Say It With Flowers (1/2)
A month after Soojung began working part time at Jiyeon's flower shop, there is one particular customer who has caught her attention. This person got slender, tall figure resembling a model, often wears cap and denim jacket over button-up shirt, and always comes alone to buy a dozen of thornless white roses everyday.For Soojung who's never been fond of plants nor understand meaning behind every kind of flower (she only accepted the job her friend offered for extra money to buy more novels), her first guess is this regular customer probably working for some funeral arrangement business.
She never talks a lot or smiles, looking down most of the time as if avoiding eye contact with the shopkeeper. But in one occasion while choosing flowers, they accidentally bumped at each other; pair of thin hands abruptly caught Soojung, preventing her from falling, and their eyes met. Soojung finds those strikingly sharp orbs in deepest shade of brown rather intimidating, yet very beautiful.
Even Soojung herself can't understand why mere presence of someone as strange as this person able to somewhat arouse an excitement inside her during dull three hours shift. She doesn't know since when, but a day will feel incomplete without ten minutes of her presence in the shop. It's becoming sort of habit for Soojung to wait for her, to <i style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-variant:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit;font-family:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;">daydream about her; wondering how would it feel to hold that hand, her own tiny fingers entwined with the other's long, bony ones, how soft is those long hair that flows down her back, how would she sound and how would it be to have a leisure long conversation with her.
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"20,000 won..."
She doesn't wait until Soojung finishes the sentence to hand her credit card. Still looking down as always, the tall woman grabs her bundle of roses and turns around, she's about to leave the shop when Soojung suddenly calls her.
"I just want to let you know, our supplier is currently running out of roses stock. So probably tomorrow you will not be able to get your usual." She only nods lightly while Soojung explaining. "But we have lilies too!"
The customer blinks in mild confusion. "Why lily?"
"It's also usual to give lilies on funeral, right?"
"... What?"
"... Are you not buying these everyday because you work on some sort of funeral service company?"
She deadpans. Then burst out laughing.
"No, I'm still in college. And I'm sure that kind of company would bulk order directly from flower market instead of send an employee to get from small florist in neighborhood." This is the first time Soojung hears the woman speaking full sentence. Her voice is loud, a bit raspy, but pleasant to hear. Soojung thinks she could like it. She <i style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-variant:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit;font-family:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;">would like to hear it again and again.
"I bought this because..." There's an uneasiness apparent.