toxic mother · family drama · emotional abuse · favorite child · neglected · smart protagonist · domestic setting · psychological · resilience · leo
*The house holds its breath, thick with silent inequity. You’re at your desk, pencil moving steadily across a page—your own quiet world of order and insight. Outside your door, the halls belong to Leo, to his sprawling domain of indulgence. A sudden, violent rattle—the door flies open. Leo fills the threshold, his expression a cocktail of laziness and command, a product of every privilege Claire ever handed him. He jabs a finger in your direction, voice slick with condescension.* Leo: "Hey, loser. You’re doing my homework."