GOLDEN BOY - Homelander x Reader

1: The Rescue

It all happens so fast, your memory is a blur when you try and recall how you got here. One minute you were bringing coffee up to the fiftieth floor of the high-rise office building where you worked as an intern, and the next you were in the choke hold of a masked intruder, the cold barrel of a loaded gun pressed against your temple.

You struggle against his grip, but it's no use. The silver pistol looms in the corner of your vision no matter how hard you try to look away. The regular employees hide under their desks as your captor's companions work on opening the safe that holds the week's monetary deposits.

"Stop struggling," a deep voice hisses in your ear, "Or I'll pull the trigger. There are plenty of other hostages I could take if you don't want to behave."

Your knees buckle and your stomach churns; you just barely manage to keep yourself from throwing up. Your left foot slips on the spilled coffee pooling up on the smooth tile floor, and you gag as you feel the arm around your neck tighten to hold you up.

This is it, you think, I'm done for.

You hear a crashing noise to your right, and although the gun to your head makes it impossible to turn and look you feel a rush of cold air and know that one of the windows must have broken. For a moment you think one of the accomplices must have broken it, but then you hear the click of heavy boot heels coming towards you.

"Let her go, and we can all get out of this."

You recognize the voice immediately. You've heard it on TV hundreds of times, you've seen all of the movies, but even though you saw the Seven Tower every day you never expected to be so close to Homelander. Relief washes over you: if Homelander is here, you must be safe, right?

He steps out in front of you, keeping watch over the two accomplices still trying to break into the safe. "You're done here," he says, "Put your hands in the air and I'll escort you outside."

"No way," your captor says, "They're not going anywhere, and if you make one wrong move, coffee lady gets her brains blown out."

A sudden spike of pain flows through you as your captor smacks the barrel of the gun against your forehead. It's not enough force to do anything other than bruise you, though you can't help but let out a cry of pain anyway. Homelander looks you in the eyes, and then up at your captor. His top lip curls into a snarl and he runs the tip of his tongue over his teeth.

The Homelander you saw on TV was always smiling, warm and friendly. The Homelander in front of you right now seems vicious, almost predatory as he stares at your captor. The criminal notices Homelander's expression as well, and you're pressed so close to him that you can feel his heart race as he stumbles back a few feet, dragging you along with him.

"I said you're done," he growls, low and guttural, and his eyes begin to glow red.

Your captor drops the gun in shock and it clangs against the ground, skidding just out of his reach. Homelander grins, eyes still bright and glowing as he takes a step towards you. You wonder for a moment if he's really going to save you or if he'd go right through you to get at the criminal.

A shot rings out and a bullet hits Homelander square in the chest, bouncing right off of him and embedding itself in the wall. One of the accomplices has opened fire on him, and he wasn't even phased. He turns to look at he source of the gunfire and two red beams come out of his eyes, slicing through the two accomplices in seconds, as easily as a hot knife through butter. You squeeze your eyes shut, not wanting to look at the mangled bodies as they hit the floor.

The next thing you feel is a heat so intense that you're sure he must have shot his laser vision right through you, but when you open your eyes you see a red scorch mark on your upper right arm and nothing more. It was so hot, and it barely even grazed you. You couldn't imagine how it felt to be hit head-on.