Cruel Words, Broken Hearts

Chapter 3

"Do you remember me?
The one you used to see
every minute of every day
bringing heartache to stand in my way.
There were times when we understood each other,
knew both our pains at the darkest hours
I became us
but we parted
and it was done; thus."

"Father," Vaughn greeted Alexander – his father – respectfully as he exited through the school's doors. He was greeted with a nod and a hesitant hug from his father.

"I'm sorry, Vaughn," Alexander said as he brushed a strand of blonde hair out of the way from his son's eyes. He felt shame and guilt course through him as he reflected on his words. He shouldn't have shouted at Vaughn like that – just because he didn't agree with his son's views didn't give him an excuse to take his frustration on his son – let alone in front of Nobis, of all people. "I shouldn't have yelled at you like that just because I don't agree with you. You have the freedom to believe what you think is right, and I shouldn't try and control you."

Vaughn looked at his father once more as he stepped out of his father's embrace, eyes dancing with warmth. Is this why his father had looked so depressed yesterday after that confrontation? Something made him grin widely at Alexander – this was why he loved his father. "I forgive you – in fact, I've already forgiven you – but are you sure you can't understand my point of view?"

Alexander shuffled his feet as he felt the weight of his son's scrutiny. Could he? No, probably not – after all, he grew up with these principles, no matter how wrong they seemed. His mother and father died, and these principles were the only thing he remembered from them – how important they were, to trust no one and to always believe in them. His parents didn't give him a say on what he believed in or what he thought was wrong, and he didn't want his son to be controlled. "I-I just – I don't know – I don't think I can," he said in a solemn voice, hanging his head.

Vaughn sighed and ran a hand through his hair in exasperation as he dropped the subject with a shrug of his shoulders and a forced smile – his father didn't return it.

~NA~NA~NA~NA~

Alexander sat at the dinner table with his son, focussing on the way he pushed his food around the plate with his fork in a childish manner. "You've been depressed all evening," he commented dryly. "What's the matter?"

Vaughn shifted in his seat, diverting his eyes away from the older male. He sighed and put his fork down to stop himself from fiddling with it. "Look, it's just-" he inhaled a deep breath to try and piece together why he was feeling this way. "Why do you hate my professor?"

Alexanders eyebrows rose in surprise; he wasn't expecting his son to know. He swallowed a forkful of steak that he'd prepared – Vaughn's mother had moved out, not wanting anything to do with them since they broke up, thus making him the one to prepare meals. Why did he hate Nobis? And how did his son know? To be fairly honest – he didn't exactly hate Nobis. It was more about the emotions that Nobis made him feel. "I don't know what you're talking about," he replied after a pause. He was rather good at lying, but his own son could always see right through him.

"Professor Nobis told me," Vaughn said with a smug smirk. "He told me about the time when you were in school; how you acted, what you did." He looked like a triumphant winner basking in limelight – he had locked his father in a corner. There was no way the older male could hide the truth from him now. "He said you hated him. A lot."

Alexander set his fork down and pushed his plate away, sighing. There was no way he could get out of this now. "Look, just-," he huffed, trying to put what he was trying to say in words. "I guess it seemed like I hated him, but I really didn't. And he hated me just as much." He could remember the fights he had gotten in with the brunet clearly; the wounds they had placed on each other, and the raw emotion that was used in their encounters. He could remember everything.

"Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic?" laughed Alexander to his goons, pointing to their english teacher as the said man tripped over one of the student's feet that was purposely placed there. "And he's supposed to be our teacher!"

A few of the other students made furious moves towards the haughty blonde, but Nobis got there first, seething in frustration as he took a deep breath to compose himself as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Ha," Alexander taunted deviously, hands on his slender hips again. "If it isn't four eyed Nobis – come to see the show?" He had hoped to capture the attention of the brunet by taunting his – what he knew was – his favourite teacher and when Nobis came marching towards him, he grinned triumphantly.

"How dare you!" Nobis yelled, eyebrows furrowing in frustration. Today, Alexander had been an utter prat and went to do the unthinkable. He made fun of a teacher the teacher who teaches his favourite class. It seemed that every single day, Alexander went out of his way to make everyone feel like utter rubbish – and he meant everyone. He swallowed as he stared into those stormy grey eyes, so clouded from emotion. He made his face blank, refusing to get the blond to coax any response from him.

"But you're this teacher's pet, aren't you Nobis?" Alexander hummed in that innocent voice of his, knowing how Nobis would heat up every time he said something this way. "Always getting great marks in this class, aren't you? I wonder how-"

Nobis silenced Alexander with a harsh slap across the face. "You are an utter prat, you know that?" Nobis said through clenched teeth, trying to stop himself from doing anything rash.

Alexander placed a tentative hand on the cheek that Nobis had slapped, feeling the irritated skin swell the tiniest bit. He sighed contently, relishing in the emotion behind the slap – it made him feel something inside, somehow content, as if something was missing from his life and he had just been given it. It irritated him that Nobis was the only one who could make him feel like this – content, sated, happy. He sighed as the brunet stormed away from him, already planning another way to get Nobis to notice him.

"Father?" Vaughn snapped Alexander out of his trance. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. What had his father been thinking about? He looked so happy for a moment, and the next, when his eyes met Vaughn's, he flushed a fruitful red colour. "You know, my professor doesn't hate you."

Alexander's lips pursed. "Oh?" he questioned, suddenly feeling rather self-conscious. He felt the flush on his face and tried to will it to go away. Why was his son doing this to him? He must have some ulterior motive. But he just said Nobis didn't hate him. "He doesn't?"

Vaughn grinned devilishly for a moment as he watched his father take the bait laid out in front of him. He knew it – his father always perked up at the news of his professor and he was determined to know why. "He actually likes you, or some vague idea like that."

Alexander opened his mouth to deny any idea like that but ended up making a choked noise. "He – what?" He couldn't put it into words how he felt at the very moment; should he be confused or happy? It seemed impossible to him that Nobis would actually like him as a person after everything he'd done. "Are you sure?"

Vaughn hid a malicious glint in his eyes as he took the moment to let silence lapse between them to let his father process what he had said. "My professor likes you – he told me," he repeated slowly. His plan was going very well, indeed. Father would become involved with his professor, and then, surely his professor would have an impact on his point of view just like he did with himself! "I think you should apologise to him. He seems quite certain that you utterly hate his guts."

"I – I don't," he retorted indignantly, crossing his arms across his chest defensively. "I don't hate him." He was certain on that. Nothing could make him hate Nobis. Nothing. He thought about his son's words. "I don't think he'd be too happy to see me anyway. If you give me his number, then maybe I will apologise."