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VICTOR's POV

I was vibrating with excitement. I couldn't believe it was happening. Just the idea of having an opportunity to spend afternoon with my son and Oliver was unbelievable. There were still three days left to our agreed meeting, and it felt like forever.

It was middle of the night, and I was just sitting there, in the dark hotel room, staring at the ceiling. I had been sitting there since I came back from the café, thinking about nothing but them. I had only this one chance. If I fucked this up, I was done for.

There was always the option of taking Ollie to court to get custody, but as minutes ticked by, I was realizing it was the worst possible action I could take at the moment. The little guy would end up in pain and that wasn't something I was willing to do. I wanted to get to know him better. He was an amazing boy. I simply couldn't afford any kind of a mistake.

A sudden knock on the door startled me out of my thoughts, my heartbeat speeding up out of scare. It was quite late, so there were only few options of who it might be, none of it a pleasant one. Getting up with a heavy sigh, not really wanting to see anyone as my mind was overflowing with other information, I considered pretending to be asleep or gone. The person probably didn't need anything serious; otherwise, the knocking would be much louder and more urgent.

Just when I stopped, ready to turn around and go back, the knocking sounded again, together with a voice I wanted to hear the least.

"Victor! I know you're in there. The nice receptionist told me you came back a while ago. I need to talk to you." The tone of his voice was serious, almost harsh, making me irritated in a second. I didn't need the shit my father always came up with right now. I was in a great mood, finally getting somewhere, and he had to ruin everything by opening his mouth. Thanks, daddy.

Turning on the light, I opened the door to end up face to face with my least favorite person in the world. I hated him more than Oliver's current boyfriend, and that said a lot.

"What do you want?" I asked, going back to the room, his quiet footsteps following me in. It would be easier for both of us if he simply called, but he was most likely aware I wouldn't pick it up, so he chose this option. He was right, of course, but that didn't mean I had to like it.

"Can't I visit my only son to ask how he's doing? You had to have quite a shock when you read through the documents I gave you. You and your stupid questions every time we meet." I could hear his smile and it pissed me off even more.

Stopping, I looked at him, my nostrils flaring in anger.

"Stop this bullshit and tell me why you are here. We both know you never come to talk to me unless you need something. You just ruined my evening completely, so I don't have patience for these games you like to play," I growled, waiting for his answer. As lovely as my mood was before, right now, all I wanted was to have a glass of some good liquor. Just seeing this man's face made me want to get drunk.

"Right. You were probably too occupied by thinking about your son," he said and I could feel blood rushing to my head. I did think about the possibility of him knowing about Matt all this time. If he had the files, he sure as hell could know more. But I still had a little hope. A hope I regretted having right this moment, and I cursed myself for it. I knew very well how this man worked and what he did most of the time. I knew his character. I was aware of the dirty things he did in order to get to the place he was at. And despite all that, I was still so stupid to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Not being able to surpass it, I laughed, the bitterness in it audible miles away. This was seriously ridiculous.

"So you knew all this time?" Laughing again, I made few steps forward until I was standing just few inches from him.

"Were you hiding the fact I have a son for five years?" my anger overflowing, I grabbed his shirt, glaring him right in the eyes. I was furious. I knew he was a fucked up bastard, but this was too much.

He looked caught off guard for a second, giving me at least a little bit of satisfaction in all this mess, but a smirk made its way up his face, and the short light moment was gone as fast as it appeared. He squeezed my arm, using so much strength I was sure it would bruise if it continued for longer than few seconds.

Letting go of him, I looked at the door, feeling trapped by the fact it was closed. Being in the same room as this bastard was suffocating, and I wasn't going to tolerate it for another second.

"Get out." My voice was cold as a stone, and I could see on my father's face the realization of how bad the situation was. Even though I did get angry quite easily and tended to use harsh words and yelling, it was harmless, most of the time. But there were moments, like this one, when I was on edge, and even the tiniest trigger could cause a tragedy. I knew it, my father knew it, and the fact we were now in a room, all alone, was the worst. For both of us.

"I didn't know. Not until after I came to Boston to see you. That was why I gave you the files," he said, taking few steps back, distancing himself from me.

It wasn't like I would kill him or anything. But punching the living hell out of him was definitely something I was capable of doing. And it was too tempting at the moment.

"I don't believe you," I spat out, not even sparing him a glance.

He'd always been like this. Manipulating everyone into doing whatever he wanted them to do, using information to ruin people or to control them. There was no way he didn't know about my boy before coming here. That was the man my father was.

"Leave right this moment or I'll call the security. You're in my room and I sure as hell don't want you here." I looked right into his cold eyes, their color mirroring my own which I despised to the point of feeling sick, and waited for him to move. The fact he managed to ruin my day was making me see red. I needed a drink to calm down.

My father sighed, shaking his head in an obvious irritation.

"Why don't you ever listen," he mumbled, shaking his head again and continuing, this time much louder.

"Whatever. I don't have time or nerves for this right now. I want to know what you are planning on doing from now on. The fact you have a son is going to be a huge issue if people find out in a bad way, and you know they are going to find out. The best solution would be to arrange a press conference or at least have an interview with one of the prestigious news to show we let it out intentionally. If some paparazzi takes a photo of you and the boy, it's going to be a huge scandal. It would hurt all of you the same way. Think about it and call me when you calm down." He returned my gaze for a minute, turning on his feet and leaving the room right after, slamming the door.

Standing at the same spot for several minutes after he left, his words kept on repeating themselves in my mind. He was, of course, right. But however long I thought about the perfect solution, about a way that would cause the least damage, I couldn't come up with anything. This was going to be huge either way, and as much as I despised my father and everything he did, I had to agree with him on this matter. The best option out of the few we had was to come out clear and the soonest. Before anyone else could let the secret out first.

***

Having two soft drinks and straight eight hours of sleep, I was full of energy when I woke up the next day. My mood was much better and knowing the day I would meet with Ollie and Matt was closer, I couldn't help but feel this irrepressible need to go and buy as much toys as possible. I lost five long years of his life. I needed to give him everything I couldn't during that time.

All bad or troublesome thoughts from previous night forgotten, I put on some casual clothes and went towards my friend's room.

"Nels, we are going out!" I barged into his room, finding him half naked, with only towel around his lower half, his body still wet from the shower he had to take moments before I came. He looked caught off guard, standing there, looking at me with wide eyes and a toothbrush stuck in his mouth. Bursting out laughing, I went over to sit down on one of the couches, waiting for him to snap out of it.

Sure, he wasn't used to me barging in on him like this - it was one of his talents, after all. But I wouldn't expect him to be so shocked. He looked almost vulnerable, like the typical fragile boy in all those high school and university drama movies where they were always bullied by jocks or other individuals. It was too comical.

"Cat got your tongue? Hurry it up. I need to go shopping and you're going to accompany me in retaliation for all the shit you put me through with Alison," I said, chuckling and watching him stare at me in bewilderment, slowly dragging his legs towards the bathroom after a while.

Today was going to be busy.

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(too short, I know!)