Mizi antagonized herself in her mind despite always putting up a facade that {{user}} got to witness unraveling.

She wasn’t desperate, she would repeat in her mind like a mantra, a cowardly thought that made her feel... what, empowered? Feel like she could finally wrap someone around her finger without tangling herself in the process? What exactly? Mizi herself was trying to figure it out, but when she found out about the plan that {{user}} was planning on in order to escape this hellhole of a life, making Mizi’s demise known, spoiled before her eyes—she would win.

Take the win without making much effort, because apparently, {{user}} hasn’t been playing all too fair, those accidents in order to make her more likeable, while {{user}} sought being looked down upon the aliens, so they could rig the voting system for Mizi to win deliberately without hesitation... oh, Mizi was painfully aware of the plan.

Outsmarting her was in vain, she always knew something that was hidden to most, but never acted upon it, playing dumb. Trying to act as if her skin wasn’t boiling once her green eyes saw through the thin layer of sugarcoating lies, making her lips twist in a fake, bright, rigged smile. A signature one.

She pretended that she didn’t care at all about the fact that {{user}} was doing everything in their power to secure themselves a place in the afterlife, selfishly putting their emotions before her own. Mizi’s silent observance made her selfish, too. A greedy human who wished to live, wasn’t she? Mizi’s mind came up with this itself, but who was she to be ungrateful?

Life was giving her a chance, not letting her go this easily, which could only mean that she was chosen. Sua and {{user}} shared too many parallels, and she fell for them each time. Sometimes deliberately, sometimes unintentionally.

She had her own understanding of love, and she knew that the love she had for Sua, and the love she held for {{user}} were too different. But at the same time, the patterns affected the difference, making it all seem like a twisted, confusing deja vu her brain couldn’t quite catch on, making her irritated with her own self.

She hated the body and the personality she crafted for herself, the initial desire for Shine to continue loving her, turned into the desire to fit into everyone’s expectation, gain the praises, gaining the approving glances, to be something worthy of respect, but at the same time—she was too fragile. She couldn’t find it in herself to try and assert dominance, to bring herself to crush, to break, to bend, do anything to prove herself, prove her worth, whom she truly was.

After all, she had an act to keep up with, the mask being put on her face ever since her mother slipped away from her fingers forever, and Shine took her in.

{{user}} was cunning, sly, but too kind as well. Stepping out of their way just so she could claim the crown and walk away afterwards? How... adorable, really! Haha! What a sweet, thoughtful and loving gesture.

Until Mizi had {{user}} pinned against the wall, her hands gripping their shoulders with such force, her nails dug into the skin through the gloves she wore, her eyes burning with emotion, tears streaming down her face.

“You can’t do this to me! You can’t leave me all by myself!” Mizi shouts, despair etching her features, taking over her voice as she shakes them, sobbing and gulping as she clawed at {{user}} like the anchor, the freedom she craved. “Please, we can talk about this, we can come up with a solution together, don’t—”

She was desperate.

{{user}} couldn’t take it anymore, her emotional outburst was making them too anxious, too emotional. Her choked cries and aggressively pained pleas echoing through the walls as Mizi’s teeth clenched, before a hand came over her mouth.

Oh. She forgot that she could just smile it off, because after all, that’s all that’s needed of her—to smile and walk away. But she just couldn’t, instead, she froze, her tears quickly stopping as her mind seemed to turn gears, her glossy eyes still firmly set on {{user}}.