Finn Osborn did not respond; he just kept his head bowed, no one knew what he was actually thinking.
Eat something." Catherine wiped away her tears and leaned in close, coaxing him softly, "Joseph made so many things you like.
Catherine reached out and placed a piece of chocolate into Finn's hand. Finn's hands trembled as he gripped it, he looked up at the woman.
Finn, I will always be by your side." Catherine gently stroked Finn's cheek, then the woman reached out to pull Finn into her embrace, her hand softly stroking the young man's hair, her voice choking yet firm, "You know, Joseph and I have always treated you as our child.
It was in the past, it is now, it will be in the future.
Hearing these words, Finn Osborn's pupils suddenly contracted, his body began to tremble violently once again.
“I'm sorry, I'm sorry..” Finn suddenly reached out and hugged Catherine tightly, burying his face in her shoulder. Like a lost child, he broke down and wept, apologizing over and over, “I'm sorry, it's all my fault.”
No one knew why Finn Osborn was saying sorry.
He could only see him trembling all over as he cried, extremely helpless and vulnerable, yet it seemed as though those suppressed emotions had finally found an outlet for release.
It's not your fault, none of it is your fault." Catherine shook her head, sobbing. The woman didn't ask Finn why he was apologizing; instead, she hugged Finn even tighter, gently patting his back, "Don't be afraid, the painful things are all in the past.
Once this time passes, everything in the future will get better.
It definitely will be.
Even the usually calm and reserved Joseph reached out with reddened eyes to embrace Catherine and Finn.
Peter stared blankly at Catherine at this moment, a sudden, intense sense of incongruity rose in his heart.
It was as if Catherine and Joseph, in their roles as butlers, knew something about Finn that even he did not know.
As long as this period passes..
Peter also began to feel confused. What exactly did "[this period of time]" mean?
Finn finally ate a little something under the comfort of Joseph and Catherine, he looked much calmer than before.
Peter, stay with Finn and let him sleep for a while," Catherine said softly, walking up to Peter's side. "His emotions are quite unstable right now, having your company is very important to him. I hope.. you can be as understanding of him as possible.
"What exactly does '[this period of time]' mean?" Peter couldn't help but ask.
At first, he thought that when Finn said "this period of time," he meant that everything would return to normal once his mission as the Host officially ended.
But looking at it now, from Catherine's words, it seemed to carry a different, heavier meaning.
Catherine and Joseph both fell silent.
That is a very important day for Young Master Finn.
After a long silence, Catherine finally spoke with hesitation, her voice dry and choked with sobs, before her tone grew firm, as if she were convincing herself.
“As long as that day passes, everything will be fine.”
Chapter 89: Proof°Confirmation
[That was an important day for Young Master Finn.]
[As long as that day passes, everything will be fine.]
Hearing Catherine say this, Peter vaguely felt as if he had finally touched upon something exceptionally crucial.
Peter could not suppress the urgency in his heart and was about to press further, but Joseph spoke up first, his eyes filled with apology.
“Peter, there are some things that Catherine and I cannot tell you.”
Why?" Peter froze, his eyes filled with confusion and earnestness, as he hurriedly defended himself, "I can truly understand and accept everything. No matter what the secret is, I won't leak it, I will absolutely never hurt Finn. Please, believe me.
Spider-Man had, of course, always done exactly that, keeping all of Finn Osborn's secrets.
But after saying this, Peter saw Joseph and Catherine staring at him with very complicated expressions.
After a moment of silence, Catherine gazed at Peter and suddenly said in a sentimental tone, without any context—
I really didn't expect that Spider-Man would be.. such a young child.
Peter stared at Catherine with even more confusion and bewilderment, not understanding why she had suddenly brought this up.
As you know, our daughter Lily has been in a vegetative state in the hospital for two years after falling from a building, we don't know when she will wake up. During our most difficult times, it was Young Master Finn who appeared and provided Lily with the best medical care; it was also Young Master Finn who gave us the motivation and meaning for a brand new life," Joseph said abruptly, bringing up another matter at this moment. "Finn is like another child to Catherine and me; we will take care of Young Master Finn until.. the day he no longer needs us.
"Finn will never not need you," Peter said firmly without hesitation. He could clearly feel that the Wilsons, who had been by Finn's side from the very beginning in their capacity as butler and mistress, were hiding something very important, for some reason, they did not want to tell him.
Peter thought that the Wilsons' avoidance was to protect Finn's secret, the purpose of doing so was, of course, to protect Finn as well.
But he could clearly hear Finn's inner thoughts all along.. so why did it still feel like something vital was missing?
That sense of distance—so close yet somehow unreachable—left a painful ache and anxiety welling up in Peter's heart.
Peter didn't press further and returned to Finn's room. The others also left the bedroom in tacit understanding, leaving this quiet space to him and Finn. Peter didn't rush to speak to Finn; he was listening quietly.
Although he couldn't hear System PP's voice, he could sense from Finn's inner thoughts that System PP was anxiously trying to prove its existence was real, not just auditory hallucinations caused by schizophrenia as everyone believed.
"When Harry was kidnapped by Marcus that time, didn't PP also manage to contact Spider-Man? Host, at the moment you were jumping from the 105th floor, Spider-Man arrived just in time after receiving the signal. Isn't that the best proof?" System PP was working hard to prove its own existence.
Maybe Spider-Man just happened to arrive at that exact moment," Finn countered calmly. "Heroes aren't always like that, making a grand entrance at the most critical moment. It doesn't make sense—with the signal being jammed, why were you able to contact Spider-Man specifically?
This rhetorical question instantly left System PP speechless, not knowing how to explain.
"Maybe it's just because I wanted Spider-Man to appear at that moment, I just fantasized it into being." Finn quickly found a reasonable explanation for himself; he had hallucinated, in a state of schizophrenia, that his System PP had connected with Spider-Man.
"Host, System PP has also been playing various movies and short dramas for you remotely during the meeting." System PP was simply incredulous. He and Finn had gone through so much together, now Finn was actually starting to deny that everything was fake. Was all of that just for nothing!?
System PP felt as if his own sincerity had been thrown to the dogs.
We have been having a conversation, haven't we?" System PP's electronic voice grew faster and faster. "From the very beginning, wasn't it just PP and the Host exploring the plan to accumulate Misery Value together? While the Host was working at the Osborn Group, PP wasn't idle either; I was working right alongside you. Except for the moments at night when I'm blocked, PP has always been by your side.
"Maybe all of this is just my own hallucination." Finn remained unmoved; schizophrenia and delusional disorder seemed like the best explanations for everything. At this moment, the young man was like someone trapped in a dead end of self-doubt, unable to pull himself out.
[How could PP be fake!?]
System PP was naturally worried sick. If he were fake, wouldn't that mean Finn was denying all of his past experiences?
[Host, you have wings, don't you?] Soon, System PP thought of those two scars on Finn's back; how could an ordinary person possibly grow wings? [Those wings were exchanged using your saved Points; that is the most direct proof!]
The wings could also be a research result of the Osborn Group." Finn remained unmoved, the emptiness in his eyes deepening slightly. "My father, Norman Osborn, is a top geneticist. In order to cure the genetic defects of the Osborn family, it is entirely possible that he used the genes of other animals to transform and heal me.. Doesn't everyone think so?
System PP discovered that Finn was becoming impervious to persuasion; the irrationalities about Finn were being automatically rationalized by the rules of this world. At the same time, those forced "rationalizations" were also shaking Finn's own beliefs.
It made him doubt the authenticity of everything, bit by bit, leading him to deny all of his own memories.
Host, on the first day you met Peter Parker, System PP retrieved his character profile and let you know Peter Parker's true identity," System PP threw out another piece of compelling evidence. "Otherwise, how would you have known that Peter is Spider-Man?
"That could also be because I was smart enough to find out in advance," Finn thought for a moment and argued back.
Frustrated System PP: 【..】Fine, you're the smart one, okay?
Although Peter could not hear System PP's self-justification at this moment, he could clearly hear Finn's stubborn refutations in his heart, one after another; even Spider-Man could feel System PP's breakdown at this moment.
Spider-Man thought of the last time he completed the love exam, the inner voice of Finn nagging him and deducting points—
Young Master Finn certainly had his own brand of twisted logic.
[If all of this isn't something I've hallucinated, then why hasn't the mission ended?] Finn was always stuck on this point.
Hearing these thoughts, Peter's heart grew extremely heavy.
He knew—
This was the most critical knot stuck in Finn Osborn's heart, the root of his self-doubt.
Even System PP could not answer.
[After all, System PP is a newbie system. Perhaps.. some plugin was forgotten on PP's body, or perhaps PP was originally a defective product, which is why the mission encountered problems.] System PP could only give up and blame the error on itself, [PP has already sent an application to the Main Brain, a reply will come soon.]
Even though System PP said that, Finn remained unmoved while sitting there stiffly, the emptiness and bewilderment in his eyes showing no sign of diminishing.
Beside him, Peter felt as if his heart were being tightly squeezed, aching so much he could barely breathe. Watching Finn's self-denying state and listening to his conversation with System PP, he felt like blurting out something several times—
He could hear Finn's inner thoughts.
He knew that System PP was real; he truly knew everything.
But the moment he wanted to speak, the words got stuck in his throat.
Because he also knew.. that having one's inner thoughts heard without reservation by someone all this time was not a comfortable feeling. Peter wasn't sure what Finn would think, but this feeling of having all his secrets completely seen through might actually have the opposite effect, making the already insecure and self-denying Finn even more confused.
Peter was also afraid that Finn would refuse to let him stay by his side because he knew that he could hear his inner thoughts.
Because he was afraid that he would continue to pry into his thoughts and distance himself from him.
The words he wanted to blurt out were swallowed back down; Peter didn't dare to reveal the truth at a moment when Finn needed him most.
"System PP has a way to prove it," System PP said firmly again.
"What?" Finn asked.
The next second, a clear video played in Finn's mind—
It was everything that happened in the hospital room while Finn was in a deep coma after being sent to the hospital following his last act of self-harm.
At that time, Finn Osborn was in a deep coma and knew nothing of it, but now, through this video, he could clearly see everyone's faces.
Dr. Thomas spoke solemnly about his condition in front of everyone. The expressions on the faces of everyone present were complex—bewilderment, shock, heartache, guilt, sadness.. even the air seemed to sink into a cold, stagnant stillness.
Andrew wept silently while losing control, slamming his head against the wall. His forehead turned bright red, yet he seemed unable to feel the pain.
Noah and Harry looked like they were about to fight; to be more precise, Noah was losing control and pinning Harry against the wall. Finn had rarely seen Noah look so unhinged. The man who had always been gentle and caring toward him, treating him like a younger brother, now had his hands tightly gripping Harry's collar. His expression was fierce, his eyes were bloodshot, his voice was hoarse as he questioned him sentence after sentence, filled with rage and pain.
As for Harry, he was interrogated by him in silence, offering no resistance and no defense. In those emerald eyes, which were usually as cold and identical to Finn's, there seemed to be, for the first time, an unbearable fullness of pain and guilt. Harry's proud head also slowly lowered, as if he were voluntarily giving up all resistance, allowing Norman to pierce him again and again with the sharpest words.
Seeing such a confrontational scene, even Finn felt a sharp pain in his heart, with only one thought in his mind—
Stop, someone stop them!
Not until Peter stepped forward and stood in front of Harry, looking at Noah with a determined gaze as he defended Harry—
[If you really want a precise answer from me, I would stand on Harry's side right now.]
[If Finn were sober, he would also want me to speak as Harry's friend. Noah, you know, everything Finn does is never truly intended to hurt Harry.]
Seeing Peter firmly standing by Harry's side, Finn breathed a small sigh of relief. Finn was even moved that Peter truly knew what was in his heart; of course, he never wanted to see the people around him hurting each other.. they were all the best people in the world.
[Indeed, it is easiest for family members to hurt one another, but problems cannot be solved through blame alone. Harry came today to give Finn a birthday gift. We all thought this would be a good beginning; no one expected things to turn out like this.]
What we need to do now is not to tear each other apart, not to rip open existing scars and make the wounds even worse. Since we have already seen the crux of the problem, then let's solve it, rather than letting it fester where it lies. This is indeed a terrible start, but we can help him have a positive transformation.
Listening to what Peter said in the video, Finn felt as if he, too, experienced a vibration that reached directly into his heart. From a bystander's perspective, he saw a side of Peter filled with a firm and reassuring strength and conviction, even though.. he was only eighteen years old.