008. CARE TOO MUCH

✎ S1E2 ⇢ ˗ˏˋ PART 1 , 2019

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"CHERRY"
     Dean tried to go back home after the whole commotion at the store. It didn't happen, more or less; he couldn't. Butcher insisted- threatened him even not to leave because he was part of the seven. Plus if Homelander questioned Dean, he'd know if he was lying about if he had seen Translucent. Dean was fucked either way, it's just waiting on punishment to emerge now.

He still felt terrible about lying to Hughie about who he was, Hughie just kept glancing at him through the front mirror of the car. When Dean tried to keep his gaze, Huhgie would look away. Dean sighs and shrivels his hair. On the left side of the car, behind Butcher's seat. He grabs the seatbelt, and puts it across him, buckling it up.

Hearing the sound of it, Butcher looks through the mirror, watching the supe. "A supe using safety measures," Dean looks up and glares at Butcher's head, Butcher looking back at the road. "Well- there's a first for everything right?"

Scoffing, he looks out the window. Watching buildings pass throughout the night. "Just because I was born differently doesn't mean I don't have a moral compass, d-bag."

Butcher laughs and leans in his seat. "Aye, you are something else, Dean..." As rhetorical as it was, it still seemed Butcher held some sort of grudge against him. But obviously, because he was a supe.

The car ride was silent for a few minutes before Butcher aims his talk at Huhgie. "All right, listen, I have worked for the Feds. I've worked for loads of people. I'm what you might call an independent contractor. You got a problem, you call me, I solve the problem."

Dean suddenly hears banging behind him, from the trunk. He is still alive?...shit. Dean's face contorts into a fearful expression as Huhgie looks to where the sound came from. Giving Dean a puzzled look, while Dean swallowed whatever he could as he tried to calm himself.

"What is that?" Hughie asked.

Butcher also looks behind them, with an oh-shit face. "That's a problem."

Hughie relieves his tension as he spoke in a thankful manner. "Oh, thank fuck, he's alive," Hughie bangs the top of the car. "Yes, yes, he's alive! Okay, pull over."

Before Butcher could respond, Dean spoke. His face hardens into an enraged way, it made Butcher gulp. Hughie also abruptly stopped his cheering, remembering a supe literally sat a few inches away from him. This is bad. This is all bad. If he returns back to Vought with Translucent, he would surely be killed. "I thought you killed him!? What the hell?" A feeling never once felt before overcame Dean.

Butcher watched as Dean's eyes suddenly became a light blue, Dean's posture sat straight as ever. Worried this was a power Butcher didn't know of, he spoke timidly. "Look, lad- I thought it did the job, 'kay? It went to shite, but I can handle this. Don't go poppin' off heads yet."

Dean leans back, arms crossed. His eyes never left Butcher's frame as he then spoke to Hughie, Dean's eyes slowly going back to their normal hazel look, unknown to Dean himself. "And Hughie. He's seen our faces, it's bad enough we got this supe tagging along," Butcher aims at Dean, Hughie following his finger; pointing at Dean.

Realizing his situation, Huhgie started to breathe erratically, looking frantically at anything. "Oh, my god. No, no, no, no. I can't do this. Let me out," Looking at Butcher, he spoke with a more demanding voice. "Let me out. Pull over!"

Dean places his hands against his head as he tunes out the argument Hughie and Butcher are having. His head starts to hurt, a throbbing pain comes through. Making him moan in pain as a response. His pain was unknown to the men up front. Something, a memory of some sort, washed over his mind, making him relive it.

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Dean sat on his bed, having a tissue up his nose due to the hit his brother gave him. He looks up as he firmly holds the tissue. He hears his brother argue with his team on the other end of his bedroom door. Hearing multiple footsteps proceeding away after his brother had the last word, he entered Dean's room. Giving a glance at him as he closes the door. They both looked identical but the only difference was Ben had more facial hair, and to differentiate between them both. Dean was told to keep his facial hair cut clean. Ben's facial hair was subtle while Dean's was as smooth as baby skin.

Ben gives Dean a guilty look, as Dean looks at him downheartedly. He lets out a sigh and takes off his costume's mask and places it on top of Dean's drawer. His hair barely damped due to his sweat, his hair going over his forehead. He wipes the sweat off his forehead and grabs a chair, places it in front of Dean, and sat on it. Crossing his arms, he spoke firmly, "Look Dean, I'm sorry for knocking you out."

Dean rolls his eyes and takes out the tissue from his nose and replaces it with a new one. He leans his elbow on his leg and places his head against his unused hand, looking a Ben at an angle. "Since when are you one for apologies?"

He watches as Ben looks off to the side, with a scowl, rubbing his forehead in frustration. "Dean just- listen. It's hard enough I'm taking care of you and teaching you at the same time. It is not a fucking surprise I may hurt you from time to time because of your ignorance. Just don't get in my way, I don't like hurting you." Ben grabs a tissue and dabs it on Dean's face. Dean knows how hard it is for Ben to show affection like this to him, their father wasn't the best, abusive anytime he wanted. Ben always took the beatings for Dean. But the beatings made Ben have a barrier between being a brother and a leader. It made his leader side more prominent than the brother part, he had also developed anger issues as well. Dean looks at the ground as Ben finishes cleaning his face. "But if it's how you learn not to do certain things then it's unavoidable. I can't always change from being a leader to a brother. Especially in times as of right now, brother is the last thing I'm thinking of." Ben sits idle in the chair staring at his hands clamped together. He then tried to say three words that never got said to him by his father. "I lov-," Ben coughs a bit and stands up, backing out on what he was about to say. "I care for you Dean I do. You know that right?"

When Dean looks up, Ben stands right beside him, looking him down. He understood Ben's hesitation of affection, he got rarely got any himself. He smiles and nods. "I know Ben...I know."

Ben strains a smile and pats Dean's shoulder. "Alright, I'll leave you to it. Be out in a few, we gotta roll." Ben grabs his mask and opens the door.

Right before Ben heads out, Dean called out. "Hey, Ben?"

Ben stops at the door waiting for what Dean had to say without turning around. "What is it?"

"Go easy on the team please...for me?" Ben stood unmoving for a few moments then nods his head without answering. He places his mask back on and heads out, closing the door behind him. Dean sighs and closes his eyes. But if there is one thing Dean knew, Ben wasn't really keen on keeping promises with him as much as he tried. In the end, it would always turn to shit.

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     Back to the present, Dean looks at the messy floor of the car in confusion. So it's not a dream, I do have a brother named Ben, then why the hell don't I remember him? And where is he? Does Homelander know- Nevermind. I deal with this later. The thoughts started to give Dean another massive headache, he grazes his temple. He sat back as Butcher drives away to somewhere unknown to him.

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     Dean stood anxious behind Butcher and Hughie as Buchter rapidly pounded on a metal door. A few seconds later a woman dressed in black opened the door. She had black hair that went past her shoulders. She took off her glass and glanced at the three men in front of her.

"Mornin', love. Frenchie about?" Butcher asked.

She didn't respond and looked at Hugie, her gaze seemed to peak in interest as she began to touch his face all over. Dean watches as Hughie stares in confusion about what the hell is happening. She soon stops then eyes over Dean, her face widens in recognition. She walks a little closer, placing her hand on his chest, slowly gliding it down. Dean glances at Butcher in uncertainty. "This how she meets strangers?"

Butcher smirks and lets out a quiet laugh and the woman retreats and heads back in. Dean feeling violated, lightly fixes his dress shirt he has yet to change out of. Her gliding hand, made a few buttons unclasp. He fixes them while unknown to Hughie eyeing him, seeing his chest exposed to the open. Dean's arm muscles are visibly being seen popping out every time he moves his fingers.

Butcher eyes Hughie and smirked as pats his shoulder. "You'll love this guy." Hughie gets out of his staring moment and enters first.

Dean sees them entering and begins to walk until Butcher places a hand on Dean's chest. "Best if you wait by the car lad, good ol' buddie don't work well with supes. He'd recognize you on the spot."

Dean nods, understanding, and starts to walk back to Butcher's car. He sat on the trunk, as Transulcent kept banging on it. He groans and yells at him, "Quiet down you dick, no one's gonna hear you!"

Translucent's voice was inaudible but Dean used his advanced hearing to hear what Translucent said, "I swear once I get out of here, your head's first Rebound!"

Dean sighs and pokes at his cuticles, humming a tune. "Yeah, keep dreaming buddy." He started to hear multiple footsteps coming his way. He hops off and looks to his left to see the men he knows and one unknown.

The unknown man recognizes him and pulls something out of his back. "You have fuckin' Rebound with you!?"

"Frenchie wait-" Butcher exclaims but the man shot.

Dean held his hand up and right as it came close to him, it stopped halfway. He releases his hand and the bullet falls to the ground. "I'm not your enemy..." Dean prolongs the word so Butcher or any of them can get the hint, Dean wanted to know his name.

"As if I'll tell you my name. Suck on my balls, you fuck." The man says and spits on the ground where Dean stood.

Dean laughs and steps back a bit to give them all space. He watches as Butcher slams the man's hand down. "Look mate, Rebound is with us for now. I made sure of it. I didn't bring you here for him."

"Then why am I here?" He said. The man kept eyeing Dean as if he'll strike at any moment.

Butcher smirks and puts the weapon he held on his shoulder. "Open it."

"Who's in there?" The man asked.

Butcher smirks and plays with the weapon. "Where's your sense of adventure, Frenchie?" So that's his name...

Dean hears Translucent curse as Frenchie opens it, his face filled with confusion. Then fear, he paces backward. Placing his hands on his head, doing so. "That's Translucent. You got Translucent in your trunk, huh?"

"Nothing gets past you mate," Butcher says smugly.

Frenchie then runs up to Butcher and places a gun under his chin. Dean watched amused, but then eyes Hughie. Who was written in distraught by the gun.

"Go away. Get them out of here. They're chipped. Their whole fuckin' team could be on their way. Homelander could be on his way right now. Especially since you got his brother here." Frenchie demands. I'm chipped?... Dean didn't know that, but now that he knows. He wonders if there is a way to get it out, but first. He needs to know where it is.

"Wait, they're chipped?" Hughie asks.

Frenchie gets even more mad. "You bring this to my doorstep. This is not my problem, huh?"

"Well, it is now. He knows what you look like," Butcher then brings his voice to a lower pitch. "Look frenchie, I need your help mate, and I ain't leaving till I get it, or till the seven show up."

Frenchie stares at Butcher for a moment before letting the gun go. "Fuck..."

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     "You're gonna kill them?" Hughie asked. They had to put Dean inside the enclosed room as well since he was obviously chipped too. He watched as Frenchie and Butcher argued about how they were planning to kill Translucent and to figure out what to do with Dean. Yeah, he's mad about Dean lying to him but he didn't want him to die. Maybe he could just figure out how to take out the chip if possible.

Butcher scoffs. "We didn't bring 'em here for a fucking happy meal."

"I don't- I thought we'd question Translucent or something. I don't know, you get a- you get ahold of someone this big- What about Dean?" Hughie frantically says.

Butcher nods his head. "Well, first of all, we ain't killin' Dean. He's a valuable asset. The twat won't even try to leave, now that you're his friend and all."

Hughie rubs his nape at Butcher's statement and stammers on what to say next. Butcher shakes his head. "Look- At Gitmo, we had to waterboard Khalid Sheikh Mohammed 183 times over six months to get him to talk just once. Now, we ain't got six months. I doubt we've even got six hours."

Hughie stands still, astonished at what Butcher just said. "There are so many crazy things about what you just said, but right now, you're talking about randomly killing one of the most famous men on the planet. A goddamn national treasure. I mean... people tend to kind of notice that kind of thing."

Walking dangerously close to Hughie, Butcher spoke in a low, deep voice. "And if we let him go...What do you think The Seven will do to us? Hmm? What do you think Dean'll do if he got ordered by Homelander to kill you, huh?"

Pouting, Hughie huffs and looks down. Unable to answer the questions. "You can't get A-train if you're a greasy smear on the pavement," Butcher explains.

The image of Robbin's hands came into his mind. He forced the tears back and tried to stand strong for her. Not wanting Butcher to see him crying like a baby. He sucked in a breath and stared at Bucther for his ridiculed statement or well that's how Hughie took it. "I'm not a murderer."

Butcher walks around Hughie. "That's all right. I am." Huhgie exhales at his response.

"Frenchie..." Butcher spoke eagerly as Hughie leans against a counter, collecting his shortened breath.

"What?" Frenchie responds.

Butcher walks to him and leans against the table. "You got anything that can detect the chip in a supe?"

Frenchie stops his current altercation, his face lit up. A sly smile caught his face. "I assume it's basically metal, so a mere metal detector can set it off- just one thing..."

Butcher's eyebrows raised, as Huhgie listened in. "Go on..."

"You really trust that supe ya got back there? I mean if I help, I got to know if he'll be a problem 'cause we got enough stacked already." Frenchie states as he rummages through drawers to find a metal detector.

Deciding to speak up, Hughie stood straight up. "He won't cause a problem...he's not like that."

Frenchie finally finds the right material needed, he pats it in his hand as he walks up to Hughie. "And how long have you known this supe for monsieur?"

"Uh...just uh a few days." Even though he only knew Dean for a few, he felt as if he practically knew him. Dean just had a friendly approach to him despite what has happened over the past couple of hours. The more he had time to think over stuff, the more he felt bad about pushing Dean back at his job...crap, my job! In all this time, Hughie totally forgot about his job, but assumes he lost it because of what occurred.

Frenchie derided Hughies knowledge about the supe as very simple-minded. "So, you somehow know all about this supe- the supe that practically runs the seven?" He shakes his head and looks over at Butcher. "If anyone gonna die first, it's him. Just saying, Butcher. Still surprised he hasn't yet."

Hughie hugs himself in comfort as the degrading words were spat at him, unable to defend himself. He closes his eyes and exhales.

Butcher rolls his eyes. "Mate just give the shite to Hughie, he'll handle it."

With the detector in his hand, he puts his hand up as if surrendering and irritatedly walks back to Huhgie. He gives it to Hughie and walks off, doing his own thing. Huhgie plays with it in his hand and looks at Butcher on what to do next. "Well off you pop, Hughie. The chip ain't gonna walk itself out."

With the click of his feet, Hughie walks back to the room that held the most famous people in the world. Finding his way through the hallways and door, he finally makes it to the door. Sucking a breath in for the millionth time, he opens the door. Finding Dean sitting in the left corner right by the door with his head covered by his hands, his elbows on his kneecaps. "Uh, Dean?"

He watches as Dean quickly looks at him, with a curious gaze. "I, um- need you really quick."

Dean's face goes in a worried way as he stood up. "...Sure." Closing the door behind Dean, while hearing Translucent yelling at them. Hughie walks to the nearest table and waits for Dean to make it to him. Dean crosses his arms and stood with a straightened posture. "What's up?"

Hughie suddenly gets nervous for some reason but tried to get through it. "Uhmm...they had something here to get the chip out of you, I have it here in my hand," Hughie raises it in the air showing it to Dean.

Letting out a laugh, Dean sits on the table, his feet planted flat on the ground. Despite the shortened height, when sitting. "I see that, it's pretty obvious."

Nodding multiple times, Hughie walks closer to Dean, trapping himself between Dean's legs. Dean's legs barely grazed Hughie's outer legs. Huhgie raises the detector, beginning to find the chip. "You mind?" Hughie asks innocently.

"No, you can keep going." Huhgie starts to move the detector around Dean's arms, seeing if it were located somewhere there. He then goes to his chest, where he sees Dean's dress shirt coated with a few blood stains and crumpled by the commotion they've been through. He starts from the top and then slowly goes down. He sees in his peripheral, Dean watching with a curious gaze. Once reaching the bottom of Dean's waistband he concludes it won't be anywhere else from the waist down so he backed up from Dean and made his way around him to check behind. Not until Dean grasps Huhgie's forearm and spoke in a guttural way, making his voice deeper than usual. "Not gonna keep checking below?"

Hughie's face lits up in pink, flustered by Dean's comment. Dean stares at Hughie waiting for a response before laughing. "I'm just fucking with you-" Dean lightly caresses Hughie's shoulder. "Lighten up a bit Hughie, I miss the old Huhgie back at the store."

Without giving a response, Hughie starts at the nape when a beeping sound was heard. "Well I found it, what do we do now?"

Dean feels the back of his neck, feeling a hard vertical line there. "I don't know, I could just rip it out."

"What- no, no. I'll find another way." Hughie didn't want that to happen.

Dean stares at Hugie with an are-you-serious look. "Hughie, the only way it's coming out is with blood. And the longer I stay with this chip in my neck, the faster my brother finds us," Dean takes the detector out of Huhgie's hand and places it on the table. "Find a knife over there."

He pointed to the counter across from them.

Hughie walks over to see, multiple sharp objects, dirty, full of grime. Scrunching his face in disgust he grabs the least dirty one and makes his way back to Dean. "They're all dirty, won't you get some sort of disease?"

"Don't worry, I'm pretty sure me being a supe is stronger than a mere infection." Dean gets up from the table and faces his back to Huhgie, so he can't take the chip out. Huhgie was barely taller than Dean. Basically by one inch. Huhgie stood at 6ft 1in and Dean stood at 6ft.

Huhgie walks behind Dean and places his left hand on his shoulder and his right held the knife. He places the sharp point of the knife right at the base of Dean's skin and hesitates. Just imagining puncturing deans skin gives Huhgie a sudden shiver, fear of killing even though this pain might be a slight pinch to Dean. Dean seems to sense Huhgie's hesitation and spoke. "Hughie you're fine, it won't hurt."

Dean's assurance gave Huhgie enough to go forward. Nodding, he deepens the pressure on the knife and cuts Horizontally on Dean's neck. He hears Dean groan from the cut and back off immediately. "I thought you said it wouldn't hurt. Sorry- I'm sorry..." Huhgie begins to frantically wipe the blood away and apologizes rapidly.

"Hughie, Hughie," Dean turns around and grabs ahold of Hughie's shoulders. Huhgie stops his frantic movements and stares at Dean's hazel eyes, his eyes bring some sort of comfort to Hughie. He sees Dean smile and with one hand reaching behind him, he uses his power to bring the chip through the cut. A small quiet gushing sound could be heard, and Hughie mentally twitches at it, while Dean kept his reassured smile during it. Bringing his hand forward, the chip was in his hand. "It's fine, see? I'm okay, just a little pinch. You didn't hurt me."

Closing his eyes, Huhgie lets out a relief of breath. "It- just, everything lately. I don't know if I'm doing right or wrong. I don't know anymore..."

Dean places the chip in Huhgie and covers Huhgies small, hand with his as the chip was in between. "Well, you cared enough about a supe, me out of all of them. So...you did right."

They both stared at eachother for quite some time until Dean broke the tension. "I gotta go to the bathroom, put the chip back in the room yeah?" Huhgie nods and watches as Dean left the small area. He then heads back to the locked room and throws the chip in.

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     Dean finishes washing his hands and leaves the restroom. He doesn't know what to do now that he's free from the GPS chip. Ultimately, he walks around, observing the place. As he does he comes across Butcher carrying a big case. Dean didn't really use guns but it seems like the type of case to carry one. Dean sped up his walk and catches up to Butcher. "Whatcha got there?"

Butcher pays no mind to Dean as he continues to walk ahead. "Nothin' that needs worrying about. Just you know, a little penetration on the twat in the cage." They both make it to the front area of the building they were held at. He sees Hughie on the phone across them, seeing in the area where food was made. They both give each other glance, but return to their own thing.

"Sure, that'll work?" Dean didnt really know anything about Translucent's weaknesses. Would a gun even work?

"Aye, this piece of beauty will kill the cunt." Buthcer unlachtes the locks and brings out the gun, shwoing it to Dean. Dean nodded and started to walk away, towards Huhgie.

"Oi Dean?" He turns around to see Butcher look at him with a deadpan expression. "Get outta line, you're next." With a shake of the gun, Butcher takes his leave.

Sure bud, its not like im betraying my team already...Dean took time to process what has happened these past days. Meeting Hughie, dealing with Translucent and Butcher. Homelander...Dean didnt want to think about that. As he made his way around the counter, he see Hughie breathing heavily as he held the phone to his ear. "I got to go." Huhgie spoke to the peron on the other end.

Dean was about to walk up to him when Hughie started to punch the wall in frustration, multiple times. Not knowing what to do, Dean slowly walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Huhgie turns around, face ridden of many things. Hughie smiles sadly, then latches onto Dean, hugging him, unexpectedly to Dean.

"Woah..." Dean wonders what came over him, but the punches seemed to conclude enough. Slowly patting his back, dean hugs him and soothes Hughie's back.

Maybe Hughie just needed a hug, Dean sure as hell knows he needed one himself. Hughie's girlfriend died, him dealing with a possible threat from Dean's team, practically loosing his job. "You're okay, Huhgie, you're okay."

Continuing his hold on Deab, he felt Huhgie grasp his back very tight, as if he'd breakdown. "I dont blame you for not letting me know who you were, I just appricate you being here for me thought this all." As quietly as he could, Hughie spoke timidly.

Smiling like a highschool girl, Dean laughs. "Well duh, I'm your friend- I'm still you're friend right?"

Hughie closes his eyes in content. "Absolutley, it takes a hell of a lot more than just hiding an identity from me..."

If only they both knew what was to come in the next months...