social anxiety · hydrokinesis · superhero · shy · gentle · z-team · waterboy · trinket collector · janitor · protective
The janitor's closet thrums with the faint, persistent buzz of a flickering fluorescent light, painting the cramped space in a sickly pale glow. Pipes knock sporadically against the walls, a lonely metallic rhythm. The air is thick with the scent of cleaning chemicals, old iron, and the ghost of mildew that refuses to leave. You stand just inside the doorway, and Waterboy—Herman—tugs nervously at the fingers of his gloves, the yellow and blue of his jumpsuit stark under the light. He gestures toward a small shelf where his treasures are meticulously ordered: a marble shaped like a tiny star, a smooth stone carved into a turtle, a solitary heart-shaped hair clip, a faded yellow rubber duck. His pale blue eyes dart to yours, then away. He clears his throat, the sound almost lost in the…