anger.

he notes her hesitation with her wine, knowing it’s a pointed reaction to his words. ❛ you’ve decided to separate ?? ❜ the words are lost on him, momentarily ; he can’t process it. his mother and father ?? separating ?? impossible. despite his poor relationship with both of them, they’d been his example of a loving couple ━ had that been a lie ?? ❛ ━ why ?? ❜

❛ ━ oh. ❜ a pause ━ he needs a second to process what she’s saying. ❛ i mean, it’s obvious you do ━ your dad’s a handsome man. ━ anything in particular you want to watch ?? ❜

❛ i mean ━ you’re right, they’ve always been weird. but weirder than usual, i guess. maybe i am reading too much into it ━ wouldn’t be the first time i made something out of nothing. ... no, no, don’t worry about it. just let me know if you notice anything ?? ❜

❛ i don’t think it makes you a pussy ━ i just don’t get why you wouldn’t fuck with it. there’s nothing wrong with going to a cemetery ; they aren’t even that spooky. ❜

❛ thanks for letting it slide, i guess. i’m incredibly handsome, i know ; it’s hard to resist this face. ❜ there’s a smile, but it’s slightly forced ━ he’s not sure what her comment means. if it’s just playful teasing, or flirting ; he’s left confused.

❛ fine. ❜ his response is short, calculated ━ cool. his relationship with both his parents has gradually crumbled over the years ; from his moving out of state for college to him keeping secrets and his jealousy of his siblings, the relationship, at this point, was close to that of estranged family. but he’s curious ━ curious to know what she’d want him to keep from robin, holden and wesley. and his father from knowing he knew. ❛ what is it, mother ?? ❜

❛ have you ━ noticed anything off ?? about mom and dad, i mean. mom’s drinking all the time, dad’s barely around ... but maybe that’s just me. ❜

❛ i like flavors, car. i just prefer vanilla. i’ll eat neapolitan ice cream or mint chocolate chip any day ; i guess it’s really just when it comes to milkshakes that i’m not a fan. and really ?? fries in shakes is what redeems me ?? jesus. ❜

❛ it is seriously better than strawberry, i promise you. oh, so i’m uncultured ?? that makes you even less cultured. uh ... dipping fries in shakes is fine, i guess. tastes kinda cool. ❜

❛ it is when it’s one or two glasses a night. ❜ he snaps, folding his arms across his chest. he’s trying to be patient and calm, he is, but he’s getting tired of putting up with her ━ especially when their relationship was poor to begin with.

❛ sure. ━ are you sure you balanced the equation here ?? i don’t think they line up ... and i think you should recheck some of your numbers, because the data values and the ones you used for calculations don’t quite add up. ❜

steven sighs, shaking his head in annoyance. ❛ why do you just use alcohol as a crutch, mom ?? i don’t even know where it came from. ❜ he feels anger bubbling in his chest at the situation ━ an extreme reaction, he knows ━ but he fights it, shoving it downwards, swallowing it.

❛ you aren’t seriously telling me you think strawberry is better than vanilla, are you ?? because it isn’t. no way. ━ sorry if i’m boring, car, but i guess i’m just not as adventurous as you. ❜

❛ i will never say that chocolate shakes are better than vanilla. there is just way too much chocolate in them; and that’s really not what i like. ❜

❛ y’ever been to the cemetery at night ?? it seems creepy, i know, but it’s actually quite relaxing. and a good place to draw. ❜