𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐑

ˢᵉᵃˢᵒⁿ ᵒⁿᵉ, ᵉᵖⁱˢᵒᵈᵉ ᵒⁿᵉ

❝ 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐞 ❞

┊┊ ➶ ❁۪ ｡˚ ✧ 𝐋𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐨 𝐡𝐲𝐩𝐞. Maybe it was because of her practical nature and intuition that she never embraced the obsession of celebrating individuals who were simply born different. Or perhaps even more so it was because of her upbringing, spending many careless childhood years in the very halls the supes lived in. Since a young age, she had seen them for who they truly were. Their flaws, their weaknesses, their fears, their insecurities... they were still human.

The streets outside of Seven Tower were crowded more than usual due to the shareholders meeting and the announcement of a new member of the seven. Tourists and fans alike eagerly standing outside, waiting, hoping to catch a glimpse of a hero. Trying to slip past the mass of people, she had to push her way through to keep from being smothered. 

Finally making it inside the building, Lexi walked towards the elevators, letting out a deep breath as she could finally relax, the doors in front of her closing as she clicked the number for floor 99. 

╭┈┈┈┈╮

"Hey, wait up!" A golden haired boy called out, scrambling up from his place on the floor, accidentally knocking over one of the buildings they had spent most that morning creating out of Lincoln logs.

"The boy is supposed to chase the girl, Johnny! I'm not waiting up." She called out, running towards the door of her sister's office before bolting down the hallway with her honey colored curled bouncing around her shoulders.

The two kids, barely eleven years old, sprinted past other doors while trying to avoid being seen by others. It was a fleeting moment of joy the two shared, no longer bond by appearances or responsibilities as they embraced the simple exhilaration of finally being their age. 

Reaching their destination that looked over the city, they slowly approached the large glass window that served as a wall from the outside world, John raising his hand to rest on it gently."I don't want to go back." He said softly, his eyebrows furrowing. 

"To your room?" Lexi asked, looking towards him. 

He met her gaze and took a step towards her, grasping onto her arms as if he was holding on to life. "To my prison. Please, Lexi, don't let them find me. I hate it in there!" He exclaimed.

Lexi winced at his grip, frowning deeply."Ow, John, you're squeezing too tight!" Lexi panicked slightly, desperately trying to pull away with fear evident in her eyes.

Letting go with wide eyes, he gazed at her arms that now had red marks where his fingers had been on her skin, his lower lip quivering as he fought to find words. "I-I didn't mean to- Lexi, I'm sorry. Don't tell anyone, please-" he begged.

Taking a step back, Lexi wrapped her arms around herself in a protective way, emotions swiftly rising."I need a jacket to cover it." She finally spoke up, willing to hide this although a frown still remained on her face.

╰┈┈┈┈╯

The elevator bell rang as she reached the last level, the bottom of her brown heels effortlessly clicking against the polished tile flooring as she stepped out into the main hall. Assistants rushed past but Lexi remained calm through it all, her stylist bag in hand as she made her way to her Madelyn Stillwell's office, the sisters greeting each other with a kiss to the cheek.

"Big day, huh?" Lexi started just as another person walked in to have Madelyn sigh a paper before leaving just as quickly. 

"Always." The older one spoke, moving to her desk and taking a seat. "I'll need you to check in with The Deep and make sure he's presentable since he will be making a small welcoming speech for Starlight." 

Lexi was surprised at this new information, approaching the desk casually as she set her bag down. "Homelander's the leader of the Seven, shouldn't he be welcoming the new member?"

"Homelander is busy." Madelyn said quickly as if she didn't want to hear any questions about his whereabouts. "And The Deep is very capable of handling this type of thing." She added before relaxing in her seat. 

Lexi raised a refined eyebrow, licking her bottom lip as she kept back a remark, clicking her tongue as she pulled out her makeup kit. "Good thing they have you to keep them in line." She spoke before starting to apply primers and lotions to Madelyn's face. 

The sister created small talk between themselves as Lexi did the finishing touches and then it was back to the races as they went separate ways, the younger sister making her way to a dressing room where she would find The Deep already flirting with one of the hair dressers that was already there, Lexi clearing her throat to gain their attention and the famed hero almost seemed to stiffen, knocking off his act. 

"Lexi! Always a pleasure to see you." He spoke in a overly kind voice as he changed his posture in the seat he was in. 

"Wish I could say the same about you." Lexi replied back coolly, walking to a cabinet without casting him another glance as she started to pull out a few supplies.

"A little respect would be nice." He muttered darkly as he lowered his head to look at his hands, feeling like a dejected dog.

"What was that?" The blonde called out a bit loudly, peaking over her shoulder in a challenging way to see if he would repeat what he said.

But The Deep knew better. Stillwell's sister wasn't one to mess around with, not when your job was on the line. "I said you look lovely today." He said with a pressed smile, forcing his bitterness back down.

Nothing was said after that as Lexi fixed his hair, applying a few products so he would look nearly flawless for the event and as he was rushed off towards the auditorium, Lexi stayed back. She believed if you've seen one presentation, you've seen them all. The blonde may have worked part time for the large company but that didn't mean she liked it. It had its perks like any other job yet for the most part, seeing the falseness often weighed on her and she never stayed longer than she had. So with her duties fulfilled, she started her way home. 

✧ ˚ 　· 　　 .

Walking into her apartment was like greeting an old friend, it's warm embrace welcoming her as she could feel the stress of the day starting to melt away. Locking the door behind her, she made her way to her kitchen where she dropped off her purse, phone and keys on the bar top before she caught sight of something out of place.

Propped up against a bouquet of fresh wildflowers was a rose colored envelope, Lexi's full name in casual yet bold letters etched across the front. Anxiety built in the pit of her stomach as she reached for it, opening up neatly before sliding out the contents.

"Lexi. Did some digging and found these pictures from last month. All the best."

Two pictures fell onto the counter and Lexi immediately recognized the star spangled hero with his signature fake smile and arm around another man.

Lexi's heart dropped instantly for it was her fiancé Denver who was standing beside Homelander. Knowing they had never met before raised her suspicions and she could feel her mind start to race with questions. Why would Homelander cozy up to him like that? Lexi had always tried to keep Denver away from Vought and the corruption that ran deep within its walls. It's what she had always feared printed on a lustre finish paper. 

This had become more complicated than she had dreamed it would be.

❛ ━━･❪ ❁ ❫ ･━━ ❜

【 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬 】 I actually had something completely different in mind for the teaser and had 700 words written, only to relize it's too forced and I didn't like it... at all. so I hope y'all enjoy this one <33 

𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝: february 18th, 2024

𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝: n/a