Relinquished (OliverxReader)

Chapter Twenty-Five

I was resting my head on the table, dozing off when I felt a hand graze my shoulder. My head shot up and I saw Oliver.

"Everything okay?" he asked, pulling out a chair and sitting next to me. "Zack said you were crying."

My shoulders relaxed and I slumped back in my seat. "I don't know what's wrong with me," I mumbled.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean there's something wrong with me."

"As in?"

"As in I was okay with letting children die. I was okay with letting humans die. Humans, Oliver. What kind of human is okay with other humans dying? Sometimes I wonder if I'm a human. Maybe I'm a monster. Like Peter."

"Oh," he sighed. "So that's what this is about. Y/N, you're not a monster. You're just a teenager, a kid that was raised by the wrong people. If anything, you're far from a monster. You're the savior of the Grace Field children. The savior of all of us."

"How can you say that," I asked, stunned by his words.

"Because," he paused, as if he was thinking of what he was going to say. "Because it's true. You risked your life to save Emma. And when you were unconscious after Leuvis had attacked you, we had told Lucas to leave us behind. It was Yuugo who told us that you wouldn't be okay with that. If you found out that we were left behind, he said you would've joined us. That's what changed our minds. Y/N, you're far from a monster. You need to know that."

I looked at him with big eyes.

Did he really mean all of that? I'm not a monster? "But I'm still Peter's kid."

He laughed. "So? Even if you were Bayon's or Leuvis' kid it wouldn't matter, because you create yourself. And you chose to be Y/N. Not Peter's kid."

I smiled. "Thanks, Oli."

He perked up. "Y-Yeah. Not at all– I mean no problem."

I let out a laugh. He definitely calms me down. He's like real magic. It's not even his words, it's his voice. There's something so gentle and nostalgic about it, and I like that feeling. He makes me feel safe, and secure. Maybe that's why I like being with him.

The dining room door burst open, and Emma, along with everybody else living at the shelter came through. I hadn't even realized that Emma, Ray, and Lucas had left the phone room. Either I had fallen asleep, or they had snuck out of there while I was talking to Oliver.

Yuugo pulled up a chair between me and Oliver and crossed his arms, puffing his chest as if he was trying to intimidate him.

"Yuugo," I whispered in a hostile tone, pinching his upper arm.

He placed his other hand on top of mine, giving it a light squeeze. "How are you doing? Lucas filled me in on what happened."