boy savior

(﹙˓ 🥡 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 🍪 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 💥 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 💉 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 🐾 ˒﹚)

gentlesoulcd ➤  indie, canon-compliant ryan butcher. of amazon's the boys. private & crossover-friendly. adult & dark themes present.

destined by aby.

(﹙˓ 🐾 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 💉 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 💥 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 🍪 ˒﹚) (﹙˓ 🥡 ˒﹚)

❝ How much therapy are we talking? Because all I have is a dried stick of gum and pennies to pay. ❞ Tries to make the situation lighter, funnier. Joking. Both hands turn out the insides, palms shuffling the few coins he has.

Unwrapping said gum, he goes to bite down and groans. As if the day couldn't get worse. He tosses the silver paper in a nearby trash can.

Before them was a grisly scene — a crowd gathering around the broken bodies of a man and his car, hood smashed in by the hammer-hands of Groundhawk, one of Vought's marketed supervillains. The scene is tame compared to reports of bodies being exploded into sacs of meat and water by other superhuman abilities.

❝ — wait, no. Got twenty dollars in my back pocket. You wanna go get Vought-a-Burger? I'm Ryan, by the way. ❞

❝ Because every time you do, something inevitably goes wrong? You're a problem-magnet, sis. Just like Butcher. Also, things tend to turn extremely flammable around you and Maskim. ❞

He laughs with a sideways grin, and his hands raise in a gesture of 'don't attack the messenger'.

❝ I'm telling the truth! ❞

❝ It's difficult to come to terms with. I knew this would end one way or another, but it's still a punch to the chest knowing that he's just.....gone. I thought I'd have more time to get to know him. Mom loved him so much. Grace loved him. Aunt Judy, too. Terror. Even the Boys. Despite his faults and shortcomings, he cared about me. He chose to surround himself with his own little family, y'know? Rejected the neglect of his parents to form stronger bonds. ❞

His triumph turns to disappointment when that little yellow circle slides into place and he can see the pattern, the path taken. Shoot. Connect Four, foiled again. Playing it safe by filling up outer corners cost him the goal. ❝ Oh, come on! Best two out of three? I swear you're cheating somehow — but that won't stop me. ❞

Safehouse this. Cabin that. No chance to have actual lasting relationships. No chance to catch up on what's going on in the news.

Temporary stay in Mallory's house. No flying. No lasers. No lights on late. Don't talk to strangers. Homeschooling. Don't stay out after dark. No fast food orders. No loud noises after 7pm.

He hated the word no.

At least he could have contacts she knew over to have some fun. He missed his Lego sets and recording equipment, though. And his mom's favorite movies. And his faked schoolmates, even if they were being paid by Vought to befriend him.

❝ Are you hungry? Aunt Grace said there's drinks in the fridge. And oreos and chips ahoy in the cabinets. I might get some. ❞

❝ I'm fine, Miss Ellyn. I promise. Don't work yourself up. I'm okay. It's just a cut from the can top. ❞

Truth be told, he'd gotten up in his own head while using the can opener, severely underestimating his strength, and not realized until sharp pain lanced up his palm. The remnants of that can were promptly tossed in the trash, other hand cradling the injured one to stick under running water.

Turned on the sink faucet to flush it out.

Damn. There goes his idea of getting something else besides day-old pizza or hot pockets stuffed in the freezer. Since someone kept meager meal-makings in his apartment and didn't exactly plan on hosting a teenager.