This is what you get for daring to lower your guard. You pathetic bastard! The self-directed curse echoed viciously in Lukas's mind, a sharp whip cracking against his fragile peace. The banana cream pie, once a vessel of nostalgic bliss, now sat half-eaten on the carpet before him, its allure dimmed by the bitter aftertaste of rejection. He wasn't in the mood to bask in this forced family charade anymore though the primal urge to devour the rest of the pie alone gnawed at him insistently. He craved solitude, the sanctuary where he could rage unchecked or simply stew in silence.
Part of him itched to summon the anger, to let it blaze and consume the hurt. But no allowing Gloria's fleeting look of disgust to unravel him this deeply? That would make him even more pathetic, a grown man undone
