#disptach

You knew Herman would never make the first move.

The smallest altercation made him fumble and trip over himself to think of something to say, mopping up his own nervous puddles took up most of his janitorial duties that weren't cleaning out the fridge or cleaning the restrooms. To anyone else, he was pathetic and maybe even pitiful: you're born a superhero and they have you cleaning toilets and showers instead?

But, oh, he was so sweet.

Maybe it was rude to say that he was meant for hospitality but his kindness (and his crush) came out in little ways that made you feel like you had a high school crush again. Every morning at the beginning of your shift, a coffee with an unmistakable wet handprint on the already flimsy cardboard cup magically appeared at your desk. After weekends, a still dripping flower of any kind was placed in your pencil cup with the rest of your squeaky clean desk, something you would never do for yourself or anyone else here if you were in his spot.

You had to get to know him.

He's cleaning when you see him, humming and occasionally muttering to himself as he moves from desk to desk. The wet squeaks of his water suit interrupt the silence of the empty dispatch floor, a faint drip in the mix that no doubt was coming from Waterboy himself.

"Herman, right?"

Herman gasps, jolting back from your desk.

Of course, through all the rosy colored glasses you wore, this was still Waterboy.

Your pencil holder is knocked over, the pens and pencils scattering on the floor between the two of you. "S-Sorry, sorry. I, um, I didn't know, know anyone was still here. Still in the office." Herman laughs nervously, ducking down to clean up his mess. You can't help a smile at the way he awkwardly clatters the stationary into the metal cup, his cheeks flushed red and some of his hair falling into his face just the slightest. "Sorry for sneaking up on you like that. I just finally wanted to see who was the one keep my cubicle so homey." you hum, picking up the remaining pencils and dropping them into the cup when Herman finally stands.

Damn, he's tall.

"O-Oh, yes, the desk-your desk. My grandma, she gardens, um, tries to garden. The flowers, their-are her favorite, especially.." Herman starts before trailing off, the smile that tugged at his lips beginning to fall in realization as his eyes grow wide.

The flowers.

The coffee.

You knew it was him.

"Waterboy, you..okay-"

"YES. F-Fine. Sorry. Sorry." he gulps when his voice rises in pitch a bit, water beginning to drip from his head and down his arm in tiny rivulets uncontrollably. "Hey, d-don't freak out, okay? I really, really appreciate what you've been doing, really. It's very sweet of you." you say with a nervous laugh, watching the way he looks between the mop bucket he was using and where you stand in front of him; was he going to do that vomiting thing?

"You...you do?"

"Yes. I know we don't necessarily run into each other all the time, but.." you start, even feeling yourself flush a bit, "I'd really like to. More often, I mean."

Herman simply blinks at you a bit, his cheeks turning almost impossibly more red. Was this really happening? Right now? To him? He didn't know how to flirt, what was he supposed to say next, his grandma hadn't told him what to if YOU were the one to talk to him first, this was all wrong-

"Y-You, uh..you want me-me to clean your..desk more? When you are at your, at your desk?" he finally stammers out, his heart falling into his stomach when you return the very same blinking he had done at you moments ago. He almost laughs when you start to giggle, refraining from commenting on how hearing you laugh in the break room was almost always a highlight of his day.

"Yeah. Let's call it 'cleaning my desk'. Cleaning and conveniently making casual conversation."

Herman swears you could see the way his heart was beating out of his chest and against his swimsuit.

"W-Whatever you need, boss-I mean, miss, um..yeah." Herman laughs, clearing his throat when you start to pick up your bag from where it sat only a few feet away from your chair. For a moment, you are close enough to him that you can finally see his features despite the ever dripping moisture on him. Freckles are spattered over the bridge of his nose and cheekbones, some even peaking out from the neck of his water suit. Even with the way it sticks to his forehead and skin, you can tell that there is an attempt every morning to organize any sopping wet pieces of hair before it eventually all becomes one big damp mess. You look away before you offer Herman a wave that he returns awkwardly, a geeky smile on his face that you're not sure you've ever seen on him before.

"And Herman?"

"Y-Yes, maam?"

You pretend to ignore the slight satisfaction hearing him say that gives you, briefly thinking of how much you'd like to hear him say that after a fairly successful date with less clothing.

"Get yourself a coffee, too. You deserve it."

Herman laughs at that, grabbing the mop he had disregarded and nodding as you walk away. "I-I don't drink caffeine, um, coffee, but, y-yes. Yes, maam."

ଘ(੭*ˊᵕˋ)੭* ੈ♡‧₊˚₊˚ ‿︵‿︵‿︵୨୧ · · ♡ ˚₊

It was a little crazy how easy it was for the two of you to get along in only a span of a few weeks. It was even more surprising to you now how exactly Waterboy had never managed to fully be on anyone else's good side other than maybe Robert but it was sort of his job to keep the peace. Herman was funny even when he wasn't trying to be, he was constantly repeating himself whenever you showed even the slightest playful scolding. He definitely made more than a few people slip while standing around you and it was then he would be ushered away to get back to work more so for the safety of everybody else around them who were just trying to get to the bathroom or the break room.

The flowers were even more frequent now; "Does your grandma know your stealing these and bringing them to me?" you'd giggled one morning, taking the lily from your pencil cup and sniffing it contentedly. "Y-Yeah, yes, she, um..she picks t-them and then I bring them for-for you." he chuckled, his cheeks red as he held his coffee cup (filled with water) in both hands.

You liked him.

A lot.

"Hey, you." You call with a wave, your bag slung over your shoulder as you walk up to your cubicle. Herman made it a habit now to leave your desk for last, giving the two of you a chance to debrief for the day and mostly let you gossip about whatever things you'd heard over the SDN. It was dark out now, the floodlights outside the building overlooking the parking lot only illuminating a few employees that were still sticking around for whatever reason. A few of the cubicles have their lamps on while the main office lights have been turned off for the night, making the entire room feel a bit more nostalgic than usual. "You know, cleaning my desk at the end of the day isn't very optimal. We both could have been home by now." you say as you lean against the wall of your cubicle, Herman chuckling softly as he finally drops the mop back into the bucket.

"Y-Yeah, yes, but..I-I like it."

He doesn't look at you when you roll your eyes despite the smile on your face, pushing off the wall and gesturing to the exit as if saying 'let's go'.

"You don't have to walk me to my car today, I parked-"

"C-Can I say- ask you something-"

You both stop speaking at the very same time, waiting for the other to begin. Before either of you can fully react, you put your finger to the tip of your nose and leave Herman stammering.

"Nose goes."

Herman knows that despite the pit in his stomach, he can't say no to you. "Um, yes, yeah, n-nose. Yeah." he mumbles, looking down at his feet. The small trickles of water come first, falling into puddles at his feet. You tilt your head curiously, a smile tugging at your lips. You knew Herman was already a notoriously nervous guy but you hadn't seen him like this around you in a while now.

"Herm, are you-"

"W-Wouldyouliketogoeat- I mean..h-have. Dinner. With. With me."

Even you have to sweat a bit at that.

You two had been having so much fun together already, eating lunch together, sneaking away for impromptu breaks to talk about little ridiculous things, all the things that could only be limited to an office environment.

This would be the first time you two saw each other physically outside of work. Ever.

"I..Herman-"

"I-I understand if you're, um, if you're b-busy, or, maybe-maybe not interested-" he mutters with a high, nervous laugh, grabbing the mop and again and trying and failing to mop up the large puddles forming around him in seconds. Stupid, this was stupid, he was stupid to think someone like you, someone beautiful and kind and smart and charming would want to do anything more with him than get a coffee-

"I would love to."

Herman stops what he's doing, doing a double take before full on staring at you. You were blushing. Hard. You were smiling, you were blushing, you were looking at him the same way the girls in his grandma's soap operas would look at the guys riding horses or serenading them under their window. You were really looking at him like you really liked him.

A lot.

"Y-You..You would love to. Love. You..really?"

Your laugh sends a delightful rush through. It was tinkly and felt like it was made of soft clouds. He would never get tired of it.

"Let's take it slow on the love part, but, yes, Hermy. Let's go to dinner." you hum, smiling so hard you're afraid your face will stay that way. As long as it's him who's making you smile that way.

Hermy.

Herman could die a happy man right now.

"Yes..Yes! Um-"

"Friday. That new Italian place that just opened. I can make the reservation."

"Yes. F-Friday. Italian. After- After work." Herman chimes in, looking to actually contribute to this; "I know you like the girl, Hermy, but make sure she knows you want this. Don't let her go and do all the planning." his grandma had said with an only slightly stern stone, shaving off the thorns of one of her roses. Wouldn't grandma love to hear this.

"Cool. Friday it is."

The two of you stand a few feet from each other, each seemingly entranced by the other: this was happening and it was real. "Um.." you finally start, looking at the door behind you and then at Herman as you feel a blush start to form on your cheeks. "I should, I should go. Don't want you to get in trouble for the mess with the water."

"O-Oh, yes, the- the mess. I-I've got it. Thank you. Maam."

You hadn't really gotten the nerve to get him to stop calling you that. Nor did you want him to stop. Before you can stop yourself, before you can psyche yourself out, you close the gap between the two of you and press a quick kiss to his wet cheek, a hand on his shoulder for support before pulling away. You swear Herman freezes on the spot, the red on his face spreading to his ears and the tip of his nose.

"OK. Bye."

"..G-Goodbye."

You finally walk off, heading for the elevator and pressing the button to take you to the ground floor. You smile all the way to your car, a hand over your lips and a giggle or two slipping out of you.

ଘ(੭*ˊᵕˋ)੭* ੈ♡‧₊˚₊˚ ‿︵‿︵‿︵୨୧ · · ♡ ˚₊

waterboy is #forced to be a gentleman bc his grandma raised a man, not a little boy

ending is lowkey sudden but listen. today has been a long day

HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED THAT i havent written something entirely fluffy and lighthearted in such a long time and am so #excited for what little bit more im going to write :0)