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Leo’s morning consisted of a casual breakfast and more miscellaneous work around his parent's house. Everything felt as it should have. Yesterday’s dinner almost felt like a distant nightmare. Leo was still somewhat glad it happened, unwinding some of the tension that had wound its way around them for so long. An argument decades in the making ending so amicably was a blessing.

Only problem now was that touching on the subject would only bring everything crashing back. Leo had essentially barred himself off on broaching the topic, and he’d have to wait for his parents to open up to him on their own time. Who knew when that would happen. He should have been thankful they were still together as a family, he knew, but questions had a funny way of sticking around.

Leo and his father were in the middle of measuring a space in the living room when his father suddenly stopped and looked to him.

“I know this is out of the blue, but you’ve given me a lot to think about,” his father said.

“Dad, look--” Leo started.

“Now hold on, I just wanted to say we probably should talk about it at some point. When I think about it a little more, that is. Still not a lot I can admit to myself, y’know, so how can I even begin to tell my own son about it?” He added a small smile. “Plus, I’m sure your mom doesn’t want you bugging her about it.”

“I wasn’t going to bug, honest,” Leo said.

“C’mon, now, with the way you talked, I knew you were itching to let that one loose for years.”

Leo merely shrugged and nodded.

After a few more little homely tasks, Leo was ready to be sent on his way back home. Though, not without a few customary treats. His mother was already in the kitchen with the plasticware and a wide smile. The sight alone helped Leo’s nerves melt away.

“Blueberry?” Leo asked.

“As always,” she replied.

Leo glanced back into the living room, then leaned in. “I know Dad loves these, but you mind tossing a few more in?” he asked in an exaggerated whisper.

Her smile lessened, her body stopping in place. She looked to the container.

“Give him the muffins before I get to ‘em, please. I don’t need another roly poly year,” his father called out.

Then her smile returned full force and she nodded, getting him another container. She gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“You have a safe trip home, alright?” she said.

“Will do.”

“And let me know if you have any problems.”

“I’m fine.”

“If you do, Leo. If you do.”

“Yes, Mom, I will.”

“Now go have your father see you off. Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Leo turned around, blueberries in-hand, and marched off to the front door where his father was. Leo tucked the containers under one arm and pulled his father into a hug. This, of course, came with its own crushing hug and back smacks. His father pulled back and grabbed him by the shoulders.

“No matter what, just remember I’m proud of you, alright?” his father said.

“Of course. Thanks, Dad.”

“And you better come ‘round for Christmas.”

“I’m already planning out the tree.”

“Good, good. I don’t think we’ll be able to cut one down, but I’ll have to see.”

Leo chuckled.

“Now go on before I eat all of those damn things and regret it, alright?”

“Will do. Love you, Dad.”

“Love you, too.”

Leo stepped on out of the house and retreated to his car, slipping back into normalcy. He waved at his parents one last time and pulled out onto the road, heading back home. Right, he had to call Missy. He pulled out his phone and rang home.

“Leo! Hey!” Missy said.

“Hey, Missy, how’s it going back home?”

“Things are going great. Really, really great,” she said. “So good,” she whispered.

“Anything in particular, or…?”

“Yeah, definitely!” There was a pause. “Particular! Yes! Well, sorta. I mean, I’ve been practicing and reading, and reading, and reading. Yeah, did you know some animals need to mate or they’ll die?”

“Yeah, I--”

“Ferrets specifically, too. If a lady ferret doesn’t get any, she goes into this thing called ‘aplastic anemia’ and just like, dies!”

“Everything alright?”

“I don’t… Nothing really, uh…”

“Nothing really what?”

“Nothing’s wrong! I mean, like, nothing super serious… I just-- I miss you. Hah, I know, super silly. I’m just…”

“Missy?”

“It’s fine and dandy! I can’t want you back home? What kinda friend would I be if I didn’t want you back? So you hear me? Pronto. Zip over here. In one piece. If you can. Please. Thank you.”

“No worries, I’m on my way now. I’ll be there real soon.”

“Faaaaaantastic! See you real, real, real, real soon!”

The line dropped. Leo furrowed his brow and set his phone down in the cupholder. Something was off. Her words sounded panicked, but not fearful, like she was hopped up on something. Sugar rush? Hopefully. Whatever the case, Leo tightened his grip on the wheel and tried to get home in a timely manner.

Timely being several hours later. Leo actually noticed how long the drive took this time, as riled up thoughts about what possibly could’ve happened back home stirred in his mind. He could call back, but didn’t want to worry her. If she smelled a hint of concern from him, she might actually flip, and in her excited state, that was the last thing he wanted.

A text came in from a bog standard number. Wait, Leo knew that number. That was Mia’s. He came to a stop at a light and skimmed over the overtly long string of apologies that filled the screen. Oh, right. Leo had almost forgotten about that little get-together. He could read over and think about that later. For right now, there was a manic creature in his house he had to worry about.

Past some trees, whizzing by some lonely homes, over that trusty bridge, then Leo was finally back in his long, long driveway. He noticed spindly fingers pulling apart the blinds as he stepped out of the car with the treats. Those fingers quickly disappeared once he shut the car door and approached the front door. Surprising how quiet everything was. He unlocked the door and stepped inside.

“Hey! Hey! Hey!” Missy said, immediately grabbing him by the shoulders.

“Hey, easy.”

Missy crouched lower to the ground, tugging Leo along with her, all the while staring deeply into his eyes. Leo raised a brow. He hadn’t seen this urgency since the supposed fog creature. Something must’ve spooked her.

“Are you OK, Leo? Are you fine?” she asked.

“Missy, everything is fine. What’s going on?”

“Keep it down!” she hissed. Missy glanced about the room before returning her gaze to Leo, a strange urgency in her expression. “Do you love me?” she asked.

Leo stared back, thoughts grinding.

“You love me, right?”

“Missy, look around you. You’ve got everything you need and want right here. You should know I don’t do that for just anyone. Now, if there’s a problem, just point me at it and I’ll take care of it, alright? I’ll grab a gun if I have to.”

“You don’t need to whip out a gun, relax!” Her grip on him tightened. “I don’t want you to kill anything!”

Leo pursed his lips, shaking his head. “Alright, fine, what’s the issue, then?” He stood up, only to be dragged back down.

Missy opened her mouth, then shut it, frowning. She crept over to the windowsill and peered out of it, ducking right back down a second later. Her spindly finger pointed to the blinds. The other hand on his shoulder tugged him over.

“Carefully,” she whispered.

Leo eased over to the window and peeked out of the blinds. He squinted across the road. He was about to ask what the hell the point was, until he spotted a small creature in the distance. It was a raccoon. A strangely dark raccoon, melanistic, much like the groundhog he took care of not too long ago. It was currently cautiously foraging through the grass, none-the-wiser about the couple watching it. The critter did have a cuteness about it, but nothing that should’ve sent Missy into a frenzy.

“Is that the thing that has you all worked up?” Leo asked. “C’mon, Missy, that’s a damn raccoon, what’s with you?”

“I’ve been watching him go back and forth, back and forth. At first, y’know, I thought he was an invader or something but-- but I think he smells food. Foraging, right?”

“Uhuh.” Leo turned his head. “And?”

“And…! And I think he wants to get to the bins over here, but you know, he’s just such a small guy and there’s so much open space. I bet he’s working up the courage to come over here.”

Missy’s chattering revealed more than idle observation. She was studying this thing intently, to the point where Leo grew worried. Was it because he left for so long? He noticed smaller, unkempt details about her. The reddened and tired eyes, and the messy hair.

“Did you sleep at all last night?” Leo asked. He set the muffins down and placed a hand on her shoulder, gently tugging at her away from the window.

Missy shrugged his hand away. “I want you to get him.”

“Get him?”

“Yes! Get him!” She grabbed his shoulders. “Go out there and get him!”

“Why the hell would I do that?”

“For me!”

Leo sighed. Missy twitched. At least this seemed like nothing more than a manic episode, rather than some sort of response to trauma.

“Let’s just step away from the window. Don’t you want to catch up? It’s been a few days, right? I even brought the muffi--”

“You have to go out there and catch him before he leaves!”

“Missy, it’s a racc--”

“He! I don’t care if he’s just a raccoon to you! I need him in here where I can keep him safe. Safe from all the danger, and-- and-- well fed!” Her eyes widened. “He could starve out there, Leo! He’s young and maybe he doesn’t know how to forage!”

“How do you even know that?” He briefly shut his eyes. “Never mind, that’s not the point. The point is, he’s a wild animal, he’s living his life out there.” Leo kept his tone calm, gently putting an arm around her. “Dragging him in here isn’t going to do him any favors. He’s made for the outside world, not the inside one, OK?”

“And it’s-- It’s gonna end soon if we don’t bring him in! Do you know how many predators he has out there? Do you? We can’t risk that! I can’t risk it!” She shook her head. “Why aren’t you taking this seriously?!” Missy yanked away from him. She looked like she was ready to burst into tears or snarl at him.

“Missy, I’m not going to go out there and grab him.”

She recoiled. Leo considered consoling her again, but held his hand back.

“Why… why not?” Missy’s face contorted into anguish. This wasn’t a prank, or a joke, or even some kind of childish desire, she truly wanted that thing. She shook him and let out a short whine. “Why won’t you?!”

“You need to lie down and just think things over. C’mon. You don’t need a raccoon.”

“Why can’t you just do this one thing for me? You’re saving a life!”

“It’s a wild animal. You, nor I, know how to care for it, OK?” Leo sighed, realizing he called the creature an “it”. “He doesn’t need our help.”

“He’s defenseless out there!”

Leo glanced again, recognizing a familiar theme. The possessiveness, the desire to want something so cute. To hold and cherish it. Some sort of mental explosion, zeroing in on the need for offspring. It harkened back to the party, with that sudden obsession over another cute, fuzzy thing. Only, that was a kid in a costume. This was something out in the wild.

“If he’s made it this long with that special fur, he’s more than capable of taking care of himself.” Leo tentatively reached out, patting her.

Missy swatted away his hand. “Fine! I can’t have this one thing! You just don’t care about another filthy animal! I’ll get him and take care of him!”

“Missy, easy, you’re not an animal.” He had to calm her, fast, but anything he said might add more fuel to the fire. “We’re not ready for that level of responsibility, yet, OK? Maybe some other time.”

Leo tried again to reach out to her, only for Missy to hiss at him. Words and comfort were off the table, he had to bring her down with another obsession of hers.

“Look, I brought those blueberry muffins, the ones Mom used to make, see? I even helped pick out some, so I know they’re fresh. Let’s warm up a few of these and watch a movie or two, alright?”

The intensity in Missy’s gaze only grew. He was glad her daydreams of being a woodland monster were just that, because in that moment she looked ready to tear into his jugular.

“Fuck you, Leo! I know what you’re thinking. ‘Oh, she’s just on her period and she’ll forget all about this!’ “

“No, I--”

“Yeah, well, fuck you! I’m tired of you thinking I’m so, so, so stupid or-- or crazy!” She grunted. “If you try to touch me again I’ll bite your fucking fingers off! I’m going out there and saving him!”

“Hold on!”

“I’m not gonna let him die!” Missy shot up and was already at the door.

“Missy!”

“Just shut up!”

Before Leo could reach out and hold her back, she had already shoved the door open and was barreling toward the poor thing in a frantic gait.

“Missy!” Leo yelled out.

_

Leo sighed, patting down the mound of dirt with a shovel. Missy knelt nearby, tears pouring down her face and matting up her fur.

“I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry! I’m so…” Her words fell into a heavy sob and moan. “I didn’t mean it!”

“I know you didn’t,” Leo said.

“He just… and then I…” Missy groaned. “He was so cute! I didn’t…”

Leo looked out at his backyard. Probably the best place for the little guy. Leo made sure to bury the raccoon deep enough to ward off any diggers. He set his shovel against the house and crouched down next to Missy.

“I know you didn’t mean it. You just got excited. There’s no need to worry about it anymore.”

“He’s dead! I did it! He’s not coming back!”

Leo knelt down and pulled her into a hug. She immediately hugged back, sobbing into his shoulder. He gently rubbed her back, easing her from panicked tears, to mild sobbing, to a quiet whimper.

“Everything’s fine,” he said. “I don’t want to see you cry, OK?”

Missy hiccuped. “Alright.”

“Let’s get you inside and washed off, alright? Would you do that for me?”

“Yeah…”

“Good.”

Leo helped her to her feet and they walked back into the house. He led her over to the bathroom.

“I’m going to get a hand towel, alright? You stay right there.”

A quick look in the closet, and Leo nabbed a towel. As he looked down, he noticed a smattering of blood on his clothes. Missy didn’t need to see that. He quickly pulled it off and tossed it into the hamper inside, then returned to Missy.

“So, what were you doing while I was away? You said you were practicing and reading? What were you practicing?” He had a guess, based on the haphazard mess of fabrics in the living room. Leo ran warm water and soaked the hand towel.

“How could I do that to him?” she asked.

Leo held back a sigh. “It was an accident. You didn’t mean it, like you said.” He started dabbing at her face, wiping away the tears and straightening out her messy fur.

“I had him in my hands and then…”

“You don’t need to think about that.”

“Why didn’t you just get him? Maybe… Maybe he’d be fine if you did. You should’ve listened to me.” Missy shook her head. “You just didn’t listen.”

“Look, I’m sorry. If you want to blame me, that’s fine.”

Missy swallowed. She looked at his face, then shifted to his chest. “Fine,” she said. Must’ve been expecting more push back on that, wanting to dig into him with anger.

Those words were good enough for now, but Leo still had to wonder why it seemed like everyone was blowing up around him lately. A bad meetup, a miserable family argument, and now this. Leaving the house wasn’t the best idea.

“Now, what were you getting up to while I was gone?” Leo asked.

“I guess there’s only room in this house for one wild animal,” Missy said.

“Missy, you’re far from a wild animal, alright? Let’s just drop it.”

“I can’t! I can’t stop thinking about him! You should’ve just done your fucking thing and grabbed him, easy! He wouldn’t have been a problem!”

Leo stopped for a second, letting all the heated air escape from his riled up thoughts. Compassion. She was worked up, and you don’t need to be. Relax.

“Easy, there’s no need for that outburst. Neither of us meant him any harm, OK? Who knows how things would’ve turned out if I had grabbed him. All that matters is that we both wanted what was best for him.”

The tension faded from her again. Technically not wrong, he supposed, at least in terms of bare bones causality. Something compelled her to chase after the raccoon, and it was likely the same hormonal shift as before. Missy wasn’t exactly in the right mindset to make logical calls. Leo quietly chastised himself. Now he was actually sort of agreeing with her. This had to stop.

“So, what did you get up to while I was gone?” Leo said.

Missy didn’t respond, looking to the bathroom mirror.

“You told me about reading and practice, what was that about?” he asked.

“You don’t care,” she replied.

“I came back here in a rush, dodging traffic, and she says I don’t care.” Leo briefly widened his eyes and shook his head. “Maybe I should just hop back in my car.”

“No! No.” Missy grunted. “Later. Maybe.”

Impressive. To refuse showing off something like that, she was either torn between embarrassment and pride, or was still trying to keep her simmering anger going. Maybe even both.

“Gotta admit, you’ve got me real curious now. You sure you can’t show me?”

“I said maybe!” She shifted on the spot. “If I feel like it.”

Something told him that would be very soon.

Leo pulled the rag away from her, running it under the water again. He gave it a good squeeze before moving to her hands. Missy looked down.

“C’mon, eyes up,” Leo replied. “We’re talking, aren’t we?”

She sighed, looking back to him. “I was working on plush toys, OK?”

Touches of red appeared in the rag, which Leo did his best to obfuscate.

“That’s pretty impressive.”

“Don’t mock me.”

“I’m not mocking you. Do you know how much time and effort those need? All the interlocking skills?”

“It’s not that crazy. If I can do it, anyone can do it.”

“I definitely can’t do it.”

“Yes, you can. I bet you’ve made like, twelve.” Missy smirked, then snuffed that out.

“I might, if you taught me how,” he said.

“Not like I really know how. I just followed some steps.”

“That’s the first part of learning anything. The next is experimentation. I’m sure you’ve done that yourself already, knowing you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you’re not one to follow the rules. Creatively.”

Missy’s shifted back to uncertainty, then neutrality. She was deciding if that was an insult or not, likely.

“Yeah,” she said, “I guess.”

Leo finished the last of his cleaning, squeezing out the rag over the sink. He held eye contact with Missy, which was good enough to keep her focused on him as the reddish water disappeared down the drain.

“I think that’s good,” he said, looking to the mirror. “Right?”

Missy glanced to the mirror and gave a curt nod before looking right back at Leo. She reached out and grabbed at his free hand, merely holding it as she stared at him.

“How about some muffins now?” he asked.

No reply from Missy, but it was clear she wasn’t going anywhere without him. Fair enough, he supposed. Leo tossed the rag in the hamper and moved to the living room, where he had set down the box of muffins, bringing them over to the couch. The pair sat down, box placed in-between them. Unfortunate they had to forego heating them up, but it was clear Missy needed a pick-me-up now rather than later.

The two silently munched away at muffins, while Missy occasionally stole looks at Leo. It felt wrong to not have her going on about some mundane topic with an excitable flair that somehow made it interesting, or some strange interest he could hardly parse with an infectious fervor.

Missy’s hand still hadn’t left his own. Leaving home might’ve had a worse impact on her than he imagined. While some of that could be attributed to her Missy-isms and biology, some if it likely had to do with being in a lonely house in the woods. That life was made for Leo, but not her. She shouldered that burden just to be with him.

The box of muffins hadn’t been finished off just yet, but Missy stopped grabbing for them. Leo would have to conjure up another distraction. He closed the container and stood up, Missy following.

“So, you want to show me your work, now?” he asked.

“I guess.”

She pulled on him now, leading directly to her room. Missy left Leo and rounded to the far side of her bed. She knelt down and looked intently down at something for a second. Missy pulled out a few plush toys and set them on the bed, bunched together. No doubt they had a touch of amateur construction to them, but they were impressive all the same. It seemed like she was choosing which to pull out. Were there more?

“Names?” he asked.

“What?”

“You’ve gotta give them names, right?”

“Now I know you’re making fun of me.”

“No. It’d be weird if you gave Selene a name and not them.” He put a hand to his chin. Axolotl, octopus, snail. That was a very Missy arrangement of animals. “Arthur, Odysseus, Sulie.”

Missy smiled. “What kinda names are those?”

“I thought they were good ones.”

She picked up the octopus, approaching him. “Does this look like an Odysseus to you?”

“Sure. He’s got the tentacles for it.” He ran his fingers over the stitching on the arms. “This is solid work.”

“It better be. I spent so many hours thinking about it. And thinking about it.” She shook the thing lightly. “And thinking about it.”

“Maybe you should get to bed, then. You got a lot of work done, clearly.” He motioned to the rest of the animals. “It must’ve been a really long night for you.”

Missy held the octopus to her chest. “You’re not gonna go anywhere else, are you?”

“I wouldn’t dream of setting foot in that car again for a while, believe me.”

She nodded and sat down on her bed, setting down her work next to the others.

“I’ll be right down the hall, OK?” he said. “You can yell if you need me. Just not too loud.”

Missy nodded again. Leo turned and left the room.

“Thanks,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” Leo said, and headed directly to his room, where he sank into his bed.

While nostalgic springs were nice, Leo had to admit memory foam won out in terms of comfort. A curious desire to watch a movie hit him as he got comfortable. It felt like an eternity since he resigned himself to some mindless entertainment, so he did just that. Grabbing the remote, he flicked on the TV, turned the volume down low, and browsed through the platforms Missy had shown him.

Missy appeared at his doorway, quietly knocking on the open door.

“Yes?” he asked, sitting up.

“Can I nap here?” she asked.

Leo looked to the bed, then back to her, nodding. He lay back down as Missy eased down next to him, then directly against him. There was a brief protest in his thoughts that he quietly put to rest. If it helped her sleep, so be it. He raised the remote to turn off the TV.

“You can watch something,” she said. “It’ll help me sleep.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright.”

Soon after, her eyes closed. Leo picked some random flick he had seen with her many times before. Watching the movie, however, wasn’t a task he could get into. As the minutes crawled on, he found himself looking to Missy fairly often. She had shifted onto her side, head on his shoulder, breath calmly blowing across his skin. A stark cute difference from her panicked visage not too long ago. It made him feel bad, to a degree. He wasn’t here to calm her in all that time. But he was here now, and that’s what mattered.

In her sleep, Missy brought her hand onto his chest, snuggling against him. Leo wondered if she might actually be awake. Even if she were, the relaxed rise and fall of her chest proved she was in a state of calm. Through her shirt, he could faintly feel the calm pump of her heart.

Slowly, Leo placed his hand on hers, melting away a tension he didn’t realize he had.

_

A few movies later, Missy had finally stirred from her sleep with a quiet mumble. At that point she had rolled onto her back, crossing her arms.

“What was that?” Leo asked.

“We’re watching a movie and we don’t have popcorn?” she said.

“I figured you were full up on the muffins.”

“Everyone has room for popcorn.” She groggily opened her eyes. “Everybody, Leo.” Missy then shifted back up to his side, hand purposefully on his chest this time, head focused toward the film. “You didn’t strike me as an Aliens guy.”

“I like the practical effects.”

They watched a little longer in silence.

“Forgot to ask how the trip went. Sorry,” she said.

And he had to tell her about Mia. It wouldn’t be fair to her to let that piece of the past go unmentioned. If she wanted to keep it buried, that would be fine.

“Oh, yeah, I have to tell you, I met your old friend, Mia, on the trip.”

Missy perked her head up and looked to him, ears pinned back. The topic was touchy, he could tell.

“You mean our friend, right? Mia? Our old friend?” she asked.

“Friend? Maybe she was a friend back then, but she’s sure as hell not my friend now. Definitely not what I remember of her.”

Those worried ears eased forward again.

“I guess that means it didn’t go super good, huh?”

“That’d be an understatement. Not sure what goes on in her head, but she had a way of getting under my skin. Made me lose my cool a little. Guess she’s good at her job.”

“In… public, huh?” She looked back to the screen for a moment, then back to him, grip tightening. “What’d she say? Like, in general?”

“Some nice, if dull chatter, then it went downhill into a whole lot of nonsense.” He shrugged. “Some point she said she deserved to see you. Out of politeness I said I’d ask, but she didn’t like that one bit. Things got worse from there.”

“How much worse?” Her gaze was intently on him, now.

“She became a little snide, then outright rude to both you and I.” His lips thinned and he loosely shrugged. “I guess I got rude with my words, too.” It was childish, even, thinking about it. Leo held back his embarrassment, hoping Missy of all people wouldn’t pick up on that.

Her grip lessened, letting out a quiet breath. Missy lay her head back down, giving a weary smile.

“I definitely remember Mia being good at bugging people. Guess it’s good someone else can take that job from me, ‘specially when it comes to you.” Her brow raised. “They were just mean words, right?”

“Of course. That’s not too weird for me, is it?” he asked with a chuckle.

It took a moment for Missy to follow up on that amusement, smile widening a little more.

“No!” She weakly giggled. “Just like, you know, this is Mia we’re talking about. Kinda worried she might’ve gotten bitter since… you know, I saw her last. Wasn’t sure what to expect from you two.”

“Neither did I, really.” Leo tilted his head. “Well, no, the first half of the conversation I expected. I’m used to women by now.”

“Leo!” She poked his side.

Leo held back a laugh. “What’s wrong? She’s a lady, and, you know, ladies have some things in common. I’m not wrong, am I?”

The weary smile she held widened even further. “C’mon, be serious! So, she wanted to talk to me and you got mad and said no?”

“More like I told her that you and I would need to work that out, then she said no and got mad. I think it’s only fair you have a say in the matter.”

“When you say it like that, you sound like a lawyer,” she replied.

“Am I wrong?”

“No, but you probably said it a little meaner than that, huh? That’s why she got mad, right?”

“I was pretty civil about it at first. Of course, she isn’t the type to take ‘no’ for an answer, so she started screaming at me for keeping you two separate. As if it’s reasonable to just barge into my house whenever she pleased.”

“That’s just… how she is.”

“Don’t give me that.” Leo shook his head. “She was going full bitch and wanted someone to scream at. If we had an argument and you ran off to someone else’s place--”

“I don’t have any other places, Leo,” she said, pushing her body against his.

“It’s just a hypothetical. You’re not going anywhere.” He placed his hand on her wrist, caressing it and a giving her a gentle squeeze. “What I meant to say was, if I were in her place, I’d definitely be reasonable toward someone who was showing me the same courtesy. The only way I’d deny them that is if someone was in danger.”

Missy nodded, looking to him. Her gaze wavered from his eyes to his chest. She was processing something, certainly.

“When you say bitchy, uh... How bitchy, exactly?”

“It was just a verbal back and forth. Not like I had to--”

“No, I mean, did she say anything about me?”

There it was. Missy was worried about unearthed secrets. Not that Leo would give any of Mia’s gossiping gruel the time of day, but it did give at least some of her insults credence. Missy definitely didn’t need to hear them, certainly not now.

Leo gave a defusing smile. “Missy, she threw insults out about both of us. Just a whole barrage of whatever nitpicking schlock she could conjure up. I’m not sure I could pick out any specific thing she said.” He nodded. “I remember her face, mostly.” He raised a hand to his face, fingers tensed. “You know, just the raw rage scrunched up in there, crow’s feet and all.”

A small amount of pressure unwound from Missy, a smile widening. Her eyes remained firm, however.

“I’d like to think… I dunno, like I’ve gotten better since then.”

“You don’t need to think about that,” Leo replied.

“I’m just saying, like, living with her was tough sometimes. She could really pop her top super easy, then I’d get stressed, and that would stress her out. It was an endless kinda thing.”

It wasn’t hard to believe they’d get on each other’s nerves like that. Two cheery, endlessly excitable, young girls that may as well have been clones at one point. Only, one was allowed to go outside and deal with reality, while Missy stayed inside and reaped those rewards. Jealousy from either side was understandable.

“Seems like you two had a lot to grapple with,” he said.

“Yeah, we just didn’t know it.” Missy chuckled. “It was super weird coming here and seeing you just so, adult, you know? You are so on top of everything. Me and Mia? We’d just do whatever, time didn’t exist. And then she’d have some sort of deadline sneak up on her, and it would start all over.”

“Like I said, I know how women work,” Leo said. He raised his brow and glanced off into space with a cheeky smile.

Missy smiled back. “Come on, Leo! What I’m saying is, we didn’t grow up yet, so for her it’s kinda like a new thing. She’s all grown up in age, but I’m guessing it hasn’t super sunk in all the way.”

“Yeah, she was childish, you got that right,” he replied.

“It’s more than that. What do you think she had going on when I was there?”

“Parties, probably.”

“Real things,” Missy said. “She went to school and maybe had some kinda work-study thing. That’s about it. Mom and dad were paying everything else for her.”

“Oh, I see, she took everything for granted.” Not surprising in the least bit. “Pretty nice they’d foot the bill for their daughter and her fuzzy friend from the woods.”

“They didn’t know about me.” Missy tilted her head. “Well, they didn’t know-know. I dunno how much they knew about me, but they weren’t super interested in where the money was going.”

“I get it. So how did you make it work, then?”

Missy’s eyes fell away from his face. “Guess we didn’t.” She placed her head on his shoulder.

“Can’t blame either of you. Two girls on their own, it probably felt like the whole world was going to wait for you.” Leo had to admit there was a time when he felt like that, too, even if for a shorter period. “Pretty surprising you managed to stick together for so long at all. In an impressive way.”

“Guess that’s just how it is. Things could’ve been worse, but they also coulda been way better. It was a lot of fun, though. Maybe too much fun.” She sighed. “I probably distracted her way too much. Stunted her growth or whatever.”

“You shouldn’t worry about that. It’s not like you really had much experience with that kind of life.” Especially being stuck indoors. “Just learn from it, try to make amends, and move on.”

“Yeah, I guess… But, I just wanna ask that you don’t hold that whole meeting against her.”

Leo raised his brows, pursing his lips. “I dunnoooo,” he said, adding an exaggerated edge to his tone. He turned his head.

Missy perked up again, shifting over to get back into his gaze. “Leoooooo. Pretty please?” She prodded her snout against his cheek. “Don’t have to forgive her or anything, she was probably totally wrong, just don’t stay mad forever.”

“Alright, alright.” He tapped her nose with his finger. “If you’re asking so nicely.”

“Thanks.” She paused, eyes briefly downcast in thought, then lay back down. “It’s good to have you back,” Missy said faintly.

And, Leo wanted to say, it was good to be back. He looked to her messy hair draped across his chest. It felt right to be here. The usual chattering cravings for productivity or keeping their distance were gone. Granted, everyone he visited on his trip seemed to violently explode against him, so that could have contributed to how nice this felt. Especially after Missy’s own episode. Perhaps it was odd, but feeling as though someone else needed him was a sensation Leo hadn’t realized he missed.

The closeness between them wasn’t lost on Leo, either. Missy was right. She had come a long way since then, and Leo had to admit, she brought him along with her, as he could plainly see now. Some of this was to ease her mind, and some of it eased his. His hand was still on her wrist, even now. He made her happy. She made him happy. What was wrong with delving deeper?

It wasn’t a matter of Missy’s behavior anymore. Leo had seen her most bare moments. While she might’ve slipped back into old habits, it would’ve been easier to steer her away from them, together.

Maybe it was an underlying distaste.

Leo couldn’t entirely accept the nature of it all. Missy, while more than capable, wasn’t allowed to escape into society if this all went wrong. Leo would never allow himself to take advantage of someone so close, but she may have felt like she would have to bend to his will. To a degree, she already had with his many chores. It seemed almost petty now, even if she was all the better for it.

Leo looked to Missy, feeling her breath across his skin. Maybe he didn’t want this to change. Adding that dose of more, pushing further, almost felt as though it could rip all of this away. No way that it could. Missy certainly wouldn’t want anything to change between them, but it almost felt as though it could.

“See, this is why I think Aliens is better,” Missy said. “None of that waiting for the scares.”

Leo chuckled. It would be impossible for anything to change between them.

“You have to appreciate the slow build-up of the original, don’t you?” he asked. “The facehugger and chestburster are iconic.”

“Sure, those parts are cool, but I’m bored the whole time when the xenomorph isn’t on the screen.”

“Xenomorph?” Leo asked.

“The alien.”

“It has a name?”

“Of course it has a name.”

“Sounds sort of like something only a nerd would know.”

“I don’t wanna hear the word ‘nerd’ coming from Mr. Tackle box over here,” she replied. “Besides, they started using it in the movies, so it’s not nerdy at all.”

“So you learned about it before those movies, huh? Was it in the official Alien Encyclopedia or something?”

“Encyclopedias are your thing, nerd.” She turned her head to face him and tapped his nose with a spindly finger. “Geek.” Missy turned right back around to the movie. “Dork.”

It was good to see Missy creeping back into old habits. The timbre of her voice held some flat discomfort, but her mannerisms bled through all the same.