The Flower Shop AU
Title: The Flower Shop AU
Pairing: PxP, implied Panic GSF
Dedication: Written for
angelcakes694 for her birthday. This is kind of belated xD
Author's Note: The little town is based off of my hometown.
The local flower shop was at the very end of Main Street--well, not the very end, but the end of everything that was important. The only thing past the flower shop in Spring Waters was a gas station and a fireworks shop, the latter of which was only open half of the year. Needless to say, it wasn’t a very big town.
Patrick Stump was twenty-four and he owned the flower shop in a completely unironic way--it had been his mother’s shop and it was left to him when she died the previous year. He was taking a break from college to keep the shop until someone finally showed some interest in the faded “Help Wanted” sign so he could take the half hour commute to the technical college the next town over.
Most days, Patrick was even surprised at how much business he got. It was a little strange--being the only full-time worker at the small shop. But he got all of the orders for local weddings, bridal showers, birthdays, parties, etc. When he was particularly busy, he could normally get Brendon from the smoothie shop, sometimes Ryan, to come and help him.
Their little eatery, Panic it’s a Disco, was the only ‘hip’ establishment in town---there was no mall, not even a Starbucks. It was owned by four guys who had graduated just a little bit after him. They were in a similar position to Patrick--only Ryan had had the store renovated, clearing out mostly everything that was left of the pub-style restaurant that his father had owned, with the rest of his inheritance. Ryan and his three best friends were the only workers at the shop, and they lived above it in the attic that most of the small buildings in the Main Street strip had. They were good neighbors, and the only complaint Patrick had ever heard about them was the neighbors on the other side (it was an old mini-department store, stuffed up ladies mostly) of the shop because they would sometimes get a little loud when they pulled out their instruments every Tuesday and Friday night.
Really, Patrick can’t see why Ryan wanted so badly to keep it. Ryan didn’t have any particularly good memories of the tavern, Patrick assumed--the only reason Patrick was even keeping the flower shop was because, he lived above it and he had lived their for his whole life before he moved out to college, then dropped out and came back home when his mom was diagnosed. He couldn’t even fathom selling the shop, even though he stared at the map in his room every night--with Chicago starred and push-pin marked.
________________________________________________________________________
“How about you get him a cactus?” Three boys were sitting in Panic it’s a Disco on a hot summer evening, sipping (or just holding) their smoothies (in clever black and white checkered cups with dome tops), lounging around. The one who had spoken was excessively tall (and skinny) with short dark hair and well tanned skin.
A shorter man scowled, “I am sure if Patrick wants a cactus, he could order a better cactus than I could buy him around here.”
“For serious Gabe.” A second lanky man with short-ish brown hair said, jokingly, “Pete, you should just run on in there and profess your undying love for the man and kiss him. It’ll be totally romantic.”
“Until I start coughing, my throat closes up and I die.” Pete hisses out, glaring and thinking something along the lines that Gabe and William were really not helping.
“You’re being melodramatic.” William shrugs, taking the last sip of his smoothie before hopping up and sauntering over to the counter. “Jonny Walker~ can I have another?”
One of the boys behind the counter raised a skeptical eye, “Do you ever intend on actually paying for one?”
William rolled his eyes, “I’m the one who brought him to you! Come on Jon, please?”
“You totally have to sing with me tonight then~!” One of the boys chirped from behind the counter.
“Brendon, sing your own vocals. People are gonna start thinking William’s actually in the band.”
“Hey, hey--no fair Ryan. I sing your lyrics. Sometimes I just want some Disney duets, and William is perfect for those! Come on Jon, make him his smoothie--I really want to sing ‘A Whole New World’ tonight!”
Jon stood up, chuckling at Brendon (whom was very hard to resist when pulling the pouty face) and getting up to make William another smoothie.
“Can we focus on my dilemma here?” Pete yelled from his own booth.
“I think he would like a cactus.”
“No, Just no.”
“Get him a hat.”
Pete twisted his head around to Ryan, who was now leaning on the counter, reading some music magazine.
“He’s always wearing one.” Ryan explained, “And that way you don’t have to die and he gets something he really likes.”
“Aww, thanks Ry--I didn’t know you cared about me~”
“I don’t. You just keep us in business.” Ryan shrugged, turning the page nonchalantly, shrugging at Pete’s injured look, “What? You bring all the little fan girls and those two. One of these days they’re going to have to pay us, and we are taking their tab seriously, just ask Spencer.”
Gabe was actually kind of scared of Spencer sometimes (mostly just when discussing his and William‘s epic tab), because he pulled a wicked bitchface and Ryan totally knew that or he wouldn’t have threatened him in such a manner, so Gabe felt no need to ask whether or not Spencer was keeping the tab. He knew.
______________________________
“I didn’t say I was going to come hat shopping with you.” Ryan said, as they sift through the hats in the mall, about forty minutes away from Spring Waters.
“You’re here, dude.”
Ryan was quiet, but picked up a fedora with a fucking flower on it and showed it to Pete. “How about this one?”
“If he wants a flower on his fedora, he can put a flower on his fedora. But in the mean time I am not going to be reminded of why I can’t just rush into his shop and ravish him until he says he’ll go out with me!”
“Now you’re being melodramatic.” Ryan groaned, rolling his eyes at Pete, then plucked the flower off of the hat and handed it to Pete, “He’ll like it.”
For Ryan’s “expert fashion advice” Pete ended up buying Ryan a new vest, and lunch before they went back to Spring Waters.
_____________________________
That Friday night the smoothie shop was packed. Patrick closed up the flower shop and slipped in before the crowd got too big, and he got a place up front, like he usually did. Spencer was on, and the crowd was a little rowdier than usual (school had just let out for the summer) so he was grinning so wide. Jon was standing on top of his flip flops and rocking back and forth as he played, Ryan kept on walking over to Brendon and Brendon was singing his heart out and they were on.
Patrick was grinning back at them, laughing as William bounced up on stage the third song in to sing “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” with Brendon while the other guys grabbed something to drink. After that song, during Brendon’s breather, Patrick was startled by an abrupt sneeze right behind him. Patrick turned around and there was, what would you know, Pete Wentz. The guy had a shit-eating grin on his face as he pulled Patrick’s hat off of his head, swiftly replacing it with a new one.
“For you.” He grinned, putting the other hat on the table in front of Patrick. He turned away and sneezed again, sniffling a little.
Patrick was, of course, red faced and a little confused. “Are you okay?” He asked.
Pete shrugged, looking a little sheepish. “I’m allergic to flowers.”
“Oh--umm, sorry.” Patrick said, about to move away--because, really, it was Pete Wentz and he was already embarrassed enough by the hat.
“No, no--” Pete said, grabbing Patrick’s arm as he tried to get up and move. “I was wondering if you might want to go out and get some coffee or something, see a show?”
Patrick ducked his head a little, he was totally on the spot and Brendon was gesturing wildly across the counter at him and people were starting to stare.
“Well, we’re already at a show.” Patrick said, gesturing to the seat next to him, “So maybe we can get some coffee later.”
Pairing: PxP, implied Panic GSF
Dedication: Written for
angelcakes694 for her birthday. This is kind of belated xD
Author's Note: The little town is based off of my hometown.
The local flower shop was at the very end of Main Street--well, not the very end, but the end of everything that was important. The only thing past the flower shop in Spring Waters was a gas station and a fireworks shop, the latter of which was only open half of the year. Needless to say, it wasn’t a very big town.
Patrick Stump was twenty-four and he owned the flower shop in a completely unironic way--it had been his mother’s shop and it was left to him when she died the previous year. He was taking a break from college to keep the shop until someone finally showed some interest in the faded “Help Wanted” sign so he could take the half hour commute to the technical college the next town over.
Most days, Patrick was even surprised at how much business he got. It was a little strange--being the only full-time worker at the small shop. But he got all of the orders for local weddings, bridal showers, birthdays, parties, etc. When he was particularly busy, he could normally get Brendon from the smoothie shop, sometimes Ryan, to come and help him.
Their little eatery, Panic it’s a Disco, was the only ‘hip’ establishment in town---there was no mall, not even a Starbucks. It was owned by four guys who had graduated just a little bit after him. They were in a similar position to Patrick--only Ryan had had the store renovated, clearing out mostly everything that was left of the pub-style restaurant that his father had owned, with the rest of his inheritance. Ryan and his three best friends were the only workers at the shop, and they lived above it in the attic that most of the small buildings in the Main Street strip had. They were good neighbors, and the only complaint Patrick had ever heard about them was the neighbors on the other side (it was an old mini-department store, stuffed up ladies mostly) of the shop because they would sometimes get a little loud when they pulled out their instruments every Tuesday and Friday night.
Really, Patrick can’t see why Ryan wanted so badly to keep it. Ryan didn’t have any particularly good memories of the tavern, Patrick assumed--the only reason Patrick was even keeping the flower shop was because, he lived above it and he had lived their for his whole life before he moved out to college, then dropped out and came back home when his mom was diagnosed. He couldn’t even fathom selling the shop, even though he stared at the map in his room every night--with Chicago starred and push-pin marked.
________________________________________________________________________
“How about you get him a cactus?” Three boys were sitting in Panic it’s a Disco on a hot summer evening, sipping (or just holding) their smoothies (in clever black and white checkered cups with dome tops), lounging around. The one who had spoken was excessively tall (and skinny) with short dark hair and well tanned skin.
A shorter man scowled, “I am sure if Patrick wants a cactus, he could order a better cactus than I could buy him around here.”
“For serious Gabe.” A second lanky man with short-ish brown hair said, jokingly, “Pete, you should just run on in there and profess your undying love for the man and kiss him. It’ll be totally romantic.”
“Until I start coughing, my throat closes up and I die.” Pete hisses out, glaring and thinking something along the lines that Gabe and William were really not helping.
“You’re being melodramatic.” William shrugs, taking the last sip of his smoothie before hopping up and sauntering over to the counter. “Jonny Walker~ can I have another?”
One of the boys behind the counter raised a skeptical eye, “Do you ever intend on actually paying for one?”
William rolled his eyes, “I’m the one who brought him to you! Come on Jon, please?”
“You totally have to sing with me tonight then~!” One of the boys chirped from behind the counter.
“Brendon, sing your own vocals. People are gonna start thinking William’s actually in the band.”
“Hey, hey--no fair Ryan. I sing your lyrics. Sometimes I just want some Disney duets, and William is perfect for those! Come on Jon, make him his smoothie--I really want to sing ‘A Whole New World’ tonight!”
Jon stood up, chuckling at Brendon (whom was very hard to resist when pulling the pouty face) and getting up to make William another smoothie.
“Can we focus on my dilemma here?” Pete yelled from his own booth.
“I think he would like a cactus.”
“No, Just no.”
“Get him a hat.”
Pete twisted his head around to Ryan, who was now leaning on the counter, reading some music magazine.
“He’s always wearing one.” Ryan explained, “And that way you don’t have to die and he gets something he really likes.”
“Aww, thanks Ry--I didn’t know you cared about me~”
“I don’t. You just keep us in business.” Ryan shrugged, turning the page nonchalantly, shrugging at Pete’s injured look, “What? You bring all the little fan girls and those two. One of these days they’re going to have to pay us, and we are taking their tab seriously, just ask Spencer.”
Gabe was actually kind of scared of Spencer sometimes (mostly just when discussing his and William‘s epic tab), because he pulled a wicked bitchface and Ryan totally knew that or he wouldn’t have threatened him in such a manner, so Gabe felt no need to ask whether or not Spencer was keeping the tab. He knew.
______________________________
“I didn’t say I was going to come hat shopping with you.” Ryan said, as they sift through the hats in the mall, about forty minutes away from Spring Waters.
“You’re here, dude.”
Ryan was quiet, but picked up a fedora with a fucking flower on it and showed it to Pete. “How about this one?”
“If he wants a flower on his fedora, he can put a flower on his fedora. But in the mean time I am not going to be reminded of why I can’t just rush into his shop and ravish him until he says he’ll go out with me!”
“Now you’re being melodramatic.” Ryan groaned, rolling his eyes at Pete, then plucked the flower off of the hat and handed it to Pete, “He’ll like it.”
For Ryan’s “expert fashion advice” Pete ended up buying Ryan a new vest, and lunch before they went back to Spring Waters.
_____________________________
That Friday night the smoothie shop was packed. Patrick closed up the flower shop and slipped in before the crowd got too big, and he got a place up front, like he usually did. Spencer was on, and the crowd was a little rowdier than usual (school had just let out for the summer) so he was grinning so wide. Jon was standing on top of his flip flops and rocking back and forth as he played, Ryan kept on walking over to Brendon and Brendon was singing his heart out and they were on.
Patrick was grinning back at them, laughing as William bounced up on stage the third song in to sing “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” with Brendon while the other guys grabbed something to drink. After that song, during Brendon’s breather, Patrick was startled by an abrupt sneeze right behind him. Patrick turned around and there was, what would you know, Pete Wentz. The guy had a shit-eating grin on his face as he pulled Patrick’s hat off of his head, swiftly replacing it with a new one.
“For you.” He grinned, putting the other hat on the table in front of Patrick. He turned away and sneezed again, sniffling a little.
Patrick was, of course, red faced and a little confused. “Are you okay?” He asked.
Pete shrugged, looking a little sheepish. “I’m allergic to flowers.”
“Oh--umm, sorry.” Patrick said, about to move away--because, really, it was Pete Wentz and he was already embarrassed enough by the hat.
“No, no--” Pete said, grabbing Patrick’s arm as he tried to get up and move. “I was wondering if you might want to go out and get some coffee or something, see a show?”
Patrick ducked his head a little, he was totally on the spot and Brendon was gesturing wildly across the counter at him and people were starting to stare.
“Well, we’re already at a show.” Patrick said, gesturing to the seat next to him, “So maybe we can get some coffee later.”