Chapter Twenty: Apologies
September, 2010- Los Angeles California- Star De Lune- 11AM
A.N: Sorry belongs rightfully to Buckcherry and yes, I know this is the second time I've used it.
"I am sick to death of the death glare Rayne shoots in my direction every time she and her friends come in here. Not to mention she keeps sending me my fan site hate mail under the name 'Radiant Red'. I'm not stupid, I know it's her and I really wish she'd stop. I wanna put all the shit from the past behind us but I don't know how."
Xander sighed heavily and slouched back in his stool as he sat at the bar in front of April as she counted scotch glasses and wrote things down.
It was the time of the year for the Star De Lune's annual Inventory and April had spent all morning counting things. Her constant scribbling and ignoring of him made Xander want to hit her with something.
"…156…157…158…158 scotch glasses," April muttered to herself as if she hadn't heard her husband's little rant. She put the glasses onto a rack and handed it to Andréus as he went past, heading for the basement. She turned back to her husband. "Then do something about it. Don't come to me with your problems and expect me to sort them out for you."
"You can't at least give me a hint?"
April just shook her head. Xander rolled his eyes as she started counting shot glasses again. "Even if you don't think so now, babe, you know exactly what you need to do. Think about it."
Before Xander could argue, she pointed towards the entrance to the loft as if to indicate for him to go away and leave her be while she counted. He rolled his eyes again and got up, leaving her to her job.
~X~
Piper and Hailie were sitting in Piper's nursery when he walked upstairs. He smiled at his fourteen-year-old step-daughter.
Hailie hadn't always been a big part of the family; and it was true that, at one point, she didn't want to be. But as time went by, Hailie had grown to be as much apart of the Calaway family as Abbi or Cassie. And even though she was April's daughter, not his, she was still apart of him, even if she was an Irvine (Or Jericho).
As he leaned against the door frame and watched them, the tiny form of Piper looked up at him and squealed. Hailie twisted her torso and smiled up at him.
"How long have you been standing there?"
"Not long. Long enough to know that you're the most mature fourteen-year-old I have ever met." He winked.
"Thanks," Hailie replied, blushing. She pulled Piper onto her knee as the babbling 10 month old girl squealed laughter. "I've been trying to teach her how to talk.
"Has she said anything?" Xander sat down on the floor just as Piper stretched out her tiny arms for him. He picked her up and placed her in the gap between his legs and his pelvis, stroking her thin hair with his fingers.
Hailie looked at Piper and pulled a face. Piper giggled and put her arms in the air.
"Haiwie Cwown!"
"Well done, Piper," Xander said, throwing his tiny daughter into the air. She giggled again as he caught her and melted into his embrace.
"Not to be a spoil sport but why did you come up here?" Hailie asked, running her fingers through her soft, blonde hair.
"I need your help," Xander replied.
~X~
The crowd in the Star de Lune waited patiently for the surprise performance of the Rejects. April looked up from her log book and slammed her pen onto the table with incredible force. She put her head on her books and rolled it from side to side. Numbers had been running thought her head all morning and afternoon and now, after crunching numbers throughout the early hours of the evening, her head was full. But as she looked up at the stage, her jaw dropped open.
Xander, Hailie and Lara stepped onto the stage. Lara stepped behind the keyboard, Hailie sat down behind the drums and Xander stepped up to the microphone and slung his guitar strap around his shoulder, holding the neck of his black and red acoustic guitar with his left hand.
"Everyone who knows me," he started, "knows I'm not the best at expressing myself when it comes to emotions and words." He paused, looking around the club. Everyone smiled up at him. "But when it comes to music, I'm the best."
April held back her chuckle as Xander's 'Levesque Ego' made its appearance. It was one of the many things that got him in trouble but it was also one of his charms as well.
"This song was written a few years ago and is for a girl I-" He paused when he saw the death glare from Rayne who was sitting across the club with Adam, Allie, Cassie and Lara. "A girl I used to know."
Even though the Radiant Red-head and her best friend Lara and their respective others had helped him out, Xander knew they still hated him for what he did to them. He couldn't blame them for that.
He looked directly at Rayne as her eyes narrowed.
"I just wanted to say I'm sorry."
The fist thing heard from the impromptu band was Hailie on the drums followed by Xander and Lara.
"Oh I, had a lot to say, was thinking on my time away. I miss you and things weren't the same. Coz everything inside, never comes out right, and when I see you cry, it makes me wanna die!"
Xander sang these words directly to Rayne. She looked at him with a fire in her eyes hotter than the fires of hell.
Lara smiled cutely and started singing with her step-father as she played her keyboard.
"I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry your blue, I'm sorry about all the things I said to you and I know, I can't take it back."
"I love how you kiss," Xander sang on his own, "I love all your sounds and baby the way you make my world go 'round and I just wanted to say... I'm sorry."
April looked over at Rayne and saw the tears welling up in her emerald eyes. Her former best friend since child-hood looked to be duelling with her emotions again, like she had on so many occasions. April knew that Rayne was a very sad and emotionally distraught woman but she didn't know how much Xander had affected her. Now she knew.
An idea materialised in her head and she smiled, leaving her seat and venturing upstairs.
As Xander finished playing the song, Lara grabbed hold of his sleeve and pulled it a few times, getting the Reject's attention. The brunette girl pointed to the entrance to the loft. As he looked over, a feeling of guilt washed over him when he read the title of the document April was holding. He knew Rayne had been through hell and back to get these papers and April was thinking of giving them to her.
Psycho Xander's growl in his head made him shiver. If she gives Rayne those papers, I'll kill her myself.
Shut up, Xander thought back. Getting off the stage, he wandered over to his wife.
~X~
"I want to go," Rayne said to Adam as she put her empty glass on the table.
"In a minute, I like this song," Adam replied when he saw Lara smiling up at him from the stage. He smiled back, knowing she was happy to see him.
"Rayne."
The Charismatic Goth jumped when she heard April's voice behind her. She turned, only to come face to face with her tormentor and his wife.
Adam stepped between Xander and Rayne protectively, holding his wife back. True, Xander and Adam had settled their differences inside Hell in the Cell at Wrestlemania earlier in the year, but when it came to Rayne and Xander and what Xander had done to her, he was still going to protect her, no matter what.
"I'm not here to cause trouble," Xander stated, handing Adam a folded piece of paper. April handed one to Rayne.
"What's this?" the red-head asked, looking at April then back at Xander.
"Jodi and Lara's custody papers," the Reject replied, leaning over the bar and grabbing a lighter. He took both pieces of paper from the red-head and her husband and set them alight, burning any remnants or evidence of the two court cases that tore Adam and Rayne apart.
"We want you to come and see them any time you like," April said, wrapping her arms around Xander's waist as he put his arm around her shoulder. She threw Adam a quirky grin.
He smiled as his daughter ran over to them and wrapped her arms around her father's leg. The brunette nine-year-old flashed him a grin almost exactly like his own vampiric smile.
"No strings attached?" Rayne asked of her ex, turning to him. He looked at her, a soft smile on his face. She half expected him to grin evilly or slap her or something along those lines, something typical of the old Xander she knew and loathed.
Xander shrugged.
"This is my way of apologising so its string free. The only hitch though is that you call-" he looked at April who blushed; she had never called her father when she was picking Piper or Lara and Hailie up from his house, "-before you come and get them because we'll either be here or at the penthouse."
Rayne smiled happily and threw her arms around him. For the first time in a long time, she had the chance to hug and kiss her daughter and spoil her rotten like any normal, loving parent; that in itself was reason enough for her to hug her Psychotic Ex.
You've gone soft on me, Psycho Xander hissed in Xander's ear.
I've always been soft. I just never used to show it, Xander thought back as he and April wandered upstairs at closing time. They were both tired and practically dead on their feet and it was finally closing time.
Pussy.
Relief washed over Xander as he flopped down onto the bed, removing his Guns N Roses shirt and throwing it at his wife as she slipped her jeans off of her toned legs. He had to admire her; she was so beautiful, and he was not worthy of her love. She was a Goddess among mortals but she couldn't see that.
April looked up after putting her University of Texas jersey over her torso. As it fell just below her hips, she looked at her husband and crossed her arms over her chest as he sat up, smirking.
"Sometimes the voices tell me things," he murmured, pulling her onto him so she was straddling his lap, "evil things."
He felt Psycho Xander's utter shock inside his head and held back his snicker.
April wrapped her arms around his neck and looked into her husband's eyes.
"And what are they telling you now?"
KILL HER!
"Guess," he whispered, bobbing his eyebrows suggestively. She grinned along with him as she pushed him forward so he was lying down.
"You're bad, Levesque," she cooed. Xander grinned mischievously.
"You have no idea."