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Alex stared at his mother and father with wide eyes as his mother’s hair slowly fell back to her shoulders and her eyes became their usual brown color that matched Alex’s own instead of the bright green they had just been.
Alex felt like he was going to throw up as the static in his head started to act up once more. This wasn’t the first time he had sensed evil and it wouldn’t be the last but the thing that was making him sick though was that he was getting these feelings from the people before him, the people or supposed to make him feel safe, not crazy.
“Where’s my mom?” Alex found himself asking without really thinking as tears stinging his eyes as he looked at them both.
“Alex,” Amanda said softly, as she moved closer with her hand held out, “Don’t be silly, I’m your mother,” She said trying to calm him down knowing that finding out your mother was a Spellbinder wasn’t the easiest thing in the world.
“No, no, you’re not, my mom was the one that kept me safe,” Alex said as he stepped back away from her, ignoring the hurt that flashed through Amanda’s brown eyes. “Now you know it feels,” His mind whispered, but he bit his tongue to stop the words from spilling from his mouth.
“My Mom doesn’t make me feel crazy like Dad does,” He said venom lacing his words as he looked towards Charles who was slightly taken aback by his son’s outburst. “My mom is always there for me and when I got kicked out of school didn’t yell as dad did, but instead watched old black and white movies with me,” He said trying to hold back the tears that stung his eyes at the memory.
That was one of the memories that Alex held close to his heart when he had been sent to Geneva so Charles and now it felt like Amanda wouldn’t have to deal with him.
Alex had been in his room letting the tears fall after his and his father’s argument as well as after his father had called him crazy; his mother had walked in a sad look across her face as she sat down on his bed and hugged him close telling him everything would be all right. When Alex tried to tell her it wouldn’t she just held him tighter before getting him to come to the living room with her where his head stayed in her lap for the entire night while old black and white movies played while his mother ran her fingers through his blonde hair that matched her own.
“My Mom doesn’t trap me in a room with her by using magic to block the exits,” Alex growled as he took another step back trying his best to keep the tears under wraps, but it was getting harder and harder by the minute. “Where’s my, Mom?” He asked again as a few tears slipped down his face as he looked at the woman who had his mother’s face but he didn’t recognize her for a second.
Alex felt his throat tighten and he wanted so badly to beg for Sangster or Armstrong to come in through the science lab door so he wasn’t alone with the two people in front of him. The two people he thought he could trust the most in this world.
“Alex, I am your, Mother,” Amanda said a firmness in her voice that hadn’t been there before. “I know this is a lot to take in….” She started but was cut off by a bitter laugh coming from the young man in front of them.
“A lot to take in?” Alex asked with wide eyes, a humorless bark of laughter leaving him once more as he looked at them. “You think?” He asked as he reached up and wiped his tears away with his jacket sleeve. “A few months ago I find out that the name Van Helsing truly does mean something and that my father is an ex-vampire slayer,” He said motioning towards Charles without giving him a chance to speak. “And now, now I find out that my mother is a witch!” He cried out, anger filling his eyes alongside the tears.
“Spellbinder, Alex,” Amanda chastised him with a slightly annoyed look in her eyes at being called a witch.
“Who gives a shit!?” Alex asked as he finally let himself yell, the broken, bitter laughter still leaving him as he started to pace back and forth.
“Alex, don’t talk to your mother like that,” Charles said finally. There was an anger in his voice as well as an annoyance as he believed his son was overreacting.
“Or what you’ll send me away!?” Alex demanded as he looked at his father, the man that had made him feel like he was losing his mind before sending him to a new place all on his own. “Oh, wait, you already did,” He said in a fake cheery tone.
Alex felt a form of satisfaction wash over him as he watched both his parents become speechless at his words.
The satisfaction was short-lived though as he felt the sadness and anger he had felt for nearly three months finally boil up inside of him and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
“You made me feel crazy,” Alex said his voice small as his parents continued to say nothing. “When I needed you the most after that werewolf attacked me you made me feel like I was losing my mind,” He whispered trying to ignore the tears that were finally starting to spill down his face. “You told me that if that guy died it was my fault,” He growled, his eyes staying on Charles who had to of known that the guy that attacked Alex had been a werewolf. “Do you know how many nights I woke from guilt and nightmares feeling like I would be sick?” He demanded, noting how his father wouldn’t look him in the eyes anymore. “When someone makes you feel like shit, you can’t take it,” His mind thought as he glared at his father.
Alex’s snapped to his mother who seemed to have gotten a little closer and for a moment Alex wondered if she was going to use her magic on him. That thought caused Alex to step back from her once more and again he saw the hurt in her eyes, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. He had been trained to stay away from evil of all kinds, to run and defend himself and as far as he was concerned right at this moment his parents were the evil he needed to protect himself from.
“And you helped him,” Alex growled as he glared at his mother, his voice breaking slightly as he did. “You were the only one in our entire family that I thought actually cared about me, but you’re just as bad as him!” He yelled, tears coming faster and faster as he felt his hands curl into a fist. “You knew about magic and monster,” He growled, tears falling onto his shirt. “You could have told me at any time but you didn’t you helped me feel insane!” He yelled knowing that he should keep his voice down or someone would hear but again he couldn’t find it in himself to care.
For a moment all was silent as Alex just let the tears fall letting his mother and father see how much they had hurt him.
“Alex… “ Amanda started trying to move closer to her only son once more, but Alex backed away once again.
“You both knew about magic and about monsters but instead of telling me the truth you just sent me away,” Alex said his voice no longer holding anger but it was weak and horse. “You just sent me away like I didn’t matter and you never called, you never sent me a text, you didn’t do anything,” He whispered as more tears dripped from his face. “You acted as if I never existed in the first place,” He said, his voice showing how heartbroken he was and how heartbroken he had been for three months.
Alex reached up to wipe the tears away with his sleeves once more, feeling not for the first time like it was too big for him.
“I don’t need you,” Alex whispered as he looked at his parents, anger in his eyes as he looked at them, and he wondered if he would always look at them like that from now on. “I don’t need you just like you didn’t want me,” He said ignoring the gasp from his mother but that hadn’t been directed towards no matter how mad he was at her at the moment it was directed towards his father who still wouldn’t look in him in the eyes.
“I have a new family,” Alex said wanting to hurt them the way they had hurt him. “A family that actually cares about me and they actually cares about what happens to me,” He said thinking about Paul, Sid, Mina, even Vienne though he had just met her. “They believe me no matter what and try to protect me from danger,” He said as he thought about Sangster, Armstrong, Carerras, and other agents of the Polidorium. “They love me and they want me!” He shouted, letting his voice raised as he looked at his mother and his father.
Alex honestly didn’t know if love was the right word he was looking for but he felt like it was.
Alex felt like an idiot for wanting them to say something, for wanting them to defend themselves but as he watched them just stand there not moving and not saying a word he knew that that wasn’t going to happen.
Once again, Alex felt sick the static in his head had turned into a light buzz showing that they weren’t a very serious threat anymore, but he felt like the static was wrong about that.
Alex swallowed back the tears that he had been letting slide down his face freely. He took a few slow, measured breaths that Armstrong had taught him to do to calm himself down before looking at his parents once more.
“I’m staying in Geneva,” Alex said, his voice seeming to be made of steel at the moment as he felt his nails bite into his skin and he couldn't help but think he sounded a bit like Sangster. “I’m staying in this school,” He said as he watched his parents with hard eyes that were still red from his tears. “And I’m staying with the Polidorium,” He stated finally in a tone that left no room for argument or for negotiation.
Alex didn’t wait for his parents’ answer instead he turned his back to them and walked towards the classroom door. There was a sick feeling in his stomach at the thought of his mother still using her magic to keep him locked inside. When he pushed down on the handle though, he heard the door click and he let a sigh of relief leave him as he was able to pull the door open revealing the hallway they had walked down.
“Have a safe flight home,” Alex said without looking back at Amanda and Charles before taking a step forward, then another and then another until he was walking out of the classroom and down the hall.
As Alex’s mind started to race his steps got faster and faster until he was running at full speed down the dark, empty hall. He tried to ignore the way he couldn’t breathe and how his tears started to blur his vision as he ran, suddenly wishing he didn’t have his contacts in.
Alex ignored everything around him as he kept running trying to figure out where he could go but could think of nothing. To be honest, he didn’t care as long as he was far away from Amanda, and Charles he would be just fine at least that’s what he told himself.
Alex felt like he was picking up more speed as he turned a corner, and he could have sworn he saw someone out of the corner of his eye and swore he heard his name but ignored it the best he could. He didn’t have much time to ignore it though because within seconds of hearing the voice he felt a hand grabbing the back of his jacket collar. At this Alex let out a small scream and started to fight back believing it to be his father though he didn’t know how it could be.
“Let go, let go!” Alex shouted as he fought against the person who was currently grabbing his arms. “You can’t take me back!” He shouted hoping someone would come to help him. “I won’t let you!” He shouted once more still struggling against the person’s hold.
“Alex, Alex!” The voice shouted, shaking the young man a little trying to get his attention. “Calm down,” The voice ordered as he pulled Alex a little closer, trying to keep from hurting him since that was the last thing he wanted to do. “Alex, it’s me,” He shouted as he gripped Alex slightly tighter trying not to wince as the young man kicked him in the legs. “It’s Sangster,” He said hoping that Alex could hear him and like that, at the sound of his name, Alex stopped.
For a moment everything was silent as Alex looked around as if he had just woken up from a horrible nightmare.
“S-Sangster?” Alex asked, his voice cracking and stuttering as he looked up at his mentor with the big watery eyes of a child who was hurt and lost
“Yeah,” Sangster said as he carefully loosened his grip on Alex before letting his hands drop to his sides. “What’s going…” He started to ask but before he could he was knocked back by Alex who threw himself into his mentor’s arms.
Before Sangster could ask Alex started to sob into his chest tears soaking through Sangster’s sweater as he looked down at his student before wrapping his own arms around Alex.
Alex gripped tightly to Sangster as he cried unable to stop himself as he felt Sangster’s hand carefully start to run through his blonde hair and though Alex knew it was meant to make him feel better, he could only cry more at the feeling.
Sangster was taken back by his student crying even harder but knew better than to ask at the moment. Instead, he carefully pulled Alex along with him off to the side before lowering both of them to the ground where they sat against the wall.
Alex knew that they had more pressing matters at hand than his parents but he couldn’t bring himself to pull away from Sangster. Instead just leaning against his mentor’s side while the man carefully ran his fingers through his hair trying to help him calm down.
As Alex stayed curled up against Sangster’s side neither said a word knowing that neither needed to as Alex just let himself cry for the first time in months.