The Woe We Deserve

Chapter 24

Xavier arrived at his apartment building feeling nervous for the conversation he was about to have with his father. The elevator ride up to the penthouse felt eternal. He wasn't even sure if he would be home, however, one of their maids pointed him towards Vincent's office when he arrived.

*********************

"Xavier? What the hell are you doing here?"

"I left you dozens of messages—"

His father lifted a finger and picked up his phone. "I'm going to have to call you back."

Xavier scoffed. "Clearly it works."

"I've been very busy, son."

"That excuse is getting pretty tired," he muttered.

His father looked exasperated; he clenched his jaw and stood from his desk. "Well, now that you're here... what can I do for you?"

Xavier felt like an idiot. It was becoming clear with every passing second that his father was guilty, though he was sure he would never admit it. Vincent only did what was best for him.

"Wednesday Addams. Does that name ring a bell?"

"Of course," said Vincent. He kept a straight face, but there was an edge to his voice. "Our families have known each other for decades. Not to mention, she saved the school from that monster last year."

"Yes. That monster." Xavier could barely contain his rage. "The one that almost killed me? That hyde that tried to use me as bait to kidnap her. He got around using your keys."

"Xavier, you listen to me." His words concealed a threat. "I had no way of knowing that boy would be involved. I was assured that nobody would get hurt. I was only trying to protect our family."

"Our family?" Xavier asked. "Or yourself?"

Vincent shot him an icy look. "You may not always like it, son, but it's just me and you. I'm the only person you can turn to. I give you the best life I can, under the circumstances."

"Under the circumstances..." Xavier muttered under his breath."

"Okay. I get it. You are upset. But that's enough. Don't forget who you're talking to." Xavier bit his tongue.

Vincent sighed; his face softened. "I am sorry. But it all worked out in the end. This man is no longer a threat to anybody. And nobody really got hurt—"

Xavier scoffed. He raised his left arm. "Hello?"

"You know what I mean."

"I almost died!"

"But you didn't. And I knew you wouldn't. I know your future. You have many years yet to live."

"Enough!" Xavier yelled. "You can't just do that! You don't know everything! Maybe I didn't die, but did you consider I could suffer in other ways? I mean, what if my arm doesn't fully recover? What about the trauma it's caused me?"

Xavier felt tears stinging his eyes. He knew his father would only use that against him.

"Xavier. How can I make this up to you? I am extremely sorry."

"Just forget it." Xavier wiped his eyes and turned on his heel.

"We're not done talking!"

"I am!"

*******************************

He felt his phone buzzing incessantly in his pocket, but he ignored it. After walking aimlessly through the busy streets of New York City,  he found himself in Central Park, only a few blocks from his apartment. Growing up, the park had been a safe haven for Xavier. He would spend hours walking around and climbing rocks. When his nanny begged him to leave, he would sprint away and hide. She hated it.

Xavier found a lonely bench and sat. He silenced all calls from his father, who continued to blow up his phone, but eventually the calls stopped, and he started getting texts instead.

V: I'm sorry, Xavier. Come back. Let's talk about it.

V: Tell me how I can make this right.

V: And I don't need to tell you that this has to stay a secret.

Instead of texting back his dad, Xavier opened his messages with Wednesday. He wrote and rewrote a text about a dozen times before chickening out.

Later, only when his flight was about to take off, he force himself to hit send.

X: I'm on a flight back to Vermont.

X: You were right, I'm sorry.

He immediately shut off his phone; he didn't know how she would respond, but he was terrified to find out.

As the adrenaline started to wear off, reality started to sink in. He had made a very long series of bad decisions. He had risked his future at Nevermore by running away; he had done so without telling his girlfriend. He had confronted his father and gotten absolutely nothing out of it, other than more reasons to loathe him.

And here he was; alone in an airplane, with half of his chest screaming in pain from his injuries.

He didn't know what would happen with his father. Could he really renounce his only parent? Would he continue to act like nothing had happened?

Xavier knew he wouldn't renounce Wednesday. But she had every reason to cut him loose. Her family would probably be horrified to find out they were dating, given he was Vincent's son.

But he would do whatever it took. Their futures were entwined; he had known this for a while.

So he sat quietly through the flight, drafting apologies in his head. Nothing felt like it was good enough. At least he had the rest of the night to think things over before having to face her during breakfast.