Boss with Benefits

Chapter 7 - New Dawn

"Long time no see."

The small child with short dark hair like Vincent whipped his head back so swiftly, it almost felt as though Vincent's voice was what he had been anticipating for all these years, like he was afraid one second too late and Vincent would disappear, whisked away by the mist of suppressed memories and continuing to feign ignorance to his existence.

On second thought, that might very well be true.

"Is... Is that really you?"

"Yes, yes it is." Vincent's voice was quiet as the boy gazed up at him with a look that was a mix of surprise of seeing Vincent again just when he had started to lose hope and a small sting of pain because of what had transpired so many years ago, the day that had separated them and left the boy wondering when they would meet again, if Vincent ever returned at all. "I'm home, Vince."

With those dark eyes that Vincent was all too familiar with, the same pair he also possessed, the boy maintained his gaze on him as he spoke, his voice shaking ever so slightly as though he was doing his best to not cry.

"You lied."

Vincent's heart skipped a beat from a thousand needles piercing his heart with guilt, his shoulders heavy from the weight of knowing there was so much he needed to tell this boy, his inner child, who had been left in the dark for far too long, left wandering around in his room that was the corner of his mind that he had hesitated to revisit, with no clue to guess what happened and with enough confusion to start wondering whether he had done something wrong to be abandoned like that.

"You lied... You said you'd be back soon but... it's been ten years..."

Silence was all what followed them—it was the only answer Vincent could give his inner child at the time while he pondered how to give him the proper explanation that he deserved—and the boy turned back with an unreadable expression full of conflicting emotions, ones that made it difficult for him to look Vincent in the eye as he clutched the book he had been holding in his arms as though it was all he had left from his childhood, as though it would leave him behind like Vincent did if his hands ever let it slip out of their grasp. With his eyes drawn to that very same book he had spent years trying to convince himself never existed, a sigh escaped Vincent's lips as he knelt down besides the boy with his hand gently placed on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Vince. I'm sorry it took me so long."

Vincent's voice was soft as he comforted his inner child, the boy who could no longer hold back his tears that were now rolling down his cheeks.

"W-Where have you been...?" The boy muffled his choked up voice in Vincent's chest as he pulled him into a hug, his hands patting his back in soothing motions. "Y-You just l-left suddenly w-with no explanation. Why—Why...?"

"I'm sorry... I really am, it's just"-Vincent tightened his grip around the boy-"I got hurt. We got hurt, and-and I didn't want to burden you by explaining it."

The boy glanced up at him with widened teary eyes. "We... got hurt?"

"Yes, it was simply—too much to process, and I didn't want to confront it with you. I thought it'd be too painful, too much for your innocent little mind. But..." Vincent's head fell onto the boy's shoulder, his hold on him still as firm as ever like a parent's protective embrace. "But I realized too late that by doing it, I ended up hurting you further because when I thought I was protecting you by shielding you from the truth, I hurt you with the unknown. I'm sorry, it... it must've been so confusing to sense something was wrong but lack the ability to understand what was going on."

The little boy was quiet, save for a few sniffles, before he spoke up again as Vincent wiped the tears off his eyes.

"Then... what happened? What hurt us so much that..."