Morning all. I don’t know about you but I could have used at least an hour or two more sleep last night. But perhaps the writing prompt will help me get my brain moving. If not, then coffee after.
This started out quite a bit muddled but I started to get a handle on it towards the end. I do feel more awake though. Still getting the coffee.
Tuesday, February 20th: He refused to play the game.
He refused to play the game. He knew what they wanted. They wanted him to apologize, to admit he was wrong. While Luke knew he shouldn’t have snapped at them, he felt he was pushed to it. They kept hammering and hammering. They knew he was bound to snap and in fact, he was certain the pushing was calculated. They made sure to push him to the brink of yelling and just tip him over the edge when the appropriate audience was in place.
And he could be seen yelling while tears formed in the eyes of his half-sisters. The fact that all four of them could cry on command was something he found oddly impressive even if it was a weapon often turned against him.
In the past, he had apologized. He had taken the blame and told them he was sorry for making them cry even if he never apologized for the deeds that led to that point. This time he wasn’t going to bother. They could cry and wail all they wanted. This time, he wasn’t going to play the game. He was not going to let their tears cause him to waver from his course.
Luke was smart enough to know his conviction would only last for a short time. At some point it would be easier to capitulate. He would cave and find another way to do what he wanted. He would adjust his plans. It was better to be gone before then.
They were still crying, their snuffling complaints echoing down the hall and twisting through the air when he made his way to the front door. He had no need of a bag as his belongings were already in his apartment across town. He had nothing he needed to take with him. In fact, he only came back because it was routine to join the family for Sunday dinner.
‘That is a routine I will be breaking,’ He decided. This was hardly the first time that he arrived only to spend the meal on the defensive. He was tired of the conniving and the games. They were the treasured children. He was the child who took his mother’s life, it was something his father would never forgive him for. The girls were all born with no such devastation and they basked in the love he was denied.
Yet it was not enough. For some reason it was not enough for him not to be loved. They seemed intent on taking everything they could from him. He knew that was one of the reasons he was always called in for the family dinner. His step-mother was kind enough to want him to have a solid family, to believe he belonged and should feel welcomed. She was however not enough to combat both his father’s eternal anger and the girl’s manipulation.
‘Maybe if she didn’t like me, they wouldn’t hate me so much.’
Luke shrugged it off and got into his car. He started the engine and backed out of the drive. He was certain they heard the car and knew he was gone. He allowed himself a tight smile and wondered if they would be put out that he didn’t stay for the final assault or if they would just plan something for the following week.
‘I am not returning,’ he thought as he headed down the street. ‘I am not coming back to this house or neighborhood again.’ He had all he needed for his plan and no desire to have anyone interfere. ‘I shouldn’t have even mentioned it.’
Ten til Midnight 