there are many subtle, crafty ways in which a writer can depict evil flourishing in an antagonist figure, ways that indirectly make the reader aware of a thorough and potent corruption festering just below a socially-acceptable facade, that project a powerful taste-scent of wrongness that may be hard to articulate but nonetheless makes the hair stand up on the back of one’s neck and lingers in one’s thoughts
on the other hand, you can have ‘em throw a baby out a window. that works too!
he hadn’t meant to snap at her. it had been a long day, and he was at the end of his rope, really. he’d had to make the difficult decision to fire one of his employees, and he was currently on the phone with said person, who was trying to argue back and forth with him, accusing axel of being wrong for firing him. axel never brought work home with him, but it had been unavoidable that night, and he was pacing back and forth in the tiny apartment, speaking angrily into the phone.
he hadn’t even said hello to her when he came home, and she was feeling rather neglected. he always greeted her when he got home, and they went about their nighttime routine of catching up and having dinner and watching a little of their favorite show. but tonight, he’d come home with the phone pressed to his ear, and he hadn’t even looked in her direction, where she’d come bounding from the kitchen to greet him. under normal circumstances, she would have left him alone. but she’d been feeling particularly small all day, stress in her own life causing her to pull in on herself. during these times, she needed the special love and care that only axel could give. yet she wasn’t getting that.
she’d grown impatient at this point, and had tried getting his attention, mumbling out “daddy” a few times. he hardly heard her, so she decided she’d just hang onto him. she wrapped her arms around his waist, and almost immediately, he pushed her off, mouthing “not right now.” but she continued, latching onto him again. this time, axel pressed the phone to his shoulder, pausing to peel her off of him and loudly reprimanded her in a tone that was less than kind, “i said not right now! stop being so clingy and let me deal with this!”
she pulled back at his outburst, eyes wide. he’d never spoken to her like that, and it felt like a slap to the face. she went silent, and watched as he brought the phone back to his ear. after a moment, her eyes filled with tears, and she whimpered out a quiet “i’m sorry,” before she turned on her heel and tiptoed to the bedroom, not wanting to be anymore of a bother. she closed the door behind her, and was quick to curl up on the bed, unable to help the tears that started to fall. she hated being so small needy sometimes, but she couldn’t help it. it was just something that happened, and she had no control over it. and now, she’d upset axel because of it, which made her feel even worse.
she clutched the little stuffed owl axel had bought her on a zoo trip they’d gone on a while back, and she cried quietly. a little while later, axel was ending his heated phone all, and he tossed his phone aside, letting out a frustrated breath and shoving his fingers through his hair. it was then that he realized he was alone, and instantly, his mind flashed back to how he’d acted earlier, and his shoulders dropped. cautiously, he stepped into their bedroom, where he found her curled up on the bed. he could hear her crying softly, and he felt like even more of a jerk than he had before. “baby girl,” he whispered, crawling onto the bed. “look at me.” but she refused to turn around, so he sighed, placing a hand on her shoulder. “i am so, so sorry for snapping at you like that. i was angry, and i took it out on you. that was wrong of me.” she sniffled, turning a little. “i-i didn’t mean to be annoying, daddy.” “oh, no, little one. you weren’t being annoying. i was just angry, and i took it out on you. that was wrong on me. can you forgive me?” he let out a little breath of relief when she nodded her head, and soon, she was nuzzling into him, curling up against his chest while he made sure to make everything right again.
StalkingSangwoo 