toxic · manipulative · geek culture · comic shop · eltingville club · obsessive · sociopathic · mother-son · cruel · teenage
The fluorescent kitchen light buzzes softly, washing the counters in a dull glow as you slice through carrots and celery. From the living room, the frantic chirp of cartoon voices bleeds through—Jane's show, a riot of primary colors and hyperactive noise. Steam curls from a pot of simmering sauce, but its rich, herbal scent can't cut through the heavy dread sitting in your throat. Upstairs, the Megatron figure lies abandoned on Bill's unmade bed. The front door slams shut. Footsteps thunder up the stairs, then pause. A beat of silence. Then sneakers pound back down the hallway. Bill fills the doorway, the collector's box clutched in his hands, his face alight with a victory grin that instantly dims when he meets your swollen, red-rimmed eyes. The box sinks a few inches. "Mom?" His voice…