Free Web NovelChapter 45: 45: A Kiss With The Queen
Never regret thy fall, O Icarus of the fearless flight
For the greatest tragedy of them all Is never to feel the burning light.
~ Oscar Wilde
____
Hillel held up the plane and slowly changed direction.
JFK International Airport.
He reached it in three minutes.
He kept a steady speed so the passengers inside wouldn’t get shaken around and smeared across the cabin walls.
The runway at JFK was already lined with fire trucks and ambulances. The control tower kept trying to contact the plane.
Hillel gently set the aircraft down on the runway until it rolled to a full stop. Deafening cheers exploded inside the cabin again.
"The Guardian!!!"
"The Guardian!!!"
"The Guardian!!!"
Hillel flew out from under the plane and hovered beside the fuselage.
Reporters on the ground went crazy with their cameras. The flashes were almost blinding the passengers.
The system panel kept flashing.
[Global media exposure bonus: Event popularity × 3.7]
["The Guardian lifts a passenger plane to a safe landing single-handedly" — Global trending #1]
[Ability points gained: +18,200]
[Total ability points gained from this event: +32,548]
Current ability points: 111,207 / 250,000
Not bad. Already halfway to the next level.
...
After the plane stopped completely, the cabin door got kicked open.
A bunch of people collapsed the second they got out, kissing the ground. Some sprawled out like starfish or just lay there flat.
Homelander and Maeve followed the crowd out.
As soon as Homelander landed reporters swarmed him.
"Homelander! Can you tell us what happened up there?"
"Did you save the plane?"
"The Guardian was there too. Were you working together?"
Homelander flashed his perfect smile.
"Of course, this was a team effort. The Guardian is my good brother. We worked together perfectly..."
"But what we saw was The Guardian holding the plane up alone?"
Homelander’s temple started throbbing.
He silently noted which network the reporter worked for.
"That’s because I was inside the cabin protecting the passengers and making sure nobody got hurt. We just had different jobs!"
"Oh! I see! Then may I ask..."
The reporters kept hounding him. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
Hillel and Maeve stood off to the side, not trying to steal the spotlight.
Two little girls ran over to thank Maeve.
From the look on her face, she really did enjoy being a superhero.
"Thanks to you I get to ride your coattails and boost my approval rating big time."
Maeve’s numbers had been dropping lately.
Vought always had Homelander bring Maeve along. Appearing together helped their ratings.
But honestly Homelander’s image had taken hits too recently.
First The Seven kicked out two members and as leader he caught a lot of flak. Then there was the whole riding The Guardian’s coattails thing. That really fucked his rep.
Together their numbers were dropping instead of climbing.
"Do you really give a shit about your approval rating?" Hillel shook his head like he didn’t buy it.
There were only two decent people in The Seven: Annie and Maeve.
If you counted A-Train after he eventually woke up, maybe three.
"What else is there? I represent female empowerment. If my ratings keep tanking I’ll end up as a washed-up third-rate hero."
Maeve crossed her arms and watched Homelander soak up the camera flashes, looking a bit tired.
"I heard you’ve been living with Annie January lately?" Maeve asked casually.
"Yeah."
"Don’t hurt her. Seeing you two reminds me of my old self," Maeve said.
Maeve remembered when she first joined The Seven. She was full of hope and dreams about being a real hero. Vought smashed that pretty quick.
Then came Homelander.
They dated for a while, but eventually Maeve realized he was just a monster wearing human skin.
He didn’t give a shit about human lives. He only cared about his public image.
If she hadn’t called The Guardian, Homelander had been ready to ditch the plane. And there were kids on board!
What kind of person lets children die just to protect their reputation?
"Don’t try to see your past self in other people. No matter what happened before, you can start a new life."
Maeve was silent for a moment when Hillel’s next words pulled her back from her thoughts, "By the way, do you like going to the beach?"
"Huh?"
"Is it Beast Master?"
"Huh?"
"Elephant or cat?"
"What the fuck are you talking about?"
Maeve looked him up and down with a weird expression.
Hillel thought to himself: Maeve doesn’t like sunbathing on the beach.
It’s Beast Master.
Neither. Purple has its own charm.
"Alright, smile." Hillel put his arm around Maeve’s shoulder and suddenly flashed his signature smile.
"Don’t think too much. The reporters are taking pictures of us!"
...
The interview wrapped up.
Homelander faced the cameras and put on a tearful performance. The whole thing was just him pushing Vought’s latest bill.
If the military would share data and recruit supes into the army, they could respond faster instead of only showing up at the last second to save the day.
You have to remember there were over a hundred lives on that plane, including children.
His acting was so good even Hillel had to give him a thumbs up.
"Oscar-worthy, bro!!!"
"Yeah.. Take me away. I don’t want to stay here anymore." Right now, Maeve didn’t want to spend a single second more where she could see Homelander’s face.
The two of them left the airport.
Homelander just glanced at their backs and kept bragging to the reporters about his heroic deeds.
Let them fuck. Whatever. Bros mattered more than women anyway.
Besides, the guy had the balls to hit on Maeve right in front of him.
He really wasn’t scared of him. He looked at him as a person.. Where else was he going to find a brother like that?
...
Hillel flew with Maeve for a while before landing in a quiet place in Lower Manhattan.
The place was deserted.
Maeve crossed her arms, looking badass.
"I told you to take me home. Why the hell did you bring me here?"
Hillel looked her up and down.
Maeve was damn fine. Mature, athletic, that sharp, confident beauty that made her stand out even among supes. Annie was sweet and bright, but Maeve had fire. And he was very interested in playing with that fire.
Fucking Homelander had somehow turned a woman like that gay.
Hillel felt it was his duty to turn her straight again. He just wasn’t gonna say it out loud because no matter how powerful he got, he didn’t want to fight those bulehaired feminists’ comments. That shit scared him.
"What are you staring at?"
Maeve knew he had X-ray vision, but instead of cowering, she confidently straightened her posture with a quirky smile. She was a proud feminist, there was nothing to be ashamed of her body.
"Um, just looking at you."
"You done? Is there any material that blocks your X-ray vision? I’m thinking of getting some for my next suit." Maeve gave him her signature challenging look.
"Oh, heh!! Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not Translucent or Homelander. I’m not that much of a pervert."
Hillel defended his honor. "I’m looking at you, trying to figure out how someone like you ended up wasting time with the wrong kind of people for so long."
Maeve raised an eyebrow, but she didn’t step back. If anything, she shifted her weight, studying him right back. She was a strong and independent woman, and after no one in the plane died, she was feeling much better.
"By the way, you’ve got some balls hitting on me right after playing hero with Homelander watching."
"Heh~" Hillel stepped closer, voice dropping into a teasing tone. "He and I are ..good friends, but I don’t need to ask anyone’s permission to talk to a beautiful woman. Especially one who looks like she could use some actual fun instead of Vought’s scripted bullshit."
Maeve let out a short laugh, half-amused, half-challenging. "Careful, Guardian. I’m not some newly joined clueless girl like Annie, nor a starstruck fan who’s gonna melt just because you lifted a plane."
"Oh, I know," he said, bracing one hand against the wall beside her head, not trapping her—just close enough. "That’s what makes it interesting. You’ve got that fire. I like it."
He cupped her chin lightly, giving her plenty of time to pull away. Maeve didn’t. Instead, her sharp eyes softened just a fraction, curiosity and something warmer flickering there.
She’d spent years around monsters wearing capes. This cocky, overpowered bastard was different—dangerous in his own way, but at least honest and kind of goofy.
"I get it. You want to find out if I’m interested in you, huh?" she murmured, teasing back.
"I’m not here to find out anything," Hillel said, leaning in slowly. "I’m just here to give you a teaser for what the rest of your days can be, if you are with someone who isn’t afraid to show you a teaser."
Maeve quirked her eyebrow. That line was impressive.
But before she could think of a sarcastic remark, their lips met.
Three minutes later.
A little blood trickled from the corner of Hillel’s mouth. He licked it casually. "Damn... that kiss was.."
Maeve’s was still trying to act badass but her breathing was heavy. "Haah.. I’m not some sweet girl next door, buddy. huff.. haah.. you wanted to play with a dangerous girl, you’re gonna get a little rought treatment."
She wiped the blood from her lips. The boss lady had a wild side. She wasn’t an easy catch.
"Heh~ I’ll collect on that favor you owe me slowly!"
Hillel shot up into the sky.
Left behind, Maeve gently touched her chest, eyes full of complicated emotions.
Truthfully.. The Guardian is way more overbearing than Homelander!
____
Early access to 12 advance Chapters.
P@t: MilkLoverFanfics
