Mika's hands flew up, palms open in surrender, his voice breaking into a nervous laugh as he tried to soften her glare.
"W-Wait, Yelena, calm down! This is all a misunderstanding, I swear—"
He didn't even finish before his head jerked to the side with a strangled.
"Ow-ow-ow! That hurts!"
Yelena's fingers had snapped onto his ear like a vice, twisting and pulling mercilessly. Her nails bit into the soft skin as her face hovered close, lips curved into a smile that was far too sweet to be real, her eyes cold as winter steel.
"Misunderstanding?"
She repeated, each syllable dragged out like poison.
"What misunderstanding, Mika? That you—"
She gave his ear a brutal twist that made him yelp again.
"...compared me to a pig?"
Her voice dropped, low and dangerous.
"Not a beautiful animal. Not a peacock. Not a tiger. Not even a damn horse. But a damn pig."
Her forced smile widened, every word punctuated with venom.
"Is that the misunderstanding?"
