Zeke sits alone in the break room while his tired eyes peer out the huge floor-to-ceiling window at his side. He rests his chin atop his palm, and he watches as the sun begins to make its way up past the tall pine and coniferous trees of Pennsylvania. The sky indicates yet another beautiful, calm day up here in the Poconos.

The teenager can’t help but yawn. He hates getting up this early. His bleary attention falls towards the coffee machine inside the room. He’s not much of a coffee drinker, but maybe he’ll indulge this morning… Just to give himself something to do while he waits.

He considers it, but his eyes fall back towards the window at his side, and he stares aimlessly at the world that he’s found himself in. This view is so different from the one he grew up with. He’s impossibly far from home, and yet he finds himself at peace. Despite his new found comfort, Zeke’s heart wonders how his family is doing. He really ought to get home at some point. Just a few more weeks here, and maybe then he’ll feel ready to face his old life again.

Besides, he’s finding himself rather invested in the Hotel’s history, especially after Lewis’ little history lesson in that elevator last week. It’s a unique town with an interesting story, and he’d really like to know some of the finer details. He’ll have to keep prying Lewis for the local history… It’s more entertaining than cleaning rooms, vacuuming the endless hallways, or sitting at the front desk for hours.

At his side, the door to the break room begins to open, and Zeke’s attention immediately turns to see who’s coming in. He expects to see Becka, since she’s on overnight duty; however, much to Zeke’s surprise, in walks Lewis.

The two make eye contact, and the ginger freezes in place. He’s dressed for the day, complete with his messenger bag slung over his shoulder. Clearly, he’s caught off guard too, so he lets out a small, “ah - hi, Zeke. I  wasn’t expecting to see you this early today.”

“Yeah,” the teenager mumbles, “same with you.”

A light smile forms on Lewis’ face as he finally makes his way into the room. His green eyes fall towards the outfit that his assistant wears, “ah… What’cha doing here? Is everything okay?”

Shit. Zeke’s eyes go wide as he realizes that he’s still dressed in his lounging tee-shirt and gym shorts, “yeah - uh. My new place doesn’t have a washer and dryer. So… Just doin’ a quick load of laundry here before my shift,” Zeke responds, bending the truth.

“Ahhh,” Lewis nods his head in understanding.

There’s a brief moment of silence between the manager and his assistant. Zeke speaks up again, “I can… Uh, I can take it out, if you’d like. Haul it all to a laundromat.”

As he prepares the coffee machine for a morning cup, Lewis doesn't say anything; his silence spikes Zeke’s anxiety about his current living situation. After a few moments, he finally responds, “Mr. Wright might not take so kindly to it.”

“Riiight,” Zeke's shoulders slump a bit.

Lewis looks over his shoulder towards his assistant, and there’s a playful gleam to his expression, “although, he’s not here yet.”

Zeke peers up at his boss, “so… Do you mind if I do my laundry here? Because you know that I don’t really care what Mr. Wright thinks.”

This brings a coy smile to Lewis’ face, although his attention is down towards his coffee preparations, “I don’t mind. Everyone needs a little help sometimes.”

Zeke lets a tired smile draw on his face, “that’s… That’s surprisingly cool of you, Lewis. Thanks.”

The manager shrugs lightly as he waits for the machine to brew his cup, “I’m just glad that the Hotel can provide for you. That’s what it’s here for, after all.”

“Yeah,” Zeke hums, and his attention falls back towards the window, “I was actually just thinking about how grateful I am to be here, funnily enough.”

He hears the smile on Lewis’ face as he responds, “that’s nice to hear. The Hotel is a bit of an oasis, I think.”

Zeke smiles at that as he watches two birds dance in the air around one another outside. He decides to ask, “is that why you’re here so early today then? To enjoy the peace and quiet before work starts?”

Lewis chuckles, “hah, well. Not quite. I - ah. Well, I couldn’t get back to sleep this morning, so I figured… Might as well come in early to get some work done,” he says, and as he pulls his mug out from under the machine’s spout, he adds, “it’s not like I have much of anything else going on, anyways.”

This last statement catches Zeke off guard. He peers up towards Lewis as he dances around the kitchen to gather supplies for his coffee. Zeke isn’t sure if he can necessarily pry about that, but it sounds like Lewis admitted to having nothing else going for him other than this dingy old Hotel. So, Zeke just says, “if not anything else, you’re great at finding things to do around here, that’s for sure.”

Lewis huffs in amusement as he pours some oat milk creamer into his cup of coffee. All he says is, “well, you know what they say about idle hands.”

❧

By the time eight rolls around, Zeke is all finished with his laundry and dressed for the day. As the rest of the staff trudges in, Zeke locates Cherry and Kara up at the front desk. The two women speak in hushed tones with one another over the marble countertop when Zeke so rudely interrupts, “Cherry, Kara. Good morning!”

Cherry gives him a genuine smile, “oh! Good morning, Zeke.”

“Jesus, I’ve never seen you so… Chipper,” Kara says, giving him a sharp gray-eyed glare.

“Yeah? I had a cup of coffee this morning. God am I feeling it,” Zeke laughs at himself.

“Did the Energizer bunny jizz in your cup, or what?” Kara hisses as she folds her arms.

“Gross,” Zeke gives her a look, “actually, I’ve just been struck by this great idea. You guys wanna hear it?”

“Sure,” Cherry smiles.

“Spit it out,” Kara hums.

“Okay, so look,” Zeke starts, “after getting trapped in an elevator with Lewis for a couple hours earlier this week, I’ve kinda been able to like… Pick him apart?” He says, making a gesture with his hands as if he were picking petals off a flower, “and I think I know why the guy is so anal about this place.”

Cherry hesitates before asking, “and why’s that?”

“The guy is super lonely,” Zeke says with a motivated grin.

Kara rolls her eyes, “we coulda told you that.”

“Wh - hey, maybe you two could help me then. I’ve got this crazy idea. If he has something else to throw his time into, maybe he’ll stop being such a - a…” he thinks for the word, “a snob at work.”

“I think this place is cracking him,” Kara says towards Cherry.

Zeke completely disregards that comment, “so? How would you two like to help me set Lewis up with a date?”

There’s nothing but dead silence from the three of them for a moment. The two women make eye contact, almost talking in their own subtle, completely silent language. Eventually, Cherry speaks up, “ya know, Zeke? I think your heart is in the right place, but I just don’t know if that’s a good idea.”

“What?” Zeke’s shoulders slump, “why not?”

“There’s, like, a million and one reasons, dumbass,” Kara speaks up, “he’s kind of a loner. I mean, like. Can you blame the guy?”

“After all he’s been through,” Cherry adds sadly.

“Why?” Zeke tilts his head to the side, “what happened?”

Again, the two women stare at each other as if communicating telepathically. Zeke tries to make out the subtle glances and head nods, but he’s out of the loop. In a moment, Cherry asks, “um, Zeke? Are you from around here?”

Zeke shakes his head, “nope. I don’t understand why that’s so outrageous to everyone.”

Kara’s eyes go wide as she looks towards her roommate, and Cherry just pouts back. Kara lightly shakes her head, and Cherry bobs hers to the side; whatever they’re communicating to one another, Zeke’s unable to decipher it. Eventually, Kara is the one to speak first, “look. If you wanna play Cupid, just go for it.”

“But! I’d advise you to just sit down and talk to Lewis about it first,” Cherry smiles, although there’s a semblance of pity in her eyes, “there might be more to the puzzle than you think.”

“Well… What do I need to know? I mean, you gossip, like, all day long with Rosa,” Zeke looks towards Cherry.

She shrugs, and with a sigh, she says, “some things need to come straight from the horse’s mouth, my friend.”

“Mm,” Zeke grunts, “well, okay then… Hey, either of you two wouldn’t possibly be interested in taking him out to dinner or something, would you?”

“Oh my god, gross,” Kara spits.

Cherry pouts, “ohhh, Zeke...”

But before he can poke them further on that train of thought, Zeke notices movement off to the side that grabs his attention. Moving towards the exit of the Hotel, he notices Becka about to leave for the day. He better act quick if he wants to prod her too, so he decides to ditch his friends by jogging up to her, “hey, Becka!”

The night manager stops in her tracks as she’s about to open the double doors. She peers down at the teen with her cool, blue eyes, “hey, little dude. What’s up?”

“Hey,” he’s caught off guard by how intimidating this woman is for a moment before he continues, “look, long story short, I’m trying to set Lewis up on a date. The guy is, like, super lonely. You… Wouldn’t be interested, would you?”

A smirk wipes on the woman’s face, “me? Nah. But, hey, I’ve been meaning to ask him something. Two of my girlfriends are looking for a ginger donor. I dunno if that’s something he’d be into or not. Maybe he’ll respond better if you pitch the idea to him.”

“Uh,” Zeke’s shoulder slump, “not quite what I’m looking for.”

“No? I mean, they’re just looking for someone with his freckled skin and that lush, ginger hair,” she says, her eyes falling just past Zeke for a moment. He cocks his head to the side to get her attention again. The woman continues, “I got one of the ladies’ business cards. She runs a little salon in the South part of town,” she says, digging into her heavy shoulder bag. She takes out an entirely too packed wallet and fishes out a wrinkled business card, “might not be what you’re looking for, but hey. Could give him some sense of purpose to help two awesome women out,” she smiles.

“Uh. Yeah,” Zeke hums, taking the card from her, “yeah, thanks, Becka. That’s pretty cool of you. Thanks!”

“Any time,” she responds cooly, “now I gotta fly. My rides here. Peace,” she smiles at the teenager as she makes her way out of the building. Zeke slides the business card into his back pocket, and suddenly, he feels Cherry and Kara’s eyes on him from across the long Hotel lobby. Zeke peers over at them with a half-smile. Cherry nearly looks scared, while Kara’s got remorse all over her face.

 “What?” the teenager shrugs, “I got something, at least.”

❧

Zeke saunters through the halls with an unbridled pep in his step; maybe Lewis is onto something with that cup of coffee first thing in the morning. He feels fantastic, and he’s rather eager to start the day. However, before he checks in with his boss, he decides to poke Rosa to see if she has any leads. He rounds the corner and peeks his head into the main custodian access point. As usual, she’s preparing her housekeeping cart with all the cleaning supplies she and Cherry will need for the day. Zeke gives a courtesy knock on the door frame and says, “hey, Rosa.”

She peers up, and she almost looks surprised to see him. She doesn’t stop stocking her cart as she says, “hey, mijo. You doin’ good?”

“Uh, yes, ma’am. Actually, I had a question for ya.”

“Mm. What’s up? Don’t take too long, Lewis is expecting to see me in about five minutes or so.”

Zeke smiles, “yeah. Actually, it’s about Lewis.”

This catches the woman’s attention as she completely halts what she’s doing, “oh, yeah? Everything… Okay?”

This cautious response catches Zeke off guard, “well - yeah. I guess I’ve just noticed that Lewis is kinda lonely. I’m asking around to see if you know any women who might be interested.”

“Women? Interested?” Rosa’s thin eyebrows shoot up across her tan forehead, “oh, mijo,” she trails off, eyes dipping back down to her cart, “look, ah… Hm. How long have you been in town?”

“Since I started working here,” he hums.

Her hazel eyes fill with intrigue, “so you really are new to town. Look, I had a hunch. But… wow,” she grins.

“Sooo… Do you know somebody, or..?”

A rich smile forms on Rosa’s face before she hushes her voice down real low, “look. There’s a PTA mom at my daughter’s school. I don’t know if Lewis would be down for that sort of thing. But word has it that she likes to seduce young, handsome men for a few nights before she’s done playing with them.”

“Oh,” Zeke hums. Maybe getting Lewis laid would be a good thing. He speaks up after a moment of consideration, “yeah, I mean. I guess I’ll take it. You got her information?”

“Sure do. I’ll send you her contact card. She’s a fierce woman. I dunno. Might tie into Lewis’ thing for bold personalities,” she laughs at herself as she pulls out her phone. Zeke lets out a small, confused laugh, because he’s not so sure what she means by that. From his back pocket, he feels his phone vibrate with her text.

“Hope that helps. Now, ah… I gotta go check in with Lewis. You know how he is about his time-keeping,” she purses her lips as she begins to take reign of the custodian cart.

“Oh, yeah, trust me. I know,” Zeke grins, “that’s what this whole thing is about, anyways.”

❧

For a good chunk of the day, Zeke gets back to work. He checks in with Lewis between tasks, and he’s even received a few words of praise regarding his improvements with timeliness. Seriously, this cup of coffee is doing wonders. Either that, or Zeke’s found other reasons to be so punctual and careful regarding his work. Who knows, really.

While he’s waiting for Lewis to look through his clipboard for the next task of the day, Zeke ponders about his plan to set the guy up on a date. Maybe this would be a little easier if he actually knew anybody in town; unfortunately, he's confined to the folks he knows at this godforsaken Hotel.

Zeke looks at the orderly nature of the man’s desk; he’s so tidy. He’d have to be set up with a woman that’s well-kept. He dresses nice, what with his silk button-ups, and his well fitting slacks, and his boring loafers. He’d probably like someone that dresses to impress as well. Oh, and he’s quite professional and well-spoken in nature… Well, when Mr. Wright isn’t beating him down, that is. Lewis would probably need a lady that’s just as reserved and proper as him.

Unless, of course, opposites attract, in which he’d need to be paired with someone that’s a little disorganized and carefree. Someone that has a casual relationship to clothes. Someone that’s not afraid to speak up when things are awry. Rosa did mention that he likes people with bold personalities, after all.

None the wiser, Lewis looks up at his assistant with kind eyes and gently asks for him to go check in with maintenance to see how some of those projects are coming along. With his newfound working attitude, Zeke is happy to do so… Although he can’t promise any real results from Lauren and his lackadaisical self.

Zeke meanders down the hall, and he finds that this is the perfect opportunity to make an advancement on his game of Cupid. He gives a knock on the maintenance door before entering, and he pokes his head in to see Lauren at his workbench.

“Well, hey, bud!” Lauren beams, lifting up a pair of clear goggles and setting them atop his head.

“Hey, Lauren. Just doing a check-in for Lewis,” Zeke hums, finally looking over this cursive list of ongoing maintenance requests. There’s a few things to follow up on, but Zeke decides to ask about the bullet point that’s highlighted, “any luck on that broken elevator?”

The sandy blonde laughs, “oh, yeah, don’t you worry your little head, my friend. We’ve got a much more pressing matter! After I very reluctantly released those raccoons from their room, I noticed that they left some nasty damage on the door to their suite.”

“So… What are you doing?” Zeke hums as he curiously steps inside the room. There are two unattached doors within his workshop: one is propped against the wall, and it’s absolutely scratched to shreds on the inside. The other sits atop his workbench, and it looks like it’s getting a fresh coat of lacquer.

“Just fixing up a new door for that suite,” he gestures to his fine craftsmanship, “just a quick little project. Then I promise I’ll get around to that elevator.”

“Uh huh. So what should I tell Lewis then? He’s gonna be pretty pissed that you’re not up to his schedule,” Zeke states.

“Just tell him the truth, buddy,” Lauren smiles, “let him be mad. I’ll handle the brunt of his anger, don’t worry.”

“Mmm,” Zeke hums, thinking it over. He looks up at the man, “aight. I’ll let him know you intend to do that later today, then.”

Lauren shrugs, “sure, bud. Anything else I can do for ya? I’m aching to get back to some quality time with this beaut,” his brown eyes fall back on the door beside him, caressing the side with a gloved hand.

“Actually, yeah, man. I got a quick question for ya.”

“What’s up?”

“So… I’ve got kind of a silly task going today. I’m - uh - looking to set Lewis up on a date - " 

Lauren cuts him off with excitement, “well, I’d be honored to spend a couple nights with him, if he felt that way!”

Zeke’s completely caught off guard by that response. He didn’t think Lauren swung that way… Well, he’s never really thought about it before just now. Before he can respond, Lauren sighs, “oh, I’d love to admire someone so brilliantly built. Truly. That man’s body is a work of the ancient Grecians.”

Zeke stifles a grin at that; Lewis does have the curly hair and prominent nose of a Grecian statue, at the very least. Nonetheless, Zeke responds, “right, well, I’ll keep that in mind. Uh, do you happen to know any women that might be interested?”

Lauren glances at him with furrowed brows, yet there’s an amused grin hidden under his sandy facial hair. Then, he laughs as he asks, “how long have you lived in Heart Hollow, my friend?”

“Everybody keeps asking me that,” he rolls his eyes, “I moved here when I got this job in June.”

“Ahhh,” Lauren scratches at his beard as he thinks on this for a moment. He peers back over towards Zeke with kind eyes, “let me tell you a thing or two about the Heart families… They’re lovers at heart. Passion courses through their veins, it’s embedded into their blood. Now Lewis: he’s a special fella. True heart of gold on that one. He’s… Well. He’s fragile. And stingy who he gives his heart to these days. So, long story short. He’s a lover, not a dater. So while I do know plenty of gorgeous women his age… I’m going to have to politely decline as to respect my friend’s heart.”

Zeke shakes his head with confused amusement, because he’s kind of flabbergasted by that response. He claps his hands together, “alrighty then, Lauren. I guess I’ll let him know that you’d be down to… Admire him, I guess.”

Lauren shrugs with a goofy smile, “well, I don’t think he’d be into that, but maybe some no-strings-attached intimacy would do the guy some good.”

“You’re an interesting guy, Lauren.”

“Oh, I’m just honest! Now, if you’ll excuse me… I’d like to admire this door a bit more before it's condemned to the ground level.”

This makes Zeke laugh a bit, “yeah, man. Sure thing,” he backtracks out of the workshop, “catch ya later.”

Lauren gives him a little wave before the door shuts behind him. As Zeke treks down the hallway, he tries to shake off the rather vivid image that Lauren painted in his head… However, when Zeke strolls back into Lewis’ closet-office, he can’t help but glance at those biceps that hide under the guy’s light pink sleeves.

❧

By Zeke’s lunch hour, his caffeine high has worn off. He’s starting to drag a bit, but he’s patching himself up with a cigarette on the patio. He sighs out smoke; this game of Cupid isn’t turning out as he had hoped. He has options, but none of them are what he’s looking for: a pair of women who need a ginger donor, a PTA mom that plays with handsome young men, and a male co-worker who would like to admire his body. That’s it. That’s all he’s got.

No real eligible bachelorette’s phone numbers or online profiles. There’s only one person that he hasn’t asked yet, and he was really hoping it wouldn’t come to this. Zeke stamps out his nearly-finished cigarette before making his departure back to the interior of the Hotel. He trudges inside, up the rotunda stairs, and back towards the management hallway. This is going to suck.

Zeke knocks on the door, and he hears a grumbled, “come in,” from the other side. He peeks his head in to make eye contact with Mr. Wright; the rich smell of cologne and whiskey immediately nauseates the teenager. The big boss man furrows his brow, “oh. It’s you.”

“Mind if I come in for a second?” Zeke asks, still holding onto the door. He’s scared of whatever this interaction is going to lead to.

“I guess,” Mr. Wright hums, taking a big sip out of his whiskey glass, “what’s wrong then?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” Zeke mutters back as he cautiously walks inside. He leaves the door propped open behind him, “I actually just had a quick question for ya.”

“Spit it out then, boy.”

“Right,” Zeke responds as he takes a cushy seat across from the man’s desk, although he immediately regrets that decision, because he doesn’t like the way the fabric feels underneath him. He starts with, “so, I’m doing this stupid little side thing. For Lewis, ya see.”

The old man just raises one of his thick, graying eyebrows, clearly giving the kid in his chair a look full of disdain.

Zeke continues, “I’d like to set the guy up with a date. I don’t really know anybody in town… You’re a hotshot around here, right? Owning the Hotel and all. I figured you’d know a few women his age that might be interested.”

“Women?” The man grins, and shivers go down Zeke’s spine, because he’s never seen the man grin before. Then, Mr. Wright busts out into a full fledged, hearty laugh. He even goes so hard as to hit a palm on his heavy oakwood desk and everything. After a few moments of hysterical laughter, he finally speaks up, “oh, kid. You must be new around here, ain'tcha?”

“Yeah,” Zeke responds.

“Look, ah,” Mr. Wright wipes his eyes, “if I knew any beautiful, single women, they’d be here in my office,” he grins a big, scary smile.

“Right,” Zeke hums. Of course Mr. Wright isn’t going to be of any help; he never is. Zeke decides to get up out of his crusty seat, and he says, “right, well. Thanks, anyway.”

“Wait, wait. Hold on a minute, twerp,” Mr. Wright says from his seat, “what’s this all about?”

“Uh,” Zeke starts, hands holding onto the back of the chair he was just sitting in, “I just think that Lewis seems pretty lonely. Right? Like. Um,” he struggles to formulate his thoughts properly. Besides, Mr. Wright was the last person he should tell about this plan. He takes advantage of Lewis’ loneliness and loyalty to the Hotel, after all. Trying to get him to understand might just look bad. Zeke continues, “just figured it’d be nice to let the guy breathe a little.”

Mr. Wright just stares the kid down. Any semblance of that smile he wore just moments ago has faded completely. Eventually, the man sits back in his oversized leather desk chair as he says, “sure, sure. As long as this doesn’t interfere with work around here. He keeps things running smoothly around here, ya see,” he keeps his cool gray eyes pinned on the teenager as he continues, “it’d be a shame to lose his loyalty to the Hotel over some… Girl,” he smirks.

“Right,” Zeke trails off and he inches his way to the door. The thick brunette hairs on his arms are starting to rise, because he doesn’t appreciate the tone in the old man’s voice. Nonetheless, he says, “well, it looks like we’re at a dead end anyways: nothing but people who might wanna screw him for a night.”

“Good,” the boss says from his seat, “don’t need this disrupting the peace we got here. You on the same page with me?”

Oh, he’s on the same page with Mr. Wright, alright. About how he exploits Lewis to do all his general manager bullshit, so he gets to sit in his office and pretend like he’s bigger than all of them?

Yeah. Same page.

Instead of barking back profanities like he wants to, Zeke just hums out a light, “yeah,” out of pure formality.

“Lovely. Now scram, boy. Angeline’s gonna be here, and I don’t need this to kill my mood.”

Without another word, Zeke leaves with an eye-roll. He was already starting to feel a little downtrodden, but this just made it ten times worse. As he trails down the hallway, he passes by Angeline on her way to greet her sugar daddy. He briefly considers stopping her to ask if she knew anybody… But ultimately decides against it. Instead, just a simple peace sign and a little, “what’s up,” as he passes by.

His path leads him right to the front lobby, around the corner to where Kara stands. Right now, she focuses on painting her nails black. She greets him with sass, “look what came crawling back. Your little Cupid plan didn’t go as you had hoped?” She asks, though her tone drips with sarcasm.

“Shut it,” Zeke grumbles back, leaning over the front desk. He follows up by saying a much smaller, “yeah. Barely got anybody’s phone numbers. I think Lauren’s gay, so that’s something.”

“Lauren’ll tap anything that moves, babe,” she hums, cool gray eyes falling back down to her fingernails as she delicately paints them.

“Good on him,” Zeke states.

She glares at him skeptically through her eyelashes before continuing, “all I’m saying is: you wasted the whole day playing Cupid, when you shoulda just done what Cherry told you to do in the first place. Go talk to Lewis.”

“And what? Tell him I’ve been sneaking around between tasks to try and land him a date?”

“Just tell him what you’ve been up to. But, ya know, why listen to me? I’ve only known him for, like, fifteen years.”

Zeke just eyes the woman as he contemplates his options. Yes, he’s been on top of his chores today, but it might not look great if he were to come clean about this escapade. After all, Zeke made a huge deal about mixing personal and work lives, and the more he thinks about it, the more it seems like this might be crossing that line. That being said, Lewis might think it nice of his assistant to go out of his way like this. If Cherry and Kara are telling him to just be upfront about it, then maybe that’s what he should do.

Zeke slaps his hand down on the marble countertop, “fine. I’ll go talk to Lewis. But if I get in trouble for being honest, then I’mma be real pissed with you.”

“Go ahead, shrimp boy,” she hums, “see what happens.”

“Hmph,” Zeke grunts, gathering himself. He proceeds back down the hallway towards the direction he just came from. Trudging his sneakers across the pink shag, he makes his way towards Lewis’ little closet-office. Like usual, his door is propped open slightly.

Zeke knocks and pokes his head through the cracked door. Lewis looks up from his paperwork, and his face turns from stern concentration to a look of pleasant surprise, “hi, Zeke. Come on in,” he says lightly. Then, he checks his watch, “it’s still your lunch hour. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Zeke trails off as he lets himself into the cramped space, “uh, I just gotta talk to you about something.”

“Oh, sure,” the ginger hums gently as he sets his clipboard off to the side to give his assistant his full attention, “how can I help you?”

Zeke hesitantly takes a seat across the desk from his manager, “I just… Um. Well. Cherry and Kara said that I oughtta be honest with you, sooo… Here I am.”

Lewis’ bright green eyes widen with anticipation. It seems as though he’s giving Zeke the room to talk, so he adds, “look, I got this absolutely absurd idea this morning, and I decided to roll with it.”

Lewis cocks his head to the side, and his face is hard to read.

Zeke continues, “I don’t know anybody in town, seeing as I just got here and all. So, I was asking around to see if anybody knew any single women your age so that I could maybe set you up on a date.”

“Oh,” Lewis hums with light consternation.

“Yeah. Didn’t really go as planned,” Zeke sighs, and at Lewis’ silence, he proceeds to explain his findings, “there’s this couple that are looking for a ginger donor, so that’s cool. And, uh, there’s this PTA mom who… Well, she’s into young men, so that’s something, I guess. And, uh, apparently Lauren thinks you’re pretty, so maybe there’s something there. Might be kinda weird though… With him being your employee and everything.”

There's a heavy moment of silence between the two as Lewis digests this, and eventually the assistant manager speaks up, “I appreciate the sentiment, Zeke. Really, I do. What - if you don’t mind me asking - what sparked you to do all this?”

“Um. Well, after getting stuck in the elevator together, I kinda thought to myself: hey. Maybe this guy could, like, use some companionship. Like, please don’t take this the wrong way. But you just seem kinda… Uh. Lonely.”

A faint, flustered smile wipes across his boss’ face.

Light panic erupts within Zeke, so he keeps talking, “I even thought about, like, building you a dating profile or something. But as it turns out… Dude. I know nothing about you; your birthday, your hobbies, how tall you are. Nothing.”

It takes Lewis a moment to say, “you know, Zeke… If you wanted to learn more about me, you could have just asked.”

“Oh,” Zeke hums, looking across the table towards his manager with his big, naive, umber eyes. Maybe he would have considered this if he hadn’t made a big deal about all those questions that Lewis had asked him on his first day.

Lewis peers down towards his folded hands that lay atop the desk, “ah. So, I’m twenty-three; you know that. My birthday is February fourteenth, which means I’m an Aquarius. Standing straight, I’m six-foot-four. My hobbies include spending time with my family and… Ah. Lifting weights, I suppose,” he pauses as he thinks on it, “I also like to take a nice, long, scenic drive to clear my head. Oh, and sometimes I go sailing with my dad. And, ah… Also, Zeke?”

The room goes silent as Lewis hitches in his words. His Adam’s apple bobs in the slightest as he tries to say what’s on his mind. Eventually, though, he continues, “I’m gay,” there’s a pause as he peers up towards his associate, “I don’t date women.”

“Oh,” Zeke’s shoulders slump, because this must have been why Cherry and Kara urged him to just talk to the guy first. He lets out a pitiful laugh, “well, shit. Now I feel like a total asshole.”

“There’s no need. Frankly, wow,” his smile grows brighter, “it’s refreshing to meet someone who doesn’t already know.”

Zeke peers up towards his boss, “yeah. I get what you mean.”

Lewis smiles softly, and his inflection is tender when he says, “ah, well… Thank you for caring about me enough to want to set me up on a date with someone. That’s - that’s very considerate of you.”

Zeke shrugs nonchalantly despite a faint panic starting to form within his stomach. He’s not sure what to say now, so he defaults to Hotel talk, “uh, I’ll probably get back to work now. No random side quests this time,” he grins.

Lewis huffs a laugh out of his nose, “of course,” he says as he pulls his clipboard closer to him. He fingers through the pages, “well, if you’d like to deep clean the bathroom in the break room, I’m sure it could use some TLC.”

“You got it,” Zeke says as he gets out of his seat. As he’s pushing the chair in, he says, “hey, real quick…”

Lewis’ baby green eyes glimmer, “yes, Zeke?”

He leans against the door frame as he asks, “how come you’ve never told me that you’re a Valentine’s baby?”

Lewis smiles coyly as he leans his head against his palm, “well, I suppose that it’s something most people already know.”

“Hm. Gotcha,” Zeke hums, and then there’s a pause. He finds that his attention wanders towards Lewis’ fair, freckled complexion and his prominent nose. His eyes wander to his fluffy ginger hair. His broad shoulders, his admirable physique. Suddenly, Zeke feels that light sense of panic bubbling up again, so he gives the guy a thumbs up, “alright, then. I’m off to go clean the bathroom.”

Lewis, with a light look of wonderment, just nods his head with a simple, “see you in a bit.”