The Scrap Tamer - Chapter 46

Chapter 46: An Unpleasant Family Reunion

Reid clenched his fists, his teeth grinding as he forced himself to meet the gaze of the man who had just entered. Despite the pressure pinning him down, he managed to straighten his posture enough to lock eyes with the towering figure before him.

“W-well, I could say the same,” he said through gritted teeth, the word almost spat out. “Dad.”

The man had white hair, which Reid inherited from him but his eyes, unlike Reid and his brothers, was green and just like Reid’s mother, he looked younger than he actually was.

“It seems spending two years with with the rats of the Scrapyard has made you one of them” The man’s gaze held distain as he looked at Reid.

Vivian was frozen in surprise seeing her husband here. He wasn’t one to be seen in places like these unless he had somehow heard about Reid’s return.

“Reid!” She worriedly shouted seeing how he struggled against the oppressive pressure.

She then turned to the man releasing the pressure “Maximus Fletcher, What the hell do you think you’re doing to my son?”

The anger was evident in both her voice and face. She looked at Maximus with hate which surprised even him since she had never lashed out this badly, not even the day she found out that Reid was disowned.

“I didn’t ask for a divorce two years ago because I have a responsibility to my other sons” Vivian was huffing in anger at this point “but if you don’t f*cking calm your aura, you’ll find your a*s divorced by tomorrow.”

It was pretty obvious where Reid got his colorful vocabulary from. But her words did the trick because Maximus withdrew is aura and Reid could finally properly breathe.

‘I’m still so f*cking weak’ Reid clenched his fist in anger. Sensing his anger, the forged-beasts glared at Maximus.

“Are you okay?” His mom asked softly her eyes filled with softness, the previous anger in them was nowhere to be seen.

“I’m fine Mom” Reid answered, he honestly wasn’t. If anyone looked under the table, they would see his legs trembling like crazy.

Maximus’s sharp gaze shifted from Reid to the forged-beasts now baring their fangs at him. His lip curled slightly, in disdainful amusement.

“Control your pets, boy,” he said coldly, his voice laced with disdain. “Before they really learn how weak their master is”

Reid glared back, his jaw tightening. His beasts didn’t falter, their snarls growing louder as if to challenge the oppressive figure standing before them.

“Enough!” Vivian snapped, stepping between them. “I won’t allow you to interrupt my time with my son. Especially since you’re the reason he left in the first place”

Maximus raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised. “I came to see if the failure had grown into something worth the Fletcher name. Judging by this… display,” he gestured dismissively at Reid and his forged beasts, “it seems I was right to disown him.”

Without an innate sensory ability like Vivian’s, Maximus couldn’t sense the actual rank of forged-beasts in their current forms but even if he did, he wouldn’t care.

Vivian dangerously narrowed her eyes “I dare you to say that again.”

“It’s fine Mom” Reid said, this wasn’t how he envisioned his meeting with his mom for the first time in two years. “Besides, I’ll f*cking prove to all of them that I’m not a failure.”

Maximus wasn’t surprised by Reid’s lack of fear for him, he hadn’t always been like that including his foul words all of which he inherited from his mother.

He scoffed at Reid’s words but didn’t say anything else, in fear of annoying his wife much more than she already is.

She might not be as strong as him but she was equally scary.

Maximus turned away, his presence still commanding as he walked to the door. He paused briefly, his back to them, and spoke without turning around.

“Don’t even hope your mom can get you back in the family, she couldn’t convince me then, she can’t now.”

With that, he left, the door closing with a sharp click that echoed through the tense silence of the room.

Reid exhaled slowly, his fists unclenching as he tried to steady his breathing. His forged-beasts, still bristling with hostility, relaxed slightly but kept their eyes on the door, as if expecting Maximus to return.

Vivian reached out, gently placing her hands on Reid’s shoulders. Her touch was warm, a stark contrast to the icy tension that lingered from facing Maximus.

“You don’t have to prove anything to him,” she said softly, her voice filled with unwavering support. “Not to him or anyone else.”

Reid looked at his mother, her gentle expression a stark contrast to the hardened exterior she’d shown moments ago. Her words, meant to comfort, only made the fire in his chest burn brighter.

“I do,” he said firmly, though his voice wavered slightly. He clenched his fists, his gaze hardening. “Not for him, not even for the Fletcher name. For myself. For you.”

Vivian’s eyes softened further, her fingers brushing a stray lock of white hair from his face. “Reid—”

He pulled away slightly, shaking his head. “No, Mom. I need to be strong enough so that no one— no one—can look at me like that again.”

Vivian sighed, her expression a mixture of pride and sadness. “You’ve always been strong, Reid. You don’t need to measure yourself by anyone else’s standards.”

“I don’t plan to,” he replied. “But I will surpass his. And when I do, I’ll make sure to prove that I’m not a failure.”

She held the side of his face and looked into his eyes with a serious expression “you were never and will never be a failure to me son, I want you to remember that.”

Reid felt the warmth in both her hands and tone. He softly nodded before she let go and they sat in a bit of awkward silence.

They just remembered that they were still in the pastry shop, with Steve and Mabel seeing all the drama that just occurred.

Luckily, Steve had sent the customers out when Viv came in, so they weren’t there to witness it.

“I think we should leave” Vivian said with an awkward cough.

“Yeah, we should” Reid answered and they stood up to leave.

________

Answer to previous chapter’s riddle: Ton.

This Chapter’s riddle: If you drop me, I’m sure to crack, but give me a smile, and I’ll always smile back. What am I?