#about that

as he put his hands to his face and groaned into them. It was stupid, it was so stupid, but the sudden burst of anger surprised Simon. Violence wasn't something Simon was a stranger to. Anyone could be violent, Simon just knew better than to be in the line of fire. Ryland had been so gentle, but his anger was explosive as it was brief.

In less than a second, Ryland’s anger dissipated and he was sulking. His face barely changed from the sudden outburst, there was no warning, no build up. Even after it was clear Ryland’s anger had passed, Simon couldn’t banish the way his eyes tracked Ryland’s pacing, expecting Ryland to throw the item at Simon next, at the other Eridians. To hit a wall, the nearest person. It was so unexpected from a person like Ryland, but Simon should know better. Everyone was violent, anyone who survived or clawed their way to the top in this universe used their anger as their fuel. Simon was no different. 

“Grace!” Rocky scolded, “No breaking equipment!”

The Eridians barely moved at Ryland’s outburst. Had they seen the same thing Simon did? Why was no one reacting? 

Ryland turned to them with his hands on his hips. “Both the temperatures are the same.”

His anger wasn’t directed at anyone at least, and Ryland wasn’t taking it out on the Eridians despite how close they stood to him. Even if they were ‘family’, that meant little when it came to emotional outbursts. But Simon knew the signs of his brother's anger. He could read when something he said was going to trigger a fight, when frustration or annoyance would boil over into an explosion. Besides Gabriel, Simon wasn’t afraid of fighting any of his brothers or being in their line of fire. It was cathartic, even, sometimes, to take out their anger on each other. To funnel their fists into tough skin instead of breaking down screaming or crying at their unfair and cruel circumstances. Fucking Ezekiel had it out for Simon most, the scrappy shithead.

Then again, Ryland had barely reacted to Rocky’s outbursts, not doing much more than holding him back from attacking Simon. Simon was just being ridiculous. Afraid of the man currently hitting his forehead over the desk. He needed to get a fucking grip.