that change was drastic.. a bit too drastic. Also, you said rage twice, and what is this about two lives?? I dig what you are doing, but you kind of rushed it. :)

This started out as a bit of enraged catharsis that was completely derailed by some timely music playing on the sidewalk. I honestly wanted to kill my neighbor the other night and have gladly thought better of it.

lol, with the crazy fireworks this year, i had a few malicious thoughts too! Thank goodness for music! :)

That last line, “He could endure the world if he had to,” really struck a chord with me. It goes deep, and says so much.

Wow! Powerful stuff. I really enjoyed it! Just one suggestion, feel free to ignore it: I would move the bit about “his fingers slackened” until after he pauses and we list his thoughts. I feel this may read well because then the reader also experiences the pause, as the sequence of actions (pausing, loosening the grip) is interrupted by the thoughts. It may also help reduce the reader’s disbelief as we explain why the protagonist changes their mind.