WHO: Artemisia Rice & Ozymandias Vick WHAT: Misha has a confession. So does Ozzy.
Misha spent a long, long time looking at her conversation with Ozzy over the PDA. Here she did the sensible thing and tried to be diplomatic, knowing that Ozzy couldn't have feelings for her. No one ever did. She wanted to make it clear that he didn't have to feel obligated to her. Then Ozzy went and turned things on her. Told her she was pretty, told her he didn't regret kissing her, didn't regret making out with her while she snuggled quite contentedly in his lap. He also said he wasn't ready to kiss her back right now.
Honestly, she didn't know what that meant. Maybe he was under stress. They all were. She could explain it that way. She didn't have any experience to handle the way he was treating her right now. Was he afraid of what she was? Uncomfortable? It didn't seem like it.
Eventually, Misha decided to be brave.
After all! After reading it over and over again, she was the one pushing him away. He wasn't doing it. She was being cautious and down on herself, and he didn't seem to understand it.
He didn't like it when she insisted on bringing food as a reason for coming over. Instead, she took special care in curling her hair, in choosing her favorite blue dress. She didn't want to look strange or pushy, but it really wasn't any different from what she normally wore; she just didn't look a wreck like she had in the last couple of days.
She went to his room and knocked, bouncing lightly on her heels while she waited.
Ava was out ... doing whatever. Ozzy was halfway through feeding the plants. He was torn, he really was, but he lived with Ava. He saw Ava constantly, and yes, maybe a part of him wanted her more. But that didn't mean he was eager to tell Quebec about it.
Still he answered the door (oh, hi, pretty), but he didn't look pleased to see her. "Q. Hi."
Q? Ozzy called her Misha.
"Hi." She smiled, a little shy. "Listen, um." She made a vague gesture. "Can I come in? I wanna talk to you about somethin', an' it's not like... hallway stuff."
"Yeah." Oz let her in, closing the door behind her. "Misha, I'm sorry. I am sorry."
Misha leaned against the door. "You're sorry? Sugar, I'm sorry." She shook her head. "I just... I mean, it's stupid of me, I go and kiss you like that and then I push you away? It was downright rude and I was scared, see, because I... nobody's ever wanted me before. I mean, no, okay. Lemme..." She shook out her hands and pushed her hair behind her shoulders. "Lemme start again. That's not true. People have... hurt me. They've hurt me in a way that... it ain't normal for a person to hurt, bad things. People want me when they wanna hurt me. Physically, emotionally----in a criminal way, I'm talkin'----so I've never... I've never kissed a boy... man... and had him kiss me back like that. Not even Richard, he was... just a friend, really, he----never mind, I'm babblin' on like an idiot, the point is, I pushed you away 'cause I didn't want you feelin' obligated or nothin', and you turned around and you... you told me you liked me. Ain't never happened, I ain't never had a boy who looked at me the way you do. I ain't gonna throw that away because I'm scared." Somewhere in all of this she'd closed the gap between them, and she leaned forward to give him a light kiss at the corner of his mouth.
Oh, God. Ohhhhh, God---
"I'm with Ava!" he finally blurted.
Misha froze, pulling back a little. She was taller than him, particularly in those heels, and she was looking down at him. So different from Ava. "You wh..?" She couldn't quite get the word out, and it died on her breath.
"I'm sorry. I was going to say something and then you just started ... talking."
Misha's eyes were searching his face, a little frantically. "Since----since when?"
"Since recently. Very. Like ... today." Oz felt terrible. He hadn't wanted to explain this until ... not now.
Misha touched the tip of her tongue to her upper lip. She blinked quickly, her eyes glassy. Wet. Not right now, he'd said. He didn't want to kiss her again, right now. God, she was so stupid. Her stomach dropped so fast she felt like she wanted to faint. "Oh... oh, Ozzy," she breathed. She struggled to smile, but once it broke, it was there----bright. She touched his cheek. "Here I am makin' a damn fool of myself and you... good for you, sugar, good for you." She hugged him. "Lemme make you somethin', you two deserve somethin'. She needs somethin' healthy----emotionally----whatever I make won't be healthy, never is..."
"You don't have to make me anything," Ozzy said lamely. "It seems like a slap in the face to you if I let you make me food after ... you know." After he let her make a fool of herself like that. He didn't want to make it worse.
Misha waved a dismissive hand. "It ain't like you kissed me." She chuckled. "I did it, and then I went and said, hey, no worries, I know you like Ava, so really, it ain't nothin'. You know I been rootin' for you..." She trailed off. It was getting hard to breathe. She was close to tears but somehow managed to breeze through it. "And all that stuff? I just said? Never you mind it, made it sound worse than he was." Made it sound better than it was.
"...Thank you." Misha was just so fucking graceful he didn't know what to do with her. "I won't mind it. I've already forgotten."
Misha smiled, smoothed her dress. The skirts swished. "So you... you don't fret. You be happy. You make her happy. She deserves it, so do you. 'Bout time some more good happened in this house." She gave him a little chuck to his jaw like he'd done with her the other night, shortly before she'd kissed him. She backed up toward the door and opened it up. "Treat her right, now."
"I'll try." Oz nodded. He'd better not fuck it up with Ava now. "I'll see you around, won't I?"
"Oh, sugar, I'll always bring you somethin'." Another flash of a smile and Misha slipped out, closing the door quietly behind her.
The moment she was out of earshot, she burst into sobs.