Inchoate (adjective): imperfectly formed or formulated

As soon as the door was shut and the world became distant, a torrent of tears broke through the dam. Finally, he allowed himself to cry, every wall and shield down at last.

Adults were the most contradictory people on earth.

Today, they shouted that they had a right to express their disapproval, then immediately screeched at him when he voiced his own. They howled at him, wondering why he wouldn’t apologize, when they had never done so themselves.

If he answered their questions, he’d be “an ungrateful son that talked back.”

If he stayed silent, he’d be “an ungrateful son that didn’t care.”

Without making a sound, he slammed his face into a pillow and screamed. A silent cry for comfort that went unheard… and ironically, would’ve given him even more pain if it was heard.

He punched the soft bed as hard as he could.

Why was the world so cruel, so dark, so-

The door opened.

Heart-wrenching fear shot through his veins but the figure standing in the hallway was not his parents.

It was his little brother. Quietly stepping into the room, the smaller boy dropped something on the ground and fled.

There was an unfortunately misshapen piece of chocolate, half melted on one side and cracked on the other. Attached to it was a piece of paper, whose author tried really hard to scrawl the wobbly letters: “Are u ok?”