[ That gets a smile from Michael, too, all warm and friendly. He doesn't answer right away, running his hand over the side of his neck as if in thought, and - he sees opportunity, here. A chance to force Tate to relate to him, using what he knows of Constance and the few whispers he managed to overhear from the ghosts of the house who held no love for him but held less for Tate. He has to be careful, if he's going to start revealing things about his homelife, but - again, there's opportunity here. This won't be the biggest risk he'll take in his life. ]
So... okay. First... I guess I should tell you that I was raised by a woman who was very... [ He hesitates, trailing off. Michael is just Tate's delivery guy - they're not close enough for this kind of conversation, not from Tate's point of view. He hesitates, but ultimately forges on. Opportunity. ]
I was raised by a woman who cared a great deal about how the world saw her. She had an image that she tried to live up to, she had goals that she strived to reach, and she had standards she expected everyone to meet. She expected me to... use the blessings I'd been gifted with, like my looks, and my intelligence, to become a great man that she would be proud of. My success was going to be her validation, as a mother.
[ He shrugs, lopsided, not looking at Tate. Focusing on the snake, instead, nameless as she is. ]
But she was a bad person. She hurt people. Me. I heard whispers that she hurt other people in my family, too. We're... estranged, back home, but even though she wasn't in my life, I always felt like she was still watching me, breathing over my shoulder. Now that I'm here, though? I don't have to worry about her. I don't have to do what she tells me to do, and I don't have to worry about disappointing her. I can just... do all the stuff I never had a chance to do back home. Like - make art. Travel, find friends, go to a big city. I want to meet people who understand me. I want to be a better person than I was back home.
And. [ Again, he shrugs. ] Normal things. Small things. Get drunk, get high, have fun. Be normal? I'm sixteen, now, and I haven't done anything at all. I want to make a list and just... cross it all off, one by one.
no subject
So... okay. First... I guess I should tell you that I was raised by a woman who was very... [ He hesitates, trailing off. Michael is just Tate's delivery guy - they're not close enough for this kind of conversation, not from Tate's point of view. He hesitates, but ultimately forges on. Opportunity. ]
I was raised by a woman who cared a great deal about how the world saw her. She had an image that she tried to live up to, she had goals that she strived to reach, and she had standards she expected everyone to meet. She expected me to... use the blessings I'd been gifted with, like my looks, and my intelligence, to become a great man that she would be proud of. My success was going to be her validation, as a mother.
[ He shrugs, lopsided, not looking at Tate. Focusing on the snake, instead, nameless as she is. ]
But she was a bad person. She hurt people. Me. I heard whispers that she hurt other people in my family, too. We're... estranged, back home, but even though she wasn't in my life, I always felt like she was still watching me, breathing over my shoulder. Now that I'm here, though? I don't have to worry about her. I don't have to do what she tells me to do, and I don't have to worry about disappointing her. I can just... do all the stuff I never had a chance to do back home. Like - make art. Travel, find friends, go to a big city. I want to meet people who understand me. I want to be a better person than I was back home.
And. [ Again, he shrugs. ] Normal things. Small things. Get drunk, get high, have fun. Be normal? I'm sixteen, now, and I haven't done anything at all. I want to make a list and just... cross it all off, one by one.