Ben’s biggest mistake isn’t falling in love.
It’s letting someone notice.
When a routine visit to Vought Tower turns into an encounter with Homelander and The Seven, Ben quickly discovers that his growing attachment isn’t nearly as private as he thought.
And Homelander has never been known for respecting boundaries.
Unfortunately for everyone involved, neither has Soldier Boy.
Notes:
Inspired by the song Adore You by Harry Styles.
AO3 link
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
~~~~~~~~~~
The first person to notice was Homelander. Which was unfortunate. Because Homelander noticed everything.
Especially weaknesses.
The conference room at Vought Tower felt exactly the same as it always had. Too cold. Too expensive. Filled with people Ben disliked.
Across the table sat Homelander. Smiling.
Which immediately made Ben suspicious.
Around him were members of The Seven. A collection of egos, liabilities, and walking public-relations disasters.
Ben wanted to leave.
Homelander wanted something.
Which was somehow worse.
“So.” Homelander leaned back. “How’s the bookstore?”
Ben froze.
Only for half a second.
But Homelander saw it.
Of course he did.
The smile widened.
“Interesting.”
Across the room, The Deep immediately looked nervous.
Because he’d witnessed enough Soldier Boy and Homelander arguments to recognize the warning signs.
“Don’t.” Ben said.
Homelander ignored him.
Naturally.
“I didn’t know you read.”
“I don’t.”
“Then why spend so much time there?”
Silence.
The room suddenly became very interested in literally anything else.
Even A-Train looked uncomfortable.
Homelander’s grin sharpened.
“There she is, right?”
Ben stood.
The chair scraped loudly across the floor.
Instant silence.
“You got something to say?”
Homelander rose too.
Neither man looked away.
The atmosphere changed immediately.
Everyone felt it.
Because whenever Homelander and Soldier Boy occupied the same space, it felt less like a meeting and more like a bomb waiting to explode.
“You know,” Homelander said casually, “Ryan talks about his favorite people the same way.”
Ben’s jaw tightened.
“Careful.”
“Oh, come on.” Homelander laughed. “You practically glow whenever her name comes up.”
The room collectively decided not to exist.
A survival instinct.
Ben took one step forward.
Homelander took one step forward.
Neither willing to yield.
Neither willing to blink.
“Keep talking.” Ben said.
The smile vanished from Homelander’s face.
Dangerous.
“Or what?”
For a moment, nobody moved.
Then the lights flickered.
The air pressure shifted.
And every member of The Seven immediately backed away from both men.
Because they’d seen this before.
Two apex predators.
One room.
One bad decision.
Homelander’s eyes glowed red.
Ben’s fists clenched.
“Try me.” Ben said quietly.
The windows rattled.
Across the room, The Deep muttered:
“Oh, we’re gonna die.”
A-Train nodded.
“Yep.”
For three terrible seconds, it looked like the tower might lose an entire floor.
Then Homelander laughed.
The tension snapped.
Just like that.
“Relax.” He smiled. “I was teasing.”
Ben didn’t smile back.
Because Homelander wasn’t teasing.
Homelander was probing.
Testing.
Looking for vulnerabilities.
And apparently he’d found one.
Three days later, Ben was back at the bookstore.
Where he actually wanted to be.
You were sitting on a ladder reorganizing a shelf.
Completely unaware that you’d almost caused a superhuman civil war.
“Hey.” You smiled.
The irritation he’d carried all week vanished immediately.
Just like that.
Gone.
Which was deeply annoying.
Because it proved Homelander right.
And Ben hated when Homelander was right.
“You okay?” You asked.
“Fine.”
“You look like you punched a wall.”
“I did.”
A pause.
“…Ben.”
“What?”
“You can’t say things like that casually.”
“Why?”
You stared.
He stared back.
Neither understanding the other.
Then you laughed.
And once again the tension disappeared.
Every damn time.
Ben watched you climb down from the ladder.
Watched you tuck your hair behind your ear.
Watched you smile.
And suddenly something unpleasant occurred to him.
Homelander wasn’t the only one who could see it.
Anyone paying attention could.
How often he looked at you.
How quickly his mood changed around you.
How much he cared.
The realization settled heavily in his chest.
Not because he was ashamed.
Because people ruined things.
And if there was one thing Ben had learned in a century of living—
It was that the moment the world discovered something precious… The world tried to take it.
The next time he saw Homelander, it happened in a hallway.
No audience. No cameras. No Seven.
Just the two of them.
Which somehow made it worse.
Homelander smiled.
Ben immediately considered violence.
“You know.” Homelander said. “I’ve never seen you like this.”
“Like what?”
“Happy.”
The word hit harder than any punch.
Because Ben couldn’t remember the last time someone had called him that.
Homelander tilted his head.
“She must be special.”
The hallway cracked.
A thin fracture racing across the marble floor beneath Ben’s boots.
The smile vanished from Homelander’s face.
Because suddenly this wasn’t funny anymore.
“Listen carefully.”
Ben said.
Quietly.
Dangerously.
“You stay away from her.”
For the first time all conversation, Homelander looked serious.
Then—
Something unexpected happened.
He laughed.
Not mockingly.
Almost knowingly.
“You really adore her.”
Silence.
Ben should’ve denied it.
Should’ve lied.
Should’ve walked away.
Instead he said nothing.
And somehow that answer was worse.
Because Homelander’s expression changed.
Not amusement.
Not ridicule.
Recognition.
The look of someone who understood exactly what it was like to need affection. To crave it. To build your entire world around it.
For one brief moment, they understood each other.
Then it passed.
“Wow.” Homelander whispered.
Ben hated the sound of it.
Because it sounded like discovery.
Like realization.
Like someone opening a door that should’ve remained locked.
And as Homelander walked away, Ben found himself thinking something he’d never considered before.
Loving you wasn’t the dangerous part.
The dangerous part was how much he was willing to do to keep you safe.
