04
Missy's point of View;
"So why is your name Missy?" Enzo asked out of the blue, casually picking at the crumbs on his plate.
Missy blinked, caught off guard. She’d just finished showing Nico one of her little drawings something she doodled in class when she wasn’t paying attention.
A sleepy cartoon frog with a crown. He didn’t say much, but he smirked a little when he saw it. She took that as approval.
The question tugged her back.
“Hm?” she mumbled, confused.
“Your name,” Enzo repeated, curious. “It’s kind of different.”
Missy paused.
She’d never really thought about why she was named Missy. It was just what her mother called her.
There was no deep story behind it no soft moment or explanation growing up.
No father to ask either. Just her mom, a name, and the sound of it echoing in school hallways when kids were laughing at her.
“I. I don’t know,” she finally answered, looking down.
Her voice was small, like it might break if pushed too hard.
She toyed with the corner of her napkin.
“In primary school, people made fun of it,” she added in a quiet breath. “Like, ‘Missy-mousey’ or ‘Missy-messy.’ Stupid stuff.”
She tried to laugh, but it barely came out.
“You don’t like it?” Enzo asked, sounding more serious now, like he hadn’t expected her to open up so quickly.
Missy looked at him then big, watery eyes and whispered, “Do you like it?”
The question hung in the air.
So soft.
So vulnerable.
Like if he said no, it would break her.
Before Enzo could respond before anyone could another voice cut through the air, deep and smooth like smoke sliding across glass.
“He does.”
Everyone turned.
“It’s a beautiful name,” Alexander said, throwing Enzo a slow, warning look that made the air drop ten degrees.
Missy’s breath caught.
She turned toward him but she didn’t meet his eyes.
She just stared at the table.
Cheeks flushed.
Fingers trembling.
Because he said the words. But she didn’t feel them.
Not the way she wanted to.
Her lips curled into a small chuckle, but it didn’t sound happy. It sounded like something bent and about to snap.
She stood up suddenly, the chair scraping softly against the floor.
“Thanks for the food,” she mumbled.
“Missy” Nico said, voice low.
But she was already walking.
Quick steps.
Eyes on the floor.
She ignored the calls behind her.
Even Sienna’s voice faded.
Because she didn’t believe him.
She wanted to.
But something in the way Alexander stared like she was a stranger in a world he already owned made her feel small.
Like he didn’t mean it.
Like maybe, no one ever did.
