flower, flower petal and leaf there was. It wasn’t like she had been shamelessly fantasizing them being together, holding hands, sharing soft kisses, and talking about flowe—

“What’s your favorite flower, unnie?” Tzuyu suddenly asked, and that took Sana by surprise. 

Her favorite flower? 

No one really bothered to ask her that, so she never really thought of it. 

She was honestly stunned. 

“Can’t think of one?” Tzuyu asked again, teasingly this time, she smiled, and the cute dimple showed itself again. 

Sana felt an exaggerated thumping in her chest when she saw it. She clutched her shirt, as if she was keeping her heart inside her chest or else it would jump out. But she managed to keep her vulnerability inside and smiled cheekily at Tzuyu.

“Maybe because I like everything,” she said in confidence. Then she looked around her shop. “All flowers are so unique and beautiful that sometimes choosing one over the other feels unfair.” 

Tzuyu nodded and then she kept her hands in her pocket. She stayed quiet for a moment until she finally moved from her spot. “I’ll come back tomorrow.” 

Sana’s eyes went wide, panicking slightly. “Y-You’re not going to buy anything?” 

The younger woman shook her head with a smile, already heading out of the exit. “If you can’t decide, then I can’t either.” 

Tzuyu’s words had been stuck in her head for days. 

Her absence at the flower shop had also been pretty loud and Sana realized a little too late that she couldn’t ignore it. 

She promised to come back the next day, but she hadn’t—Sana stopped herself. Did Tzuyu even promise? 

But with how she came by everyday felt like a promise. Something that was unspoken, something that could be felt, which was why it was stronger and more disappointing that Tzuyu wasn’t visiting. 

“She’s a student,” Sana suddenly said out loud, fixing the gardenias for an order she had. “And she’s graduating. She’s probably just busy,” she continued, as if saying everything out loud was going to make her understand the situation more. 

It was helping. 

Sana always talked to herself whenever things got a bit too much in her head and her flowers weren’t helping anymore. She was always cheerful and optimistic, but she also had her weak moments. 

The entire thing just felt so silly, and she honestly wanted to hate herself for jumping into conclusions about the younger woman and feel bad about it. There was a reason and Sana’s flower shop wasn’t the only place Tzuyu wanted to go to every five in the afternoon for almost two weeks straight. 

Guess her pending questions would have to wait until Tzuyu made time to see her. Maybe by then, she could finally have the courage to ask Tzuyu out. Maybe for lunch or dinner, or even just coffee after Tzuyu’s classes or something. Anything. 

Sure, she loved her work, and she wanted to put all her focus on it. But she remembered her parents telling her that she needed to tend to herself like she did with all the flowers. The cute exchanges with Tzuyu honestly felt like a sign of it finally happening. That Sana could take time off of her precious work to have something beautiful bloom as well.

Maybe it wasn’t Tzuyu? Or maybe the timing wasn’t right?

Her mind was a mess.