1960s, somewhere in 𝒞alifornia…

𝒯he only woman who was ever around the office was Betty, a plump, very kind older lady who came every Tuesday and Thursday to clean. But this new addition to the office wasn't bad. You weren't.

You didn't have a specific role. Sometimes you served coffee, other times you wrote letters or made calls to schedule meetings, you organized and got rid of old files…

Every time you passed by his desk, Gus would look at you. When you lifted the coffee pot to ask if anyone wanted some, he would always lift his cup, even if he'd already had some coffee, and when you finished serving him, he would give you a smile and a "Thank you, darling."

He was lucky that his desk was right next to the drawers where all the files you organized were kept, getting rid of the old invoices and replacing them with the new ones. Sometimes the drawer got stuck, and he would gladly get up to help you open it.

You were also the youngest in the office; you looked like you'd just graduated from high school. From what Gus'd heard you say, you were a student and started working at this old office as part of a program offered by your university. An intern.

As part of your charm, you were a bit clumsy. You always wore your hair in messy buns, with a few strands falling around your delicate face; it was rarely styled properly. When you read, you wore glasses that were always crooked because you'd once dropped them and had to fix one of the temples with tape. Sometimes you'd drop papers or knock over pens from your desk. And like a princess in distress, whoever was closest to you would drop whatever they were doing and jump up to pick things up for you.

You were a damn distraction. A blessed distraction.

Now, the office wasn't so drab anymore.

---

It was a Friday. Gus wasn't in any hurry to get home; he didn't have a wife or children. He was packing his things in his briefcase when the sound of your heels reached him.

— "Mr. Lane." — you said, holding a folder in your arms.

Gustav Lane, or Gus, looked up.

— “Yes?”

— “I did something stupid.” — you said, opening the folder in front of him on the desk. You looked embarrassed. — “I accidentally put away the new invoices but kept the old ones…”

— “So you did the opposite of what you were supposed to do.” — he said, going through the papers in front of him.

You nodded.

— “Don’t worry. We’ll stay until we fix this.” — Gus said, seeing you let out a sigh of relief.

And so it was. Everyone in the office had left, but you and Gus were still there, with open boxes where you had stored the old invoices. You went through each document. Gus had rolled up his sleeves to avoid getting dusty; there were even documents from 10 years ago. Until finally…

— “Here!” — Gus exclaimed, pulling out the papers that belonged in that folder.

A wave of relief washed over you. Excited, you moved toward him.

— "Thank you, you're a lifesaver." — you said, about to grab the papers when he suddenly pulled them away.

— "I think putting in extra hours at work deserves more than just a simple thank you, don't you?" — He smiled, raising his eyebrows. — "Since I helped you, would you let me take you out tonight? What do you think?"

While you were still processing, he took the folder from your hands and put the papers inside.