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“YOU ARE RUINING THEIR FUTURE!”
“THE FUCK I AM?! IT’S NOT GOING TO, IT’S JUST AN ALBUM-“
“LIA IS GOING TO LOSE HER SCHOLARSHIP IF OUR INCOME GOES UP!”
“THEN I’M GOING TO RELEASE IT FOR FREE-“
“LIAR! YOU JUST ARGUED FOR THE PAST THIRTY MINUTES ABOUT HOW YOU WERE GOING TO SELL YOUR ALBUM! YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT THE MATH!”
“THE MATH ISN’T REAL!”
“Dad! Please stop!” A girl’s voice cried out.
A young Sebastian hid under his blankets in his room, curled up with his small game console. He didn’t have the strength to face the fight outside. Too many threats and too much yelling for his liking, even though he was used to it.
How could he not be used to it? They have been fighting ever since before he was born, but his mama could never leave him. They were both broken and poor in their own ways, but they needed each other’s strengths to survive, no matter how much they hurt each other.
But that was the last straw. After this latest stunt he pulled, that was the breaking point.
He left that day.
There was no way his father could win that fight.
All that was left behind were some possessions he forgot, the emotional scars, and an electric guitar.
Sebastian took it as his own. It was a nice one too, and would’ve been sold for a lot more if it wasn’t something that someone just tried to get rid of on Craigslist.
But regardless, he covered it with stickers and decals either way, and he just kept covering it up with more as he grew older.
Now today of all days, he couldn’t help but remember that moment.
After all, his unexpected birthday gift that year was a divorce. Best birthday gift ever now that he thinks back on it.
He nearly forgot it was today, but then again, minor details like what date you were born and your best childhood friend’s name tend to get…forgotten when you are trying to survive an undersea hell.
Lia came home today to celebrate, and Painter’s computer was brought downstairs from his room. Their family was whole again to celebrate.
“Mijo, cake and dinner will be ready soon!” Maria called out into the pouring rain where her monstrous son stood.
“I’ll be right there, just taking out some trash!” He called back.
One of his fins twitched as he heard the backyard door shut. He turned back to the guitar he held in his claws, still covered in all of those stickers, so many that you could hardly see what the real color was underneath.
Gripping onto the neck, he lifted it up, before smashing it into the ground with a roar, watching it splinter and break apart before his very eyes.
He had no need to hold onto such useless junk anyway, not when it’s a total piece of shit and there are better ones out there.
Smashing that guitar was the best birthday present he could have given himself in a long time.
Besides, he already knew that his family was going to give him a new one. Sure, it wouldn’t be what he was used to, and it wouldn’t have all the specs the manufacturer of the old one promised all those years ago.
But it was nice, and being given that brand new guitar was the second best gift his real family ever gave him.