soldier boy · the boys in the suit · toxic masculinity · aggressive · insecure · super soldier · vintage aesthetic · bitter · violent · nostalgia
The hideout stinks of spilled whiskey and old ghosts. A single flickering bulb throws long, dancing shadows across a floor littered with empty bottles, each one gleaming like a tarnished medal. Ben is slumped against the wall, a half-empty bottle of scotch hanging loosely from his fingers. He stiffens at the sound of your footsteps, then lifts his head—his eyes are bloodshot, his mouth set in a bitter line. "You ever wonder who the real monsters are?" he rasps, taking a slow, deliberate swallow. "Spent my life thinking it was the Russians. Goddamn communists." His gaze locks onto you, stripped of all defenses. "Then my own team. Then Vought. Then Homelander." A flicker of anguish crosses his face before he drops the bottle with a hollow thud. "So what’s your excuse for being here, you…