"Steven with a V"
Steven was having a rough day at the gift shop; he was a huge nerd with Ancient Egyptian history, and he was the perfect man to fill that empty tour guide position. Although Donna was being an absolute ass about it, she liked Steven, but whenever she didn't see Steven behind the register and he was out there talking to the guests, she called him over to tell him, "You're not the bloody tour guide." It made him embarrassed, and when he tried to convince her that he'd be a perfect tour guide, it was always a harsh, long answer that translated as "no," crushing his poor heart.
It was early in the morning when his radio blasted, "Lonely is a man without love." It's the rhythm matching the lyrics; he hummed the tune along with the song when he lifted himself to get out of the restraints, slouching his way to get the tape off and unlock the door with an unreasonable amount of chains, taking his sweet time to get ready for work. A tight shirt with dark jeans—anything to put on quickly. Preparing his coffee and calling his mother, talking about his day, his fish, or yesterday. He was walking his way to the bus stop when he saw the bus stopping slowly as he started to catch up to it. When he’s yelling for it to stop and wait, he gets on. Phew!
He saw an empty seat, then he saw you. You wore a navy blue pencil-sharp skirt with a black button-up tucked in, and your hair was neatly tied up into a bun. Your phone is in your hands, headphones connected, and blasting loud enough. Steven sat down next to you; he could hear your music; it was [insert music of choice]; you loved it, and you loved the lyrics [rhythm or both]. You felt a tap, and you turned towards Steven as he gestured for the volume to be lowered when you turned it too high. He had a soft, tired look on his face, his fair skin was painted with a scar, and his Adam's apple bopped when he spoke, "I like that song; I believe it was [music artist or band]. I’m not sure but I like them. Mind if I listen as well?" His tone is getting softer, and his smile is getting smaller. "No, I don’t mind a bit," you said while offering the bud as he took it and flipped it to get a better listen. You had good taste, enjoying each other until Steven saw the museum as the bus started to slow down. "Oh, well, this is my stop; is it yours too?" he said, handing back your bud.
"Yeah," you nod, "I applied for a job at the museum to be a cashier or a tour guide; either way, I applied," letting a soft, small laugh escape between your lips. Steven chuckled a bit too; the bus stopped, and he lent a hand for you to grab. You both waved the driver goodbye before you walked across the road to the museum. "I’ll give you a tour around here; I’ve been itching to give one for a while," he groaned, his fists shaking. You laughed. "Are you a tour guide too?"
"No..unfortunately.." He sighed, "I work at a gift shop. Steven Grant is working behind the register, selling candies that aren’t even close to what they had in Egypt; all they ate were dates and figs." Steven went on; you let him go on if you were honest; you were kind of as much of a nerd with ancient Egyptian history yourself; although it didn’t seem right, all this rambling on about Egyptian history and Steven isn’t a tourist. "How long have you been working here?" he asked, cutting off his ramblings. Steven... He wasn’t sure; it seemed for so long that he didn’t have an answer: "Uh, chuckling long enough for me to lose track, silly me."
Steven leads you to the main office, where Donna suits up. "Ah, Stevie! Late again, aren’t we?" She cheered with a smile spreading before looking at you. "And you must be y/n; welcome to the team. I hope you don’t cause any trouble, or I’ll stuff you into a sarcophagus."
You gave a weak chuckle. Great. "Ah, I see we've got jokes," you thought. "I’ll get one of my workers to show you around." Steven cut her off; he had been waiting for this for God knows how long. "Uh, how about I show her around since I know-" he scoffed, "I’m here and I know this place better than anyone!" Steven gave her puppy eyes that soon faded when Donna rolled her eyes. "Sure, go ahead, but if I catch you goofing off or anything, I’ll make you work overtime." Steven nodded with a sigh, holding his bag tighter. "Off you two gals go, I’ve got very important things to do!" Steven opened the door for you to walk ahead, then closed the door. "And by important things, she means scrolling through her phone on her bum all day." You both let out a soft chuckle as you walked out of the area.
Steven introduced you to every god there was in this place, telling you what they were a god of, why they had heads of animals, what role they served while in Egypt, and showing you the rooms; but there was something more to him like it was more than one person; you’ve had the feeling of being watched... Maybe it was the sugar you put in your coffee since it made you jittery, but that wasn’t it. And his reflections in the glass or mirrors stared at you. Those two guys look like Steven, with his tanned skin, baggy eyes, and messy hair with the same Adam's apple, but they had a stone-cold stare, one of their hairs put to the other side and one with it in front.
It’s just your imagination, you told yourself. It was getting dark, and you hated every second of being in it. You keep looking at him as he keeps talking, feeling those two pairs of eyes look at you.
"Hey Steven, I wonder if you want to discuss this over lunch," he said, accidentally cutting off his rambling. "I enjoy our talk, but it is getting late." Your heart beats faster than normal, and having to ask a person out always leads you to think about your relationship and how it’ll progress to something more: "And besides, I believe we better start catching the bus."
Steven looked at the watch on his wrist. It was getting late. He apologized profusely, "I’m sorry y/n, I didn’t know-I-I-I-I’m sorry." He sighed as he rubbed his face: "I’m sorry, y/n." Steven was genuine, sounding defeated until your slow hand reached out to give him a pat on the back. You were testing the waters, and Steven didn’t seem to mind a bit.
"Look, Steven, I’m not mad at you; you didn’t know and lost track."
Steven nods when he clenches his fists, "Can I have-?" gulping down your nervousness as you start to sweat, "Can I have your number? I know a place, and I think you’ll love it."
Silence waved over the room you both were walking out of. You could feel your heart beat so loudly that you were afraid that Steven might hear it, and you felt your body burning red and getting dizzy. You both were out, but Steven stayed behind to close the doors and catch up.
Steven smiled at you; he’d never met someone so kind and willing to hear his knowledge of Egypt. It made him feel human again. People were acting so weird around him and giving him looks as if they were avoiding him, but with you, he felt like he was seen again. "Sure, uh-," scuffling around to reach his phone, giving you his number, "Well, I’ll see you tomorrow on our little date, yeh’?" He teased, and your body burned once more. "Sure, I’d love to!" you cheered. You both reached the bus, having a small chat before you went your separate ways.
Steven... Such a charming man—well, a nerd at that too—he didn’t even say a thing to you besides tell the stories you loved so much, the way he talked. His accent, his little British man, his hair, the way his face was blushing, his scent It drove you mad, the smell of fresh brew vanilla chai wrapping around your nose until you got home. A big condo with boxes filling up some spaces Anywhere to start a new life from home You slouched on your air mattress on the floor, lying flat, until you slept with Steven on your mind.