John

Almost immediately, once I exit the theater and find my way back out to the crowd, Maddie's standing there waiting for me, concern on her face. Once she spots me, she quickly makes her way over to me.

"Are you alright?" She asks, clear concern in her tone. "I know you don't like talking about… that."

I nod my head, giving her a smile to assure her. "I'm fine, Maddie." I assure her with a smile. "It just caught me off-guard, that's all."

Maddie eyes me for a moment, as if unsure if I'm actually telling the truth, but she lets it go all the same, letting out a sigh.

I give her a small smile, and I put an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into my side for a hug. "Look, I'm fine, and I'd rather be out here with you instead of telling a speech or some shit in there."

Maddie raises an eyebrow at my word, and gives me a playful grin. "Is that why you sped through it so quickly?" She teases me. "Don't think I didn't notice that."

I chuckle at being called out. "Guilty as charged." I say, letting go of her as I raise my hands in playful surrender. "Now, what would you like to do? We got plenty of time." I say, gesturing to the stands and booths all around the expo.

Maddie turns her gaze out to eye the booths for a moment, before turning back to me. "How about we just get something to eat first? I don't know about you, but I'm starving."

I let out a laugh at her words. "No problem, I'll pay."

Maddie raises an eyebrow at my words. "You got the money?"

I nod my head, a smile on my face. "They don't fuck around. Instead of holding my first paycheck, I got paid yesterday. Plus, I get a discount because I am technically on Vought's payroll."

Maddie's eyes widened at my words, before giving a nod. "Well, alright then." She says with a smile.

Me and Maddie walk through Expo, checking out the different booths as we go along, before checking out different food stands to see what all we'd like.

"Steak?"

"Nah. Pizza?"

"Not really in the mood. Fish?"

I can't help but to raise an eyebrow at that. "I'm not really interested in seeing if that allergy went away with my powers."

Maddie's eyes widen at my words, before giving me a sheepish look. "Oh, right… you didn't talk about that one much. That means peanuts are out too."

"Yep."

"Hmm… Cheeseburgers?"

"Yeah, that works."

Maddie leads us to a burger stand, and it takes a little bit of arguing, which translates to her telling me not to pay and that she would, and me ignoring her, but we get our food and take a seat at a nearby picnic table.

Maddie gives me the evil eye as we take our seats. "I told you I would pay for it."

I let out a chuckle in response as I fix her an amused look. "And I said that wasn't happening." I reply with a small smile.

Maddie continues to glare at me for a moment, before letting out a sigh and rolling her eyes, taking a seat as she gives me a smile. "Well, thanks."

"No problem." I say as I unwrap my cheeseburger. We sit in a comfortable silence for a while, eating our food. Without much else to say or really talk about, it's just the silence that envelopes us, a peaceful moment. No threats, no crowds, no assholes… just me and Maddie.

And then Maddie finally speaks.

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asks me, concern etching it's way onto her face once more as the question leaves her lips. "Are you absolutely sure?"

I raise an eyebrow, and nod my head as I set my cheeseburger back down atop the rapper, dragging a thumb across my lips and wiping away some ketchup as I finish chewing before I speak. "I'm fine." I assure her with a small smile. "In hindsight, I should've been prepared for a question like that."

"I know you don't like talking about your abduction, John." Maddie said with a sigh, her face softening as she sets her own burger down and tucks a lock of hair behind her ear, out of her face. "Any time it's brought up, you usually say that you don't want to talk about it. The most any of us know is that Jason and his little merry band were the culprits."

At the mention of Jason, I can't help it when my eye twitches slightly, and my lips tighten a little as a wave of anger washes over me at the mere mention of the bastard's name.

In an indirect way, Jason is responsible for my strength. He's also responsible for the trauma that's locked away in my psyche, coming at times that I consider the absolute worst.

Honestly, the incident on stage earlier is the first time in a while that I've damn near had a full blown panic attack. I think the last time it happened… It was maybe a week after I came home. All the shit going on, going back to school, and then Pete and Rachel, and then the militia… and then, I had the first nightmare, and I woke up in the middle of a panic attack.

And me, being the stubborn jackass I am, simply sat there until it was over.

I take a deep breath to calm myself, and the hand that I didn't know I clenched until now softens, and I let out a sigh.

"I don't like talking about it because I know how everyone is." I say as I look Maddie square in the eye. "If I told anybody, actually told any of you… it'd put a weight on your shoulders that I don't wanna see you carry." My expression is firm, hard as I say it. Maybe a little firmer than intended, but it gets the point across.

Maddie's eyes narrow at that. "John, shouldn't that be our choice?"

"Maybe." I concede that she has a point there. It is their choice if any of them were to choose to bear the guilt. But… "But it's my choice to talk about it, and that's not happening."

Maddie continues to stare at me for a moment, before she relents, letting out a sigh and shaking her head. "I wish you would talk about it, because it might help. But I know better than to try and convince you." She says with a small smile. "Stubborn asshole."

I grin at that. "Damn straight." Finally, the seriousness that's kind of hidden itself in the background has made itself scarce, and the mood between us is brightening up again.

"So, what do you plan to do?" Maddie asked as I go back to eating my cheeseburger. At my questioning glance, she giggles slightly, probably because of the fact that my mouth is full and I got a cheeseburger inches from my face, ready to take another bite before finishing the last while looking at her. "I mean this whole superhero thing. What exactly do you plan to do with it?"

I swallow my last bite before speaking up. "What do you mean?" I ask as I take another bite.

"Well, the militia focused on hunting superhuman threats, but superheroes don't really focus on stuff like that. They fight actual crime, like muggers, thieves, robbers…" Maddie explains, looking at me with an inquisitive gaze. "So, do plan on going on patrols, or are you just gonna be a team-player?"

Honestly, I hadn't actually given any thought to that until Maddie actually pointed it out, and I set what little remains of my burger back down and swallow, taking on a contemplative look as I think it over.

"I was always a team player with Rachel and Peter." I recall, because there wasn't a single mission in the five months I was in the militia that I went on by myself. "Maybe I'll give this whole superhero thing a shot. You know, run around, do things on my own as well."

At that, Maddie grins slightly. "I can't wait to see you in the newspaper." She comments, causing me to roll my eyes in amusement.

"Of course you can't." I remark with a shake of my head, causing Maddie to let out yet another heartwarming giggle, and all I can do is smile.

When Maddie's happy, I'm happy.

The moment is interrupted by a new voice entering my ears. This one is familiar, but not in the same sense as someone like, say, Annie or Maeve's would be.

"Um, excuse me?" A girl's voice speaks up, and both me and Maddie turn to the source, where I find myself staring at the girl in the pink Maeve shirt from the show a little bit ago.

"Hey." I greet her with a small smile, leaning back in my chair a little. I notice her parents are standing behind her, and the girl looks shy, almost nervous to speak. "Krystal Satterfield."

At that, the girl perks up slightly, eyes widening when she hears my name leave her lips. "You remember me?"

I can't help but to raise an amused brow and grin a little bit. "It was maybe twenty minutes ago that I was on that stage. I'd be ashamed if I forgot you that quickly." I joke as I glance towards Maddie, who rolls her eyes in amusement. "So, what's up?" I ask as I turn to look back at her. "Starlight's show goes on for another hour if I'm correct."

"I… I um…" Jesus, this girl is so nervous. She's rubbing the back of her neck, and she's visibly blushing, looking like she's shaking in her shoes, as if just talking to me is some daunting task. "I wanted to see if I could get a picture… before you leave?" Her voice is just as quiet out here as it was while I was on the stage, and there's something oddly endearing about it.

I can't help but to look at Maddie with a grin. I should've seen something like this coming as well, but honestly, I've been so focused on hanging out with Maddie that I didn't even think about it. Maddie returns my grin with one her own, more than eager to see how I proceed.

"I don't see why not." I say as I turn back to Krystal and stand to my feet, glancing towards her parents as I do so. "Either of you have a camera?"

"I have my phone." Her mom replies, a genuine smile on her face as she pulls out a phone with a little purple case, and begins swiping away at it, before holding it up and aiming its camera towards us.

I turn to look back at Krystal, who still looks a little nervous… scratch that, she doesn't look any different than she did before.

Well, maybe we can fix that.

I raise an arm, and considering how many celebrity and superhero fans take pictures like this, she gets the gist, and she seems to swallow, but she smiles nonetheless and moves closer, wrapping an arm around my back as I rest my own upon her shoulder.

I look at the camera with a smile, as does Krystal, and it's a few moments of silence before her mom pulls her phone closer as she steps towards us and shows us the picture.

It's like a flip of a switch. Krystal doesn't look nervous at all. She looks genuinely happy in the picture, almost as if that's been the highlight of her day, and I can't help the small smile on my own face as I turn to look at her.

"There you go."

She looks so different from a literal second ago, practically beaming from that simple statement. "Thanks!" She says, practically bouncing in place, causing me to chuckle.

"No problem." I say once more as I sit back down in my seat. "Why don't you go ahead and hang out around the expo? I'm not a christian, admittedly, but there's plenty of stuff here for everyone."

"Oh, we're not christians either." Her father corrects as he steps forward too, placing each hand on the shoulders of both his wife and daughter. "But she's been wanting to go to a superhero event for as long as we can remember, and we only just barely got enough to go to this one." He explains, rubbing Krystal's with a comforting squeeze. "I'm honestly not sure when we'll get to go to another one."

I don't miss the look of sadness that makes its way onto Krystal's face as her head leans against her father's shoulder, dismayed. I stare at them for a moment, because my heart goes out to them. I feel their pain, believe it or not.

Despite making enough together to live a stable life, Mamaw and Papaw never really made enough money to take me or James or Shiela anywhere. The most that's ever happened is a school field trip somewhere where we'd go to somewhere like Kings Island, and even then, Papaw would usually just give me a couple hundred dollars. At a place like that, money doesn't last long.

They just barely got enough to come to this thing, and it's some religious expo…

"You know, I actually get that feeling." I say, looking at them with a sympathetic smile. "Up until I got offered this job here, I never had much money to do much of anything." I explain with a slight chuckle, before my eyes move up to them once more. "Let me explain something to you. Even if you feel bad that you may not be able to come to another one, you probably just gave her one of the happiest days of her life." I say, pointing towards Krystal for a moment, before my gaze follows my finger as I turn to look at her instead of her father. "Am I right?"

At my question, she turns to look up at her father for a moment, before she leans into him and wraps her arms around him in a hug, all the while nodding her head. "Yeah. Thanks, Dad."

Her father simply smiles in response. "No problem, sweetheart." He says, rubbing her back as he leans down and plants a kiss on her head.

I can't help but smile at the site.

I turn my gaze over to look at Maddie for a moment, and I can see her simply smiling at me, her angelic features having morphed from her amused grin to her beautiful smile.

"No one at school is gonna believe I met the Juggernaut." Krystal suddenly says, catching my attention. Her expression seems to have morphed into one of slight sadness once more, before she smiles again, as if trying to hide it. "But at least I know the truth."

I can't help but to raise an eyebrow. No one at school would believe her, huh? I know that feeling, even if it is about different subjects.

We can't have that, can we?

"You know what?" I say as I stand to my feet once more, before turning to look at Krystal's parents again. "I gotta another favor I'd like to ask of you."

"Of course." Krystal's mother says as the girl herself separates from her father, looking confused and curious.

I simply smile in response. "Care to take a video?"

At that, their eyes widen, looking at each other as they process the question.

"Um… yeah, no problem." Once again, Krystal's mom pulls out her phone, and after swiping away on it for a few moments, she aims her phone up at me so that her camera is facing me. "It's recording."

"Great." I say, nodding my thanks, before my eyes focusing on the camera. "To anyone who sees this video, I'm the Juggernaut." I say with a slight smile, letting my eyes wander for a moment. "At the time of recording this, we are not too much after my debut at the Believe Expo." I gesture around to the place that will be torn down in a day's time once the event is over, before facing the camera. "And I'd like to introduce someone." As I say that, I look over at Krystal and wave my hand for her to come closer.

Krystal's eyes widen in response, clearly not expecting this to play out as well as getting a picture, and she turns to look at her parents, as if asking for permission, only to get smiles in response.

"Go on." Her father nods his head towards me, a broad grin on his face as he does so, and it takes a few moments for it to register before she turns to me and takes yet another deep breath, before coming closer to me.

Once she's in close enough to touch, I place a hand upon her shoulder and gently nudge her so that she's standing in front of me, causing her to look up at me in confusion as I place my other hand upon her other shoulder before looking back at the camera.

"This girl here is Krystal Satterfield. For anyone of you watching, she's the girl who asked me if it was scary being a superhero during my pretty damn short Q'n'A session." My words elicit a laugh from Maddie, and while my first instinct is to look over at smile at her, I ignore it for the moment. "Now, I'm told some of her classmates won't believe that she actually met me, and that just will not do." I say as I pat her shoulders. Meanwhile, Krystal looks downright stunned, her shocked face flipping between looking up at me and facing the camera, her expression slowly morphing into a bewildered smile. "So, we're gonna make this little video extremely memorable."

With those words, I step away from Krystal, causing the girl to turn around and look at me, curious and eager to see what I'm gonna do next.

I take off my flannel, making the white shirt underneath (that damn near hugs my skin) visible and showing off the physique that's admittedly granted by my strength. I wave Krystal over as I step closer to the table and lay the shirt down on the table, before turning around to look at her parents.

"Either of you have a marker?" I ask them. At that, the two look at each other, silently asking the other the same question. When they shake their heads, I'm honestly disappointed for a moment.

"Here." Maddie suddenly says, causing me and Krystal both to look over at her, where she's offering me a black permanent marker.

Leave it to Maddie to save the day in some way.

"Thanks, Maddie." I say as I take the marker from her and pop the cap off, before bringing the marker down to the shirt.

I know I'm absolutely spoiling this girl, and I barely even know her, but the truth is that I really feel for her. She's shy as hell, looks like she's extremely nervous. And from the way her parents act, the little details, I'd assume that it's not just because she's here.

So I'm gonna make this one memorable day for her.

I sign my name as best as I can considering the damn shirt wants to slide and wrinkle every time I try, and by the time I'm halfway through writing Juggernaut as a signature, Krystal proceeds to jump in and help. She hold the shirt by the bottom while my free hand holds it at the top.

j Ug Gernaut

That right there is about what it ends up looking like.

Me and Krystal both stand up and look at the damn thing for a moment, before I let out a sigh and turn to look at her with a sheepish grin. "I tried to do it better." I offer as an excuse, before offering the marker to her.

"Wha… what…" Krystal looks confused once more, and her hand slowly comes forward to take the marker.

I simply smile and nod towards the shirt. "Sign it." I tell her as I lean back down and hold the shirt by the tops and bottoms so it stays steady for her, unlike my dumbass who didn't even think of that.

She looks surprised for a moment, before leaning down and signing her name. Compared to mine, her name is written artistically, beautiful cursive staring back at me compared to my own frankenstein of a signature.

We stand back up for and look at it for a moment, before I turn to look at Krystal, who looks like she has the most excited grin on her face.

I've made this girl's whole day, and I ain't done yet.

"Well, now I'm embarrassed." I joke as I take the marker from her hand when she offers it back and wordlessly hand it back to Maddie, before picking up the flannel with one hand. "Turn around." I instruct Krystal, giving her a little twirling motion with my finger.

Krystal looks confused and nervous once more, but does as I say. That's when I put the laughably oversized (on her) shirt over her and grip her shoulders once more, turning so that we're facing her mom's phone once more, a grin on my face.

"So, for any dumb son of a bitch that decides to try and hurt this girl or harm this shirt, just remember that Krystal here has a friend in the Juggernaut." I say, giving her shoulders a few gentle pats before I let my hands fall back to my sides.

Krystal turns around and looks at me, her face one of complete and utter shock as her hands come up and softly grip the shirt that's a few sizes too small. It's like she can't believe that this thing is actually hers now.

"For… for real?" Her voice is just barely above a whisper as she asks the question, and I nod my head with a smile.

"For real." I tell her. It doesn't escape my attention that her mom is still recording, and they have fond smiles like I've never seen before. Like this is the first time anyone has actually done anything decent for this girl other than her.

When I see tears beginning to bud in Krystal's eyes, I begin to wonder if I'm right.

"Aww…" I can't help but to say, my head tilting to the side as I realize that she's about to burst into tears. On instinct, I hold my arms out, offering a hug. "Come here." I laugh slightly as I say it, waving her closer, and she damn near leaps into my arms. She begins outright sobbing, unable to process everything that's happened.

"Oh, sweetheart." Krystal's mom holds a hand to her heart, tears budding in her own eyes at the touching scene as I turn to look at the two of them.

"I didn't mean to make her cry!" I laugh a little bit as the poor girl sobs into my chest, one hand coming up to gently rub her head as I look back down at her. "Hey, it's okay, it's okay…" I try to calm the girl as best as I can, considering I've never actually been in this position before, and I actually feel a little bad for making her cry.

It sounds like she can't even speak, so overwhelmed with emotion, because every time she tries she just ends up hiccuping. I continue rubbing her head, a small smile on my face as I attempt to soothe Krystal as best as I can.

"Shh, it's okay…" I continue to assure her as she begins to quiet down slightly, and once her cries have died down to slight sniffles, only then do I release her slightly, putting my hands on her shoulders as I lean my head down closer to her eye level. "I didn't mean to make you cry."

Krystal sniffles in front of me, looking slightly embarrassed, but utterly joyful as she brings a hand up to try and wipe her tears. "I-it's okay." She hiccups slightly as she says it, but there's a gleeful smile on her face. "Th-Thanks."

"No problem." I say with a slight nod and an honest-to-god smile on my face. "Why don't you go have a bit of fun, huh?" I offer as I give her a friendly pat on her arm. "You don't want to be stuck here all day."

That's about when Krystal's mom stops the video, and the girl gives me a nod before moving back over to her parents. While her mother takes her into her arms and gives her a hug, her father steps up to me with a grateful smile.

"We can't thank you enough." He says, offering his hand as thanks.

"Sure you can!" I say with a small grin as I shake the man's hand. "Keep giving her the best life you can, and consider us even."

The man smiles, and nods his head in response before returning to his family. I take a seat as the begin to walk away, and my gaze drifts over to Maddie. I raise an eyebrow when I spot the fond smile on her face.

"What?"

"You just made that girl's day, John." Maddie remarks, looking at me with a positive expression that I'm not sure how to quite describe except 'soft'. "You let her get a picture, a video, and you gave her your flannel. Your flannel?"

"What?" I can't help but to smile, shrugging my shoulders as I do so. "It's a fucking shirt. Sure, it was my favorite, but I can get another one. If she's happier for it, I'm glad I could help."

"You barely know her." Maddie retorts, before giving a small giggle. "It's funny. You always talk about how you don't really care about others, you just do the right thing because it's right. But you didn't have to go out of your way for that girl."

I can only stare at Maddie in response, because she's exactly right.

I've never really felt much care towards people I didn't know, at least not enough for me to notice. But helping people… it feels good. It feels really good.

Maybe that's why I stuck with the militia, despite not having any actual income from it. If anything, it made things a little more difficult in life, balancing that and school at the same time. It certainly wasn't easy.

But I enjoyed it. It was fun, made me feel good… so long as a mission didn't go sideways.

That's happened a few times now and… it's not exactly fun.

Yes, I have blood on my hands. I think what really scares me… is that it doesn't affect me that much. Killing someone shouldn't be so… easy.

And yet, in the few times that I have… I don't hesitate. I'm not haunted by it, I don't go into shock… it's just a one-and-done kind of deal…

Damn, these aren't thoughts I wanted to think about at the moment.

But, back on topic… Maddie's got a point.

"Guess I never really put too much thought into it." I admit with a sigh, rubbing my head slightly out of habit. "Helping people feels good… but I don't really care all that much about others, it felt like. There were times where I wondered if I was a sociopath."

Maddie looks at me for a few moments, her smile slowly fading as she takes in my words, before reaching a hand over to my own, her delicate fingers wrapping around the palm of my larger hand.

It catches me off-guard for a moment, and I look down at her hand in mine, before smiling and gently squeezing back.

"You're not a sociopath, John. Not at all." She assures me, her eyes meeting mine as she speaks. "You are a great guy. Sure, you got your flaws, but who doesn't? You're my best friend, John. And so far, you're the best man I've ever known."

I honestly can't help but feel like my heart skips a beat at her words. I can't help it when my smile softens, and I find myself simply staring at her without realizing.

Her beautiful features… her small button nose, her gentle smile… her vibrant blue eyes and hair that's the color of the sun…

I find myself lost in her features. In her beauty.

And then she speaks again.

"Anyway, let's finish eating." She says as she pulls her hand away from my own and returns to eating her own burger, reminding me that my own is unfinished as well.

For the rest of our time eating, we eat in silence. It's a comfortable one, simply enjoying the other's presence as we eat. And in no time at all, we're finished, standing up and throwing away the wrappers to our burgers away.

"So, what do you want to do now?" I ask Maddie, glancing over at her as we begin walking through this damn place. Since it's mostly just christian shit, there's not really much that that draws me and Maddie in. Honestly, I invited Maddie because she's never been to any of these events before, but in hindsight, this expo might not have been the best first.

… you know what? I got to see Maddie. That's what counts.

"Honestly, I don't really see anything that catches my attention." Maddie admitted, looking over the place as best as she could. "I always wanted to go to one of these things… but maybe this expo just isn't for me." She looks up at me as she says it, and I grin in response.

"Glad to see I'm not alone in that front." I joke as I look down at her. "Honestly, there are only two reasons that I'm here. My debut, and more importantly, you." As I say that last bit, I wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her into my side as I say that. She smiles and leans her head into my chest in response.

"Thanks, John." She says with a smile.

As we walk, we can see one of the large screens showcasing the show still going on back at the stage, and there's Annie standing up there…

… but she doesn't look okay.

"What the hell?" I can't help but to mutter, my arm slipping away from Maddie's shoulder as my expression scrunches in confusion and concern. What the hell is up with Annie?

Up until now, I figured the event would go rather well, and that she'd be fine on her own for her show.

But she looks so stressed out right now, near tears…

What the hell's going on?

"John? Is she alright?" Maddie asks, stepping up next to me with a similar look of worry painting her expression as she watches the large screen.

Annie's looking off-screen at the moment, causing me to get even more confused. Admittedly, my first thought is that the dumb bitch that is Ashley did something stupid.

"You want me to just suck it up and do this for you?" Annie suddenly speaks, her voice emanating from across the entire place through god knows how many speakers. It's unnaturally silent from all the attendees, and now I see a lot of people are paying attention to the speaker.

Who the hell is she talking to?

"You have no idea what you're really asking." Annie continues speaking to whoever is standing off-screen and off-the stage. But those words right there immediately make me feel uneasy.

"What's going on?" Maddie asks, looking over at me for a moment. I shake my head in response, turning to glance at her for a moment.

"No idea." I answer, and then face the screen once more.

"You have no idea what I've been through." Annie continues, and I can't help how bad I feel for her. She looks like she's trying to hold back tears, and it's so much more obvious now than it was before. Her eyes are falling away from the screen, as if she's trying to decide what she wants to say, before looking back out at the crowd. "Every single word that I say up here, I'm reading from a script."

Ah, that shit must've gotten to her… but there's gotta be something else here, something I'm not seeing. Something that hasn't been revealed yet, maybe…

"I didn't write any of these words." Annie doesn't stop her speech, and something tells me that a certain popularity focused hag isn't going to like the direction this is taking. "I don't even know if I believe in them. I mean, I believe in God, I love God so much, but honestly it's… it's just how goddamn certain everyone is around here. I mean, tickets start at, what, one hundred and seventy bucks so that people can tell you how to get to Heaven?"

Damn… she ain't holding anything back, that much is for sure.

"How do they know?" Annie sounds like it's a genuine question she's asking. And I gotta admit…

"She's got a point." Maddie comments, finishing the thought before I can even voice it, and I nod my head in agreement.

"How does anybody know? When the Bible was written, life expectancy was 30 years old." Annie goes on, looking more and more irritated, though it looks like there's a trace of sadness on her expression as well. "I'm not so sure it's meant to be taken literally. It also says that it's a sin to eat shrimp." She looks outright annoyed at that part, shaking her head in disbelief. "What, if you're gay, if you're Gandhi, you're going to hell? I mean… and if you have sex before marriage, that's not immoral… that's human." Annie takes a deep breath, before speaking once more, slower this time. "What's immoral… is the guy who shoved his dick in my face."

At that, my eyes fly wide open. It's clear that no one is expecting that, as different sounds of shock and alarm can be heard throughout the damn place, and I can hear Maddie let out a horrified gasp at Annie's words.

When the hell did this happen? Who was the sorry motherfucker that did that to her?! Because I swear to fucking god-

Suddenly, the time we discussed the Deep rings through my mind, as I remember her complete refusal to discuss the fish-themed superhero… and now I got a damn good idea as to why.

At the thought of the slimy fuck doing that to Annie, I can't help the way my fists clench tightly, ready to hit someone. My teeth damn near crack, grinding against each other as the muscles of my jaw tense in rage.

"John…" Suddenly, I feel Maddie's hand on my wrist, and I turn to look at her, seeing the look of concern in her eyes. A look she's now directing at me.

I see the soft expression of worry on her face, and that calms me down. As much as I would love to think of ways to kill that fish-fucking bastard… the last thing I want to do is worry Maddie.

So, with a sigh, I nod my head. "I'm alright." I say, hoping I sound reassuring.

Maddie doesn't look like she believes me, if the suspicious and still concerned expression upon her face is any indication, but she doesn't press it.

We continue to watch Annie pour her heart out about religion, beliefs, and the still unelaborated ordeal that she revealed she endured, and I can't help it when my mind wanders…

If I'm this pissed at the fact that Annie has gone through this when I've only known her a week…

… what would I do if someone tried anything even remotely similar on Maddie? If she was in Annie's position?

It's not a question. I'd kill them. And it wouldn't be a spur of the moment thing either.

Ask anyone who knows me, and they'll tell you that I don't give a flying fuck about reputation. If someone ever, EVER, did something like that to Maddie? I'd find them. I'd hunt them down. There'd nowhere they could hide from me. And I'd squeeze every single one of their joints until it's just torn tissue connecting the limbs.

Unconsciously, my arm wraps around Maddie once more, and just to assure myself, I pull her closer to me. Just knowing she's here, that she's fine… that nothing like that has happened to her…

Maddie gives me a look but doesn't say anything. Instead, she leans her head against me once more.

If a random stranger saw us, they'd probably think we were a couple.

And honestly?

I wouldn't mind that…

The thought makes me feel a little better, but I think it's Maddie's simple presence that affects me more.

And if I could… I'd stay like this forever.

A/N: No! This story is not dead!

I hit a bit of writer's block on this one, because I keep rethinking about how I messed up the timeline a good bit. However, I think I've worked out how to deal with the changes I've made, and with Season 4 of the Boys having wrapped filming and my desire to binge the story yet again, my motivation is back and ready to go.

Anyway, not much for this author's note, and that's the chapter. So I hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you in the next one!