The marks on Nate's face weren't hard to miss, even as they were slowly healing away. Annie still saw them as she slipped pass his room. She saw the way he leaned into the wall as blood stained his hands and clothes, she saw the burns marks.

Homelander, it wasn't a hard guess on who had did this to him. He was glad to have not been sent away again for another long month full of doctors and scientists using him as a lab rat.

He cleaned himself up in silence as he tried his best to get ready for yet another meeting where his suit would be fixed and altered. Ashley insisted on it, of course he didn't see much of a reason for it.

His door opened and Annie pushed her hands in front of herself slightly "I... just wanted to come and apologize for what happened, if anyone deserves to be punished, it should be me".

Nate moved the cloth away from his cheek as the wound healed itself shut "it's not a big deal Annie, trust me when I say this isn't the first time I got in trouble for accidentally killing someone".

She smiled slightly as she walked towards him "you sound like you're used to saying that". He shrugged his shoulders as he grabbed his gloves that sat beside him on the chair. "You don't have to wear them, it doesn't bother me if they're off".

He looked down at the gloves "right, I forget you're like suicidal or something. You have to be seeing you're always trying to touch me". He chuckled "that sounded weird, sorry my head is just fuzzy".

She sat down beside him as she grabbed his gloves out of his grasp. "They don't even look comfortable, are these the ones vought makes you wear?".

He nodded as he wiped more blood off his face "they make them thick so my powers don't work, for being such a big company they're fucking idiots. I could wear the thinnest pair of gloves, and it would be the same, I guess that little bit of fabric is enough".

"I got in trouble because I helped someone last night, since when are we not allowed to help people?". Nate laughed "the second you joined this shit show. You stopped being a hero, they control your every move, every crime and interviews. You're just a doll to them and nothing more".

"So they've been controlling you since you were a kid, that must've been awful for you". She looked at him as he wiped the last of the blood off his cheek.

"It's different for me, I'm technically a weapon for them. They point me in one direction and I attack and I can't just refuse, society already hates me enough. At least with vought, some people out there think I'm some sort of hero".

Annie let out a soft breath "like me, I mean I've been a fan of yours for so long, I never thought you were some scary person who would ruin my life. Who cares if your powers are dangerous, they're yours".

He looked outside his windows, watching as the sky grew cloudy. "I have a team up mission with the deep later on tonight, I'm not really looking forward to it".

Nate turned at Annie's words "I used to do missions with him all the time, he did mostly swimming and I did everything else. I was glad when they finally let me stop running missions with him".

Annie sighed "i would've preferred teaming up with anyone else, of course they make me team up with him. My first mission and it's with him".

Nate leaned back slightly "you get used to it, honestly if you ask me, being in the seven isn't worth it, they spend half the time trying to make you into something you're not. It's exhausting".

He looked at the gloves that Annie still held onto and then at her "I sorta need those back, I have a meeting and I can't be late". He stood up as Annie looked at the gloves "right sorry, I forgot I was holding them",

She reached them forward, he grabbed the ends of them slowly. "Have you ever taken them off in public before? I mean... aside from fighting".

Nate would've laughed but he didn't have the energy for it, he just let the gloves slip over his fingers. "Not really, even if I tried, I'd likely be told to put them back on, it's apparently bad for my image".

"That's why you're never out in public, I've seen so many interviews of the seven, and you were never mentioned once, they just kept saying you were off on a mission somewhere. But you mean... they don't let you leave, like ever?".

Nate smiled weakly "I wouldn't go anywhere, I don't even remember what's it like out there half the time. I felt normal for once when I left, for a little while no one was scared of me, and then they were. Maybe it's just better if I stay locked up in this tower forever"

He moved past Annie, walking into the hallway. She let out a soft breath as she trailed behind him. "Don't you think that's a little excessive! I mean you have rights, aren't you allowed to do what you want".

He looked at her "my rights were gone, the second vought found me. I'm fine with it, at least it means I have a home, even if it's not perfect. I can tell you're actually a hero, because you wanna help me, but don't. That's what gets you killed around here. You're not the first person to show up hoping to save me. So just stay the hell away from me, I don't need help".

He walked past her and she sighed deeply as she watched him pace down the hallway. Part of her felt the urge to run after him, to tell him she wouldn't stop until he was out of this place. Instead she just let herself drop the matter, he could help himself.

—
authors notes:
I could've sworn I hit publish on this chapter like two days ago.... oops... Anyways here's a basic chapter. Hopefully it's somewhat decent.