#penn zero

Im in episode 12 right now and guess what

— Rippen, of only eight years old, walked into the living room with a carefully folded sheet of paper in his hands. He had spent the entire afternoon drawing. It was a portrait of his family: his mother, his father, Benett, Vlurgen... and himself.

“Mom...” — he said with a small smile. “Look what I made”

— His mother barely looked up from the book she was reading.

“Leave it on the table”

— Rippen obeyed. He waited a few seconds, hopeful.

— She picked up the drawing, glanced at it for only a moment, and let out a sigh.

“Is this supposed to be me?” — she asked in a stern tone.

“Yeah...”

“These proportions are awful. You need to learn how to observe better”

— Rippen's ears drooped slightly.

“I... I tried”

— His mother continued looking at the drawing.

“Vlurgen, at your age, would have already been making plans to conquer worlds. But you? All you do is draw doodles”

— Her words hit him like a stone.

“But Benett likes drawing too...”

“At least Benett understands it's just a hobby. He doesn't waste his time thinking a drawing deserves praise”

— Rippen swallowed hard.

“I just wanted to show it to you...”

— She dropped the paper back onto the table with disdain.

“Do you know what I want to show you? The world doesn't reward effort. If you're going to do something, do it better than everyone else. Better than Benett. Better than Vlurgen”

— Rippen remained silent.

“Until then, don't come looking for congratulations for doing the bare minimum”

— The boy carefully picked up the drawing. He folded it so the small drops beginning to fall onto the paper wouldn't be noticeable.

“I'm sorry, Mom...”

“Don't apologize to me. Give me a reason to stop being disappointed in you”

— Rippen left the living room without another word.

— He went to his room, and once he closed the door, he hugged the drawing tightly against his chest. For a few seconds, he thought about tearing it apart, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he folded it one more time and slipped it beneath his pillow.

— Maybe... if one day he became the greatest villain of all...

Hola, regresé