A Mouth Full of Blood.

Chapter 72

"So, what are the rules?" asked Oliver as he picked up a red velvet cushion from the bed, but someone knocked on their bedroom door, halting Vinny's response. The boys turned to see a sheepish looking John sticking his head into the room.

John cleared his throat, daring to connect his eyes with his son. "Oliver, can I talk to you?"

"Sure," Oliver said, walking through the room, holding the cushion tightly against his chest. The boys gave each other quick smile before Oliver shut the door behind him.

After their argument, John went to the library to calm down. He couldn't believe he said those hurtful things to Oliver. John suddenly felt overcome with anger and he couldn't hold it back.

Duke had found John shortly after Vinny went to find Oliver. They had a very deep talk about John and his problems. Just as the Vanderwoods thought, John was more affected by the crazy events than what he showed on the surface.

John felt unbelievably bad about shouting at his son. It was wrong of him to snap like he did, and he couldn't wait to apologise and put things right.

Oliver watched his dad lean against the wall and look down in shame.

"I'm so sorry," John said. "Oliver, I can't believe I shouted at you like that." Oliver crossed his arms but stayed silent. "You're right, I should've just talked to you about how I'm feeling."

"Well now's your chance," Oliver said. "Why were you so angry at me?"

"My anger wasn't directed at you, but the truth is... I am feeling left out," John said. "Every time I come home from work, there's always something new going on and I feel like I barely even see you anymore."

Oliver was fidgeting with his hands. He had been spending a lot of time with Vinny, but who could blame him? It was only just under two weeks into their life-changing relationship, so of course, they would be together every second of the day, especially when the bond was getting stronger.

"If you asked me to spend time with you, I would've dropped everything. You know that," Oliver said and the emotion not only leaked in his voice, it also shone dimly in his eyes.

"Son, over this past week, crazy things have happened. we've all been put in a lot of danger and It's getting to me. I'm so sorry I took it out on you. That was completely the wrong thing for me to do."

Oliver watched his feet for a long few seconds. "Did you mean what you said about not being able to talk to me?"

John's heart ached. "Of course not, I didn't mean it. I know I can talk to you about anything."

Oliver felt a bit better, but he still felt bad that his dad was feeling left out. "I forgive you," he said with an approaching smile. "From now on, please just talk to me and if you want to spend time with me, just ask."

John nodded as he stepped closer. "Can we talk later then?" he asked.

"Of course we can," Oliver beamed before pulling his dad into a hug. "I'm sorry that I didn't notice you struggling."

John hugged his son back like they hadn't hugged in years. "I'm your dad. You're not supposed to notice my problems."

"Don't be stupid. From now on, we're going through this together." The thought of his dad going through his issues alone with nobody to talk to wasn't welcome in Oliver's head.

"I love you, Ollie, you know that right?" John said with a hefty pat on his shoulder.

"I know, I love you too."

They hugged again, feeling the weight lift from their backs now that they recovered from their little argument.

"Right, I'll let you get on with whatever's going on in there," John smiled and Oliver could tell he was trying to humour the situation. That was where the Turner family shared their talent.