“Please hold.” The villain’s secretary sets the phone down and turns to her boss, a look of consternation on her face. “It’s Make-a-Wish. A fan of yours wants to meet you.”
Xander paused, very nearly freeze-framed, and stared blankly at Julia. Her fingers stayed wrapped around the handle of the phone, waiting for him to say something. His mouth opened, yet still there was silence. In his mind, however, there was a debate already happening at the Conference Table.
"Do it," Xander 1 said, authoritatively.
"Don't do it," Xander 2 rebutted, just as authoritatively.
"Why not?" Xander 1 asked. "You're a bad guy, not a monster. Not to mention Violet's face when you get positive publicity."
"You don't need any positive publicity, you need the exact opposite of positive publicity. You're already on Buzzfeed's list of Top Bad Boy Baes. Do you understand just how embarrassing that is?"
"Yeah, that's pretty embarrassing..." there was a silence between the two. "Okay, but still, you can't just deny a dying kid the chance to see you."
"It's a sad decision but you can't."
"What if you do it privately. Tell everyone he's going to see, I don't know, a basketball player. Kids love to see basketball players."
"Xander- Xander what do I tell them?" Julia's voice broke through. Xander blinked, seeing her with her hand now outstretched where she had been waving at him.
"Michael Jordan." Julia blinked, then slowly and hesitantly began to reach back for the phone. Xander shook his head and stuck his hand out. "Don't— Don't say a word about Michael Jordan."
"Then... what do I..."
"Yes. But under one condition. No publicity. No cameras, no reporters, no journalists, no paparazzi."
"So... yes Michael Jordan?"
"I meant yes, I will see the kid."
"If Michael Jordan is present."
"Forget–" Xander took a deep breath, rubbing the bridge of his nose as a hand fell to his hip. "Forget about Michael Jordan. Just please tell them I will see the kid on the condition that it will in no way become public."
"That makes a lot more sense, you don't even like basketball," Julia giggled picking the phone back up. Xander took in another deep breath, shook his head, and receded to his room.
—————
"Xa-Xander we have an issue," Julia called. Xander stood up, rubbing his temples. Issues, issues, everything was an issue. Things that weren't issues, were suddenly issues. For example, why is it an issue for him to be stalking Violet's love interest with intent to harm? He's a bad guy, that's normal. And Julia, everything was an issue with her. He loved Julia, his dear, dear... associate. But sometimes he wondered if she had paid to have her high school diploma forged.
Xander walked into the break room, where Julia had been for the past 2 hours, and saw her staring at the television. Her glossed lips were wide apart and her eyes stuck on the screen as if she were looking at something horrible. This did pique his interest, and he looked to the flat-screen.
A familiar child sat in a hospital bed, beaming smile as he talked.
"And-and-and Big Bad said that- that um- that I am suuuuuuper strong! And then- I got better! Because I am super strong! And! And I love Big Bad! He saved me! He used his super strongness to make me super stronger and that made me all better!"
The reporter held an intrigued, shocked, and yet oddly happy smile as she turned around and began speaking to the viewers. Xander couldn't hear what she said, the sound of his reputation crumbling was too loud. There was no coming back from this. A now cancer-free child was telling the world that he, The Big Bad, had saved his life. A now cancer-free child said he loved the Big Bad. The only thing Xander could have done that would be worse than this, is cure a baby of being paralyzed by kissing it tenderly on it's soft little baby forehead on live television.
Julia was correct. This was an issue. A horrible, horrible issue.
