"Good grief, could I be becoming a tolerable person?"
The way you write Pete is more like Pete than Pete is. In my imagination, I mean. Does that even make sense? Probably not.
But what I'm trying to say is, brilliant. I wish he was as honestly self-aware as you made him seem.
In my opinion, this was some really accomplished writing. Well done. With 100% sincerity.
I feel kind of embarassed that I only have a point to offer :-) xx