AN: Just the start of a 'verse! Inspired by a love for flowers and non-canon couples. I hope you all enjoy!
Peony
-The peony became a masculine motif, associated with a devil-may-care attitude and disregard for consequence.
Kurt Hummel is busy clipping the long stems off of a dozen peonies when the bell hanging over the front door rings, signaling an earlier-than-usual customer.
"Blaine," he calls, eyebrows furrowed as he measures twelve inches and makes a clean, precise cut. "Can you help the customer? I'm busy."
A curly-haired, smiling teenager pops out of the back room, winking playfully at the older man. "Sure thing, boss."
Rolling his eyes, Kurt goes back to cutting the flowers' sturdy stems, careful to make them all the same height. He loves Blaine, and he's happy that he managed to find someone as passionate about flowers as he is, but sometimes the kid's enthusiasm is a little too much to handle, especially this early in the morning.
When he's finally done, he plops them all in a large vase, standing back to assess his handiwork and smiling proudly at the work he's done.
It's only then, as he's untying his apron, that he looks up and notices the tall, easy grace of a stranger that immediately captures his attention.
"Real looker, yeah?"
Kurt jumps a little, turning to face Brittany, who greets him with a bright smile. "I…I don't…"
He's interrupted by the sound of crashing glass.
"Shit."
Throwing his apron on the counter, he walks from out behind it and fixes his features as politely as he can manage. Their customer is stifling a smile behind his hand while a sputtering, wild-eyed Blaine is looking from the broken vase at his feet to his approaching boss.
"K-Kurt, I…I'm so sorry, it just kind of—"
"It's my fault," the stranger interjects, waving off Blaine's attempts at apology. "He was handing it to me, and I got distracted."
Kurt faces the stranger with a slightly strained smile, catching his breath as his eyes take in the solid, casual form before him.
The man, probably not too much older than Kurt, sports a deliciously fit green sweater and a pair of distractingly tight skinny jeans. With the way his clothes fit, it's not hard to imagine just how muscular he must be under all of that suddenly unnecessary fabric.
His eyes are a shocking shade of green, their color made even more evident by the hue of his sweater. Hair a careful sweep of dark chestnut, everything about him seems simple and yet somehow complex.
Kurt has to bite his tongue to bring himself back to reality.
"I'll pay for it, of course," the stranger says, eyes shifting from Kurt's gaze to the glass on the floor. "It's a shame, though, that I ruined something so lovely."
"We have plenty more in the back!" Blaine squeaks, smiling happily now that he no longer fears getting in trouble. "Made in China, not really all that hard to find more of—"
"If you'd like to purchase a…put-together version of this vase, I could surely run to the back and grab you a new one," Kurt interjects, glaring at Blaine from the corner of his eye. Damn him for having a soft spot for cute teenage boys and their clumsy personalities. "I'll have Brittany sweep up this mess."
Grinning confidently, the stranger shakes his head and waves the offer away. "Thanks, but I was just looking. I actually just came for the flowers, no vase needed."
"Oh, well, Blaine can insist in you in purchasing the right bouquet. Goodness knows the boy has a good eye for flowers."
Blaine beams, excitedly looking from his boss to the stranger, waiting for one of them to make the first move.
Behind them, Brittany is smiling knowingly behind the counter, shaking her head thoughtfully as she grabs the broom and dustpan.
Suddenly jerking his hand out in front of him, the stranger flashes a set of pearly whites and eagerly takes Kurt's hand in thanks. "It's a nice place you've got here, Mr…" He narrows his eyes in concentration as he dips forward, reading the name on Kurt's nametag. "Mr. Kurt Hummel."
Cheeks flushing despite his attempt to control it, Kurt gives the man's hand a firm shake before pulling away as quickly as he can without seeming rude.
"The name's Sebastian Smythe, by the way, in case you were wondering."
Nodding, Kurt gives another polite smile before turning promptly on his heel, not at all repeating the name in his head like some sort of prayer for forgiveness. Sebastian Smythe, Sebastian Smythe, Sebastian Smythe…
When he finally gets back to the counter, he lets out a quiet sigh of relief as Sebastian follows Blaine around the store, disappearing behind leaves and petals.
"Handsome, isn't he?" Brittany asks, dumping the broken glass into a trash bin while watching the place where Sebastian's frame fades into the green limbs of a hanging vine. She wrinkles her nose playfully when Kurt ignores her, instead checking to make sure that everything is in order in the cash register.
"I'm not blind, you know, and it isn't long before Blaine starts catching along, too," she insists, crowding his personal space. "People say I'm stupid, but I'm not dumb enough to miss how lonely you are, Kurt. Maybe you should—"
Slamming the cash drawer shut, he walks away from her, huffing in frustration as he grabs a few discarded stems off of the counter. "I'm not lonely, Britt."
Her eyes turn sad as she watches him grab a cloth and scrub fruitlessly at an already spotless counter. The two of them have been friends since high school, with more fights between them than she's ever had with any other person in her life. But her love for him runs deep, and so she refuses to back down.
"I know what it's like, Kurt," she says softly, keeping her distance but watching him intently. "We're both terribly non-straight individuals, working with yet another non-straight individual, living smack dab in the middle of a town more conservative than the Pope. It's okay to feel a little lonely, sometimes, but I just need you to know that I'm always here for you, alright?"
Sighing, Kurt leans his arms against the counter, closing his eyes and taking a deep, calming breath.
He's heard the same speech at least a dozen times since sophomore year, and most of them have been from Brittany. He understands where she's coming from, and some part of him truly is thankful for her concern, but he's worked well enough on his own, and he's not quite ready to accept the fact that maybe he's in need of a little extra attention.
"You're smarter than people give you credit for," he mumbles, returning to the pointless task of rubbing the cloth over the counter.
After that, the bell signaling new customers keeps Brittany too busy to bug him, and Blaine is busy running around trying to please the apparently picky Sebastian Smythe.
Even though Kurt is trying his best to keep himself occupied, measuring out flowers and ribbons to wrap around the stems, he finds his gaze trapped more than once on the endearing figure of their earliest customer.
It's not that Sebastian is entirely noticeable, or so attractive that an openly gay man can't keep his eyes off of him, but something Kurt can't quite put his finger on just radiates from the other man.
Whatever it is, it's like a drug, and Kurt doesn't like it.
At least, that's what he tells himself.
By the time Sebastian has finally settled on a bouquet of white and yellow carnations, Kurt has had to trim dozens of flowers and clip at least thirty foot-long ribbons.
He's pulled out of his daze when Blaine bounces behind the counter, gently nudging Kurt out of the way. "Mr. Smythe finally settled on a bouquet, after asking about the meanings of at least every single flower in the store," he mumbles, typing his ID number into the computer and fixing himself with a genuine smile when Sebastian finally makes it to the counter.
Kurt tries his best to avoid eye-contact, listening to Blaine's interaction with the customer while pretending to be occupied with removing a large knot from a wad of ribbon that he knows he doesn't actually need.
He loses it, though, when Sebastian laughs at something Blaine says.
The sound is rich and warm, like honey poured straight into a cup of tea. Barely genuine, more polite, but still pleasant.
"Thank you for your purchase, and have a nice day!" Blaine bounces happily on his toes, clearly pleased with making a seemingly impossible sale.
Before he turns to leave, Sebastian locks eyes with Kurt.
The look shared between them roots Kurt to the floor, as if the man's eyes alone are enough to paralyze him.
"Have a nice day, Kurt."
Speechless, Kurt can only nod in response, watching the way Sebastian's fingers curl sure and strong around his flowers.
His eyes are trapped all the way until Blaine slams the register shut, pumping his fist in excitement before welcoming the next customer.
Brittany pats his shoulder as she walks by.
