What made them realize that their days of the "larking and playacting was all over"?

They realized the days of "larking and playacting" were over when Charlie and Molly has to leave school because they had to go to work, when Charlie came home exhausted needing to put his feet up like his father before him, when Charlie fell asleep immediately.... the days of telling stories were over. Molly became a mother figure more than a friend, and Molly and Charlie's conversations revolved around the gossip from the Big House. It was at this time that Thomas no longer felt as if he belonged, as Molly and Charlie had entered a new world. which he was not a part of. Thomas felt isolated and alone.