A/N: i've never written nor read a flower shop/tattoo parlor au in my LIFE. yet here we go.

tags: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor, Sukuna has his own body, itadori is his younger brother, Aged up characters, pining!gojo, sukuna isnt a sadistic bastard, at least not as much as canon, rating will change with time, imma be straight up idk where tf this is going, except there will be angst, oh boy get ready, Fluff and Angst, Falling In Love, Eventual Smut

Monday

The first time Gojo saw him, it was in front of his flower shop.

He had stopped for a moment to gaze at the roses outside, as if contemplating something, but then moved on, uninterested. Gojo remembers following the man with his eyes, intrigued by the tattoos on his face, the ones peeking out from under his short sleeves, wondering what they meant. He'd never seen tattoos like his before. He hoped he'd come again; maybe he'd ask.

The next time he sees him, the man stops to look at some begonias, head tilted in thought. Gojo almost has half a mind to go speak to him, get into that mind of his, but Geto holds him back.

"What-"

"That guy gives me bad vibes," his friend murmurs in a soft whisper. "I don't like him at all."

Gojo turns blue eyes back to the man out front, only to find with a start that he was staring at him. The tattooed man smiles in greeting, and fuck, he's handsome. "Oh my god," Gojo breathes.

"Don't," Geto deadpans, wrenching Gojo's face away. "You'll come to regret it."

His gaze flickers back to the man, but he's gone. "But-"

"No buts, Satoru. I may not know him personally, but I know his type." Geto clamps a hand on his shoulder and looks at him seriously. "I don't want you to get hurt."

"I- okay." Gojo nods. "Okay."

The man returns to his shop, but this time, instead of staying outside of the shop, he enters.

Today is Geto's day off.

Gojo tries to look bored as he busies himself with paperwork at the front desk, pretending not to follow the man around with his eyes. Having someone dressed in all black against such a colorful backdrop of flowers was certainly different from their target audience, but Gojo couldn't say it didn't pique his curiosity.

You'll come to regret it.

Would he really?

He decides to break the ice.

"Is there anything you're looking for?" he asks, setting down his pen.

The man looks up at him, and fuck, his eyes are red. A deep, rich shade of dazzling flame, and they're both pinned on him. It's suddenly a little harder to breathe.

"Kind of," he responds in this baritone that makes a shiver run down Gojo's back. "But not really."

"I see," Gojo notes, stepping from behind his counter. "Well, mind if I help you find something?"

The man seems to regard him for a moment, then shrugs. "Sure."

"What's the occasion?" Gojo asks as he walks over.

"My brother and his boyfriend are getting married."

"Ah," Gojo claps his hands together, "congrats!"

The man makes a hard face. "Nah, not really. It means he's moving out of my shop, and he can't help me anymore. I'll be losing a worker."

Gojo hums in question. "Your shop?"

"I own a tattoo parlor," he explains. "My brother, he helps out sometimes. But now he's leaving."

"Oh man." Gojo fixes him with an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry."

"It's no skin off my back," he replies smoothly, "I'll just get him something small and bid him good riddance."

"That's still awfully kind of you."

The man snorts, rolling his eyes. "His fiancé forced me to do this. If I didn't, the bastard would skin me alive."

Gojo laughs. "Sounds like your friend is pretty kind as well."

"He's..." The man lowers his eyes. "Very kind, actually."

The florist frowns slightly. He had not expected that reaction. Something akin to jealousy flits under his skin, and he suddenly had the urgent desperation to know more about him.

"What's your name?"

The man raises a brow, not looking at him as he studies bunches of camellias. "Why do you ask?"

Gojo's brows twitch upwards. "If I were to say curiosity?"

"You're curious?" The man chuckles as though the thought were preposterous. "I scare most people off, you know."

"You don't scare me," Gojo responds truthfully. "Quite the contrary, actually."

"Hm." Muscles and tattoos flex as he steps closer into Gojo's space, and as much as he wants to take a step back, he stands his ground, staring defyingly into crimson depths.

"Ryomen Sukuna."

Gojo swallows hard and tries to focus on his eyes and not his mouth. "What?"

"My name. You asked for it."

The florist meets his gaze full on, licking his lips, and Sukuna's eyes dart down to the action, something dark flickering in those stunning eyes of his. "Mine is Gojo Satoru."

"Gojo." Sukuna tests the name on his tongue. He smirks and backs away. "It's nice to meet you."

"You as well."

He moves away from him to another bunch of flowers in the small store, and Gojo follows him for lack of anything better to do. He was the only guy there, after all.

"So...flowers for a wedding." Gojo leans forward, looking up at Sukuna. "If you want something simple, why not just go with roses? They're the most known."

Sukuna sighs. "I want to, but my friend said they're too basic." He frowns and runs a hand through his unruly pink hair. "Now I'm stuck with the job of picking flowers of all things."

"Hey," Gojo chides, "don't disrespect flowers like that."

The man levels him with a deadpan stare. "I live in the sweat and heat of a tattoo parlor. The last place I'd be caught dead in is a flower shop."

"Yet you're here," Gojo points out, a smile tugging on his lips.

"Yet I am," Sukuna grumbles.

Gojo chuckles, and Sukuna glares at him. "You know, you're not helping me out here."

"I can't help but laugh," Gojo grins. "You do look pretty out of place."

Sukuna looks down at himself, then to the rainbow of flowers covering the walls and sitting on the counters. He frowns but continues on, hand on his chin as he examines the colorful plants.

Gojo steps up behind him. "When do you need these flowers by?"

"By Sunday."

"Ah, we can mass order your flowers by that time," Gojo nods, more to himself than to his customer. "Will it be held in the city?"

"Yes," Sukuna answers, already picking out a flower that holds his interest. "It's not far from here actually."

Gojo smiles. "Perfect! Should I start an order for you, or..?"

Sukuna dares a glance up at Gojo for a millisecond, then looks away. "Sure."

"Alright, follow me to the counter."

"You know..."

"Hm?"

Sukuna lets his eyes travel down Gojo's muscled frame. "You should visit my place sometime."

Gojo feels his cheeks heat. "What?"

They had just finished the transaction needed to begin the process of selecting flowers for the big wedding in seven days. As soon as Gojo closed the till, Sukuna popped the question, making his mind go to places it had no business going to, because he had to admit. Sukuna was hot. And the last time he had action was ages ago, with Geto. They quickly decided they were better off as friends though, so nothing substantial had come out of that.

But this was different. Gojo feels it in his soul.

"My tattoo parlor."

Oh. Right.

That's what he meant.

As though reading his thoughts, Sukuna tilts his head with a smirk. "Or were you thinking of something else?"

Gojo flushes but stands his ground, absolutely rising to the bait. "I'm sure your intentions weren't the most pure."

"Oh but they are," Sukuna coos, leaning on the counter with an elbow. "You come to my shop, and I'll show you around."

Gojo bats his eyelashes at Sukuna, looking something akin to bashful. "What's in it for me?"

"You get to hang around me longer," Sukuna grins, and it makes something flutter in his stomach.

The florist contemplates this for all of three seconds before caving. "How far is your place?"

"A few blocks east." Sukuna holds out his hand. "If you give me that number though, I can let you know exactly how far."

"How forward," Gojo hums, bringing out his own cell phone. "Is this how you seduce all your men?"

"I usually have no need to seduce," Sukuna quips, a teasing smile on his lips. "Usually they come running without me needing to lift a finger."

"Sorry I'm making you work for it."

"No worries, I'm sure it'll be worth it."

After inputting his number into Sukuna's phone and vice versa, Gojo shoots him a crooked smile. "It was nice meeting you, Sukuna."

"You as well," the man replies, voice a touch deeper. "I look forward to meeting you again."

When the man leaves the flower shop, Gojo collapses against his counter, staring longingly after the doorway Sukuna disappeared out of. How could Geto say to avoid that? Gojo was absolutely smitten.

He couldn't wait to get back in contact with him.

A/N: im starting another fic. do i know where this is going? no. will i finish within the next few months? unlikely. has this been sitting rotting away in my wips? yuuuuup. but here we are. i'll try to update weekly though. thanks for reading.