Broken Antler Fen and the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon

The boy stopped trying to guess the term for it when Reyes concurred. Soon after, he began to stride away and Caracal bounded after him, falling into step with his dad. He could sense some of the uneasiness and could even understand it somewhat. They both had a bit of an ax hanging over their heads, didn't they?

"I'm glad I get to hang out with you," he said earnestly. "'Cause..." He paused, then lowered his voice, speaking sotto voce. "I'm pretty sick of girls. I mean, I love 'em, even the twins—don't tell them I said that, okay?—but they're so..." Once more, he wasn't sure of the word, so Caracal just flapped a paw about in the air before looking at his dad's face, wondering if he knew what he meant.