— The Ghhbrhhrnnen household was quiet.
— 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.
— 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.
“These proportions are awful. You need to learn how to observe better”
— Rippen's ears drooped slightly.
— 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”
“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.
“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...
— Then, perhaps, she would finally look at him with pride.