𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 ☾︎ soonhoon

C H P - 3

And when he looked up at the voice, he could have sworn it was Jihoon standing in front of him.

----

Soonyoung found himself freezing, both his body and heart going rigid. His entire world stopped spinning, as the world he had come to familiarize himself with was no longer as it used to be. Instead, his world, his everything, was standing right there in front of him.

But no.

That couldn't have been the male he knew.

There was no way it was possible.

"H-hello," he stuttered, inwardly cursing at himself for not being able to keep his voice steady enough to be convincing. His fragile heart pounded with every beat it took, but that was to be expected when his mind told him that it was Jihoon's eyes staring back at him. "What would you like today?"

The stranger stepped closer to the counter as he studied all of the elegant flowers on the back wall. His eyes were sharp, like Jihoon's; lips thin, like Jihoon's; face small, like Jihoon's. Everything about him screamed Jihoon, but there was no way. No way...

"I think I would like to get a bundle of six roses, for my mom."

And his voice... it was like Jihoon's, too.

Soonyoung swallowed thickly, his nervous gaze flicking down towards the counter. The swirled patterns made him dizzy. "Okay..." Then he turned towards the wall--mostly to get away from the familiar figure--and pulled six red roses from their respective crimson vase. "And may I get your name?"

"Oh, yeah, of course! I forgot..."

He held the roses tightly in his hand, not realizing that a thorn had pricked him, that hot blood was running down his finger.

"Jihoon. Lee Jihoon."

Only then did the pain set in.

"O-okay, just give me a second. I guess I managed to... p-prick my finger." A panicked laugh resounded in the air, and Soonyoung hurriedly turned around, feeling like a sweaty, nervous wreck. "Sorry, j-just one second." He reached for the box of water-resistant band-aids that he kept under the counter, then clumsily pulled one from inside. He peeled off both pieces of the smooth material and tried to wrap the bandage around his wound, but his hands were unsteady, making it almost impossible to get it on properly.

This was too much.

Jihoon finding him again? Coming back to him? How was it possible? Why did they have to meet again?

"Here." Seeing how the shop owner was struggling, Jihoon leaned over the counter and carefully set his fingertips atop the band-aid, fixing it and putting it on the way it needed to be. His touch was so soft, so gentle; it made Soonyoung's head spin. "There you go."

"Your..." The blonde's words quickly became breathless. "Your flowers..." A gasp of realization escaped his lips, and he immediately turned to assemble the roses he had forgotten about. Every breath he took, every fold he made, every petal he touched, it was all so shaky; his thoughts were in absolute turmoil. "Here are your flowers. Have a good day."

He placed the red bouquet down on the counter and--not being able to remain in such close proximity to his old love any longer--hurriedly rushed to the back room. He hadn't even accepted the money that had been outstretched in the other's palm.