Annie Hargreeves (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
defenderofdesmoines) wrote2021-05-26 11:48 am
defenderofdesmoines) wrote2021-05-26 11:48 am
Entry tags:
A Diner in Midtown | Wednesday Mid-Afternoon
Annie was good at a lot of things. She was thoughtful, she was observant, she really made excellent blender drinks....
But one thing she'd never mastered was lying. She was too honest, and every emotion she had was always clearly apparent on her face.
So it took her a moment of steeling herself before she walked into the diner and approached the guy seated in the booth, his back to her.
"Gecko?" she said, trying for surprised. As though she hadn't stalked him here. "Is that you?"
The meek, slender man in the booth took a moment to consider the woman approaching him before he placed her. "Starlight?" he asked, setting his cutlery aside as he stood up to greet her. "I mean -- Annie? Oh my God, hi!" He leaned in to give her a quick, awkward hug, clearly trying to remember the last time they'd seen each other. "Look at you, big-time Seven hero."
"Oh, shut up," Annie said, rolling her eyes at herself.
"You know, I --I work in Vought Tower," Matthew told her. "At the labs on 67?"
"Oh...you don't say?" Annie tried very hard to look just mildly surprised at that, and not like this was, you know, the exact reason she was here to blackmail a childhood friend.
"I see your posters everywhere," he added with a warm smile. "They're marketing the shit out of you. I'm so happy for you, really." He gestured to his table. "Buy you some coffee?"
How could she refuse?
A short while later, Annie was gratefully accepting a cup of coffee from a waitress and smiling over at Matthew. "Remember that Passion play we did? You were the best Jesus."
"Well," Matthew admitted, "no one can take a nail through the hand like I can."
"And Big Game was Pontius Pilate," Annie remembered, genuinely sort of nostalgic in spite of her nerves. "Oh my God, those freckles. You know he wanted to make out with me?"
It had been a whole thing, that summer at camp.
"Pontius Pilate and Mary Magdalene hooking up?" Matthew asked, raising his brows. "Sacri-licious."
"Yeah, we never did," Annie assured him.
"Why not?" Matthew asked. "He was so cute."
Ugh, and he was. Big Game was still kind of a hottie, Annie had to admit it.
"Yeah, it was just...you know, Ezekiel always said, and my mom, too -- God is watching over you, every second." She shrugged. "Figured He'd be upset."
She'd gotten over that, eventually. Like, she eventually came to decide that God probably just didn't have a huge interest in her sex life, overall.
Back when she'd believed in God, anyway. They were kind of on the rocks these days.
"Yeah," Matthew snorted, rueful. "It's a messed up thing to tell a kid."
"Looking back," Annie said, "I should've made out with Big Game. I should've done a lot more stuff. Because there's nothing up there. There's no one in the sky watching over us. Not God. Not...Homelander. Not anybody."
Matthew was quiet, but clearly listening, his eyes on hers.
"It's all just...lies." Annie watched him as Matthew was the first to break their gaze, turning back to his food. "I need a favor."
Matthew was obviously a little taken aback at the request, after that whole little ramble Annie had gone on. "Yeah," he said, too quickly. "I mean, anything for a Bible Camp alum."
Annie cleared her throat, trying to remove all emotion from her voice. Ugh, Matthew, she was so sorry. This was -- this did not feel good to ask. "I need you to go into the labs on 67, and steal me a sample of Compound V."
"Um." Matthew stared at her, fumbling for a moment. "I, uh -- I don't know what that is."
"Ah, see?" Annie sighed. "Another lie." She was really getting pretty fucking sick of people lying to her, Matthew. "I know how we're made. And it is not Jesus."
Which was why she was not exactly on speaking terms with Christ, these days.
"I can't," Matthew protested softly. "I mean, it's impossible. I'm a nobody there. I'm a lab rat. They cut off my limbs and they grow back. I can't get you --"
"You have to," Annie said quietly, pulling a folder containing the photos Jessica had taken out of her purse. "Or I put these on Facebook tonight."
She let him open the folder in his own time, sipping her coffee.
"Gecko, former teen star of Vought's Summertime Clubhouse, working as an S&M hooker as a side hustle?" she offered softly after a moment, letting her disgust seep into her voice.
She was disgusted at herself, but it worked, anyway.
"I'm sure inquiring minds will want to know," she added, taking the folder back to put in her purse again.
"Annie?" Matthew said after a moment, clearly at a loss. "I thought that we were friends."
"I'm sorry," she said, stepping on his words. She was going to cry or throw up if she stayed here much longer. What had happened to her? Who was this hard, mean person? Whose words were these? "But, we're not anything."
She grabbed her bag, with the folder of photos inside, and stood to go. "You know where to find me."
They were coworkers, and all.
And with that, she strode back out of the diner, as an overhead television showed a reeenactment of Madelyn Stillwell's murder. ("My baby needs a mother!" "Oi, shut your trap, you stupid bird, or I'll bollocks ya." "But that's exactly what William Butcher did, the night of -- ")
[open for calls or texts, warning for language and adapted from The Boys 2.01, 'The Big Ride.']
But one thing she'd never mastered was lying. She was too honest, and every emotion she had was always clearly apparent on her face.
So it took her a moment of steeling herself before she walked into the diner and approached the guy seated in the booth, his back to her.
"Gecko?" she said, trying for surprised. As though she hadn't stalked him here. "Is that you?"
The meek, slender man in the booth took a moment to consider the woman approaching him before he placed her. "Starlight?" he asked, setting his cutlery aside as he stood up to greet her. "I mean -- Annie? Oh my God, hi!" He leaned in to give her a quick, awkward hug, clearly trying to remember the last time they'd seen each other. "Look at you, big-time Seven hero."
"Oh, shut up," Annie said, rolling her eyes at herself.
"You know, I --I work in Vought Tower," Matthew told her. "At the labs on 67?"
"Oh...you don't say?" Annie tried very hard to look just mildly surprised at that, and not like this was, you know, the exact reason she was here to blackmail a childhood friend.
"I see your posters everywhere," he added with a warm smile. "They're marketing the shit out of you. I'm so happy for you, really." He gestured to his table. "Buy you some coffee?"
How could she refuse?
A short while later, Annie was gratefully accepting a cup of coffee from a waitress and smiling over at Matthew. "Remember that Passion play we did? You were the best Jesus."
"Well," Matthew admitted, "no one can take a nail through the hand like I can."
"And Big Game was Pontius Pilate," Annie remembered, genuinely sort of nostalgic in spite of her nerves. "Oh my God, those freckles. You know he wanted to make out with me?"
It had been a whole thing, that summer at camp.
"Pontius Pilate and Mary Magdalene hooking up?" Matthew asked, raising his brows. "Sacri-licious."
"Yeah, we never did," Annie assured him.
"Why not?" Matthew asked. "He was so cute."
Ugh, and he was. Big Game was still kind of a hottie, Annie had to admit it.
"Yeah, it was just...you know, Ezekiel always said, and my mom, too -- God is watching over you, every second." She shrugged. "Figured He'd be upset."
She'd gotten over that, eventually. Like, she eventually came to decide that God probably just didn't have a huge interest in her sex life, overall.
Back when she'd believed in God, anyway. They were kind of on the rocks these days.
"Yeah," Matthew snorted, rueful. "It's a messed up thing to tell a kid."
"Looking back," Annie said, "I should've made out with Big Game. I should've done a lot more stuff. Because there's nothing up there. There's no one in the sky watching over us. Not God. Not...Homelander. Not anybody."
Matthew was quiet, but clearly listening, his eyes on hers.
"It's all just...lies." Annie watched him as Matthew was the first to break their gaze, turning back to his food. "I need a favor."
Matthew was obviously a little taken aback at the request, after that whole little ramble Annie had gone on. "Yeah," he said, too quickly. "I mean, anything for a Bible Camp alum."
Annie cleared her throat, trying to remove all emotion from her voice. Ugh, Matthew, she was so sorry. This was -- this did not feel good to ask. "I need you to go into the labs on 67, and steal me a sample of Compound V."
"Um." Matthew stared at her, fumbling for a moment. "I, uh -- I don't know what that is."
"Ah, see?" Annie sighed. "Another lie." She was really getting pretty fucking sick of people lying to her, Matthew. "I know how we're made. And it is not Jesus."
Which was why she was not exactly on speaking terms with Christ, these days.
"I can't," Matthew protested softly. "I mean, it's impossible. I'm a nobody there. I'm a lab rat. They cut off my limbs and they grow back. I can't get you --"
"You have to," Annie said quietly, pulling a folder containing the photos Jessica had taken out of her purse. "Or I put these on Facebook tonight."
She let him open the folder in his own time, sipping her coffee.
"Gecko, former teen star of Vought's Summertime Clubhouse, working as an S&M hooker as a side hustle?" she offered softly after a moment, letting her disgust seep into her voice.
She was disgusted at herself, but it worked, anyway.
"I'm sure inquiring minds will want to know," she added, taking the folder back to put in her purse again.
"Annie?" Matthew said after a moment, clearly at a loss. "I thought that we were friends."
"I'm sorry," she said, stepping on his words. She was going to cry or throw up if she stayed here much longer. What had happened to her? Who was this hard, mean person? Whose words were these? "But, we're not anything."
She grabbed her bag, with the folder of photos inside, and stood to go. "You know where to find me."
They were coworkers, and all.
And with that, she strode back out of the diner, as an overhead television showed a reeenactment of Madelyn Stillwell's murder. ("My baby needs a mother!" "Oi, shut your trap, you stupid bird, or I'll bollocks ya." "But that's exactly what William Butcher did, the night of -- ")
[open for calls or texts, warning for language and adapted from The Boys 2.01, 'The Big Ride.']
no subject
it's bigger than meeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Okay, it wasn't but she was decidedly either squirrel-sized or the tart was enormous and she figured Annie would enjoy guessing which it was.
no subject
Obviously the better option. Annie was still an optimist about some things, clearly.
no subject
Hers, currently.
no subject
Let's be real: Annie wanted in on pastry action regardless of what size that thing was, but now she was thinking about a giant tart when she hadn't been before.
no subject
There was a pause.
Then:
I can send you some????????????
She was pretty sure Iggy would give her more. Especially when she explained they were a gift for someone else.