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That afternoon, in a shopping district in New York.
Annie, disguised, walked into an accessories store with Kevin, helping him choose a cross for tomorrow.
"This one will do. Wear this at the venue in a couple of days, and I guarantee no one will doubt that you don't believe in Jesus."
Annie casually picked up a relatively expensive cross accessory and held it up against Kevin.
Beneath Kevin's black-rimmed glasses, his gaze was quite strange:
"I thought you would take me to a church. I didn't expect you to be so… casual."
Holding the cross in his hand, Kevin was quite speechless.
He had thought Annie's faith was very firm, and he had even prepared to accompany Annie to church to listen to the priest's prayers and blessings.
But in the end, Annie just casually picked up a cross accessory to make do.
This faith was a bit… cheap, even if the cross was expensive.
Annie had an explanation for this:
"Faith in the Lord should be kept in your heart; there's no need to force others to convert. And to be a bit… rebellious, my faith in God has actually wavered now."
"Oh? Why?"
"Because aren't our Supe abilities innate? If so, then why would God bestow Supe abilities upon those… those bastards?"
Annie seemed to want to say something dirtier, but when her gaze flickered to Kevin, she instantly changed her words.
Before investigating Compound V, Annie still naively believed that the Supe abilities of Supes were a product bestowed upon humanity by God.
This was also something that most religious believers firmly believed.
God, displeased with everything in the world, bestowed Supe abilities upon Superheroes, hoping they could use this power to maintain peace in the world.
Among them, Homelander was the new-age Son of God in the hearts of believers.
He acted on behalf of God, a modern Jesus walking among men.
To be fair, Kevin almost laughed out loud when he heard Annie talking about these 'rumors' circulating among believers.
If there were a Superman-like existence in this world, Kevin would have no objection if believers called him a god walking among men, a modern Son of God, or a holy person.
Superman's moral standards were worthy of such titles.
But if you're talking about Homelander…
Calling him Satan's spokesperson would probably be more fitting than titles like modern Son of God.
Of course, for those who didn't know the truth, Homelander might indeed be such a person.
Annie had thought so before this.
However, after witnessing what A-Train had done and personally seeing Homelander come to trouble Kevin because of it, Annie was already disappointed in Homelander.
And, by extension, disappointed in God.
If God truly existed, then why would He bestow Supe abilities upon those who shouldn't receive them?
Kevin offered no comment on Annie's faith.
He took the cross, stroked its patterns, and replied:
"Perhaps, we weren't chosen?"
"Huh?"
"Perhaps our Supe abilities were just an unexpected accident?"
After Kevin finished speaking, he and Annie both fell silent.
After a while, Annie suddenly laughed and said:
"Why does the topic suddenly feel so heavy…"
"It is a bit."
"It's rare to have time off today, so don't think so much. Oh, Kevin, do you want to watch a movie? I haven't seen Translucent's 'Invisible Force 2' yet. I heard you made an appearance in it?"
Perhaps seeing a movie poster nearby, Annie suddenly suggested going to the movies with Kevin.
Kevin looked at the movie poster not far away.
Translucent's "Invisible Force 2" had not been out for a month yet, and cinemas were still showing it. Kevin originally thought it wouldn't hurt to accompany Annie if there was nothing else to do.
But just then, Kevin's phone vibrated.
It was Ashley's call.
"…It was just a cameo. Well, Annie, if there's nothing else, let's stop here for today. I still have something to deal with."
"Uh… temporary work?"
"Something like that, overtime."
Kevin casually made an excuse to leave and answered Ashley's call.
He had asked Ashley to inquire about Shockwave that morning and help him contact Shockwave. Now, it seemed there was progress.
Kevin, having received the call, hurriedly bid farewell to Annie and left.
Annie waved goodbye to Kevin, watching him all the while.
Only when Kevin's figure disappeared did she lower her hand, letting out a long sigh as if deflated.
"…Was my hint not obvious enough?"
Annie said this, turning to look at her reflection in the nearby glass.
Although she was disguised, Annie was wearing a newly bought designer shirt and jacket, her hair was styled, and she had carefully applied very light makeup.
She had originally planned to watch a movie with someone and then have dinner together…
But that someone ran off midway.
Well, anyway, they were just a screen couple for now, and even the screen couple hadn't been officially confirmed yet; they were just playing at ambiguity. It was true they shouldn't be doing these things.
But the fact that a certain guy showed no reaction still made Annie a little deflated.
"…Forget it, I'd better go back."
Annie, unable to watch the movie as she wished, stared at the movie poster for a while, then turned and left.
In fact, today's timing was also meticulously calculated by Annie.
Coming out of the accessories store at this time, she could just catch the upcoming movie, and after the movie, it would be exactly dinner time.
Otherwise, why would Annie insist on choosing an accessories store here?
It was just that all these clever calculations couldn't be used.
What a pity.
…
Kevin didn't notice Annie's thoughts at all.
Don't expect a seasoned single dog, who has been single in both this life and the previous one, to instantly understand a girl's thoughts and feelings.
Moreover, Kevin was still thinking about Shockwave.
Homelander and Kevin were now at odds, and Kevin intended to start building his own power from now on.
Starlight was one, and Maeve could be brought over.
Black Noir belonged to Edgar and couldn't be moved for now.
Finally, only A-Train remained, an asset to Homelander's side.
And despite A-Train's current fear of Kevin, Kevin remembered that this guy was a two-faced person in the original work.
Leaving aside the bastardly things he did in the first two seasons, just consider the third season.
In the third season, Starlight's ex-boyfriend, Supersonic, trusted him and thought he could be an ally, so he told A-Train about his plan to deal with Homelander.
As a result, not long after, A-Train immediately reported this to Homelander.
This led to Supersonic's tragic death, and The Seven's rising star fell before it even truly rose.
It also served as a warning to Annie and The Boys.
Kevin had originally thought that by subduing A-Train with his fists, the guy would be more obedient, at least not report so quickly, right?
But he didn't expect an accident to still happen with him.
So, Kevin didn't plan to recruit A-Train, nor was there any need to.
But another speedster comparable to A-Train was a potential target for recruitment.
Shockwave.
A Supe with speed comparable to A-Train.
In fact, if A-Train hadn't taken Compound V that day, Shockwave would likely have been the winner.
Kevin was at a disadvantage in terms of speed; his speed on land probably wasn't even one-tenth of A-Train's.
So he needed a helper in terms of speed.
Shockwave was very suitable.
After having Ashley arrange a meeting with Shockwave in a private room at a nearby bar, Kevin headed straight for the agreed-upon bar.
The bar wasn't a Supe bar; it was just a very ordinary place, but it had private rooms to ensure privacy, so there was no need to worry about being photographed by paparazzi.
This was the place Shockwave chose.
Entering the bar and finding the room Shockwave had reserved, Kevin pushed the door open directly, and inside, Shockwave had already been waiting for a long time.
"The Deep! Oh, my God, it's really you!"
As soon as he entered the door, Kevin heard Shockwave's cheer.
He walked forward excitedly and said:
"When Vought called and said you wanted to see me, I could barely believe it! I didn't expect it to be true!"
"Alright, calm down. I'm here to talk business today."
Seeing Shockwave cheering like a die-hard fan, Kevin helplessly tried to calm him.
He hadn't heard that Shockwave was The Deep's fan before…
With his idol speaking, the excited Shockwave reined in his excitement, taking a deep breath and saying:
"Right, right, right, business…"
Shockwave said, slowly exhaling, as if trying to calm down.
Kevin waited for a while, and seeing him calm down, he slightly opened his mouth, just about to speak to him.
But the next moment, he saw Shockwave pick up a bottle of soda from the table and hand it to Kevin, saying:
"…So, before we talk business, would you like a can of orange soda?"
"?"
Kevin's gaze fell on the soda in Shockwave's hand.
The orange soda's icon was simple: a can with a simple orange pattern on the outside, looking like a very ordinary generic soda.
But the moment Shockwave handed the soda to Kevin, Kevin's mood became solemn.
He looked up at Shockwave again, his eyes full of deep thought.
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