it’s very generous and rare of her, but she lets him finish - which honestly, should be appreciated - her expression shifting with each word, eventually settling into something between disbelief and deep offense, arms crossed tight over chest as if she’s physically holding herself back from interrupting him every three seconds. on top of that, she keeps looking at him from underneath her lashes, brown frowned. “ wow, ” she exhales slowly, unimpressed, her head tilting and she’s looking at him as if he just delivered a presentation that no one asked for … certainly not her. “ you really love the sound of your own voice, ” a loud, dramatic sigh. “ first of all, ” she starts, lifting a hand slightly as if she’s about to list things off her fingers - of course she is. “ don’t rewrite history. he was a public menace. i was doing a community service by even considering intervention. ” she ticks off one finger. her gaze flicks towards milo chasing the ball, a smile tugging at her lips, letting her expression soften for a fracture of the second before it snaps right back in its place as she looks at miles again. “ and you don’t get to stand there and act like you were above it, ” her weight shifts and one shoulder is now angling towards him, eyebrows raising as he continues speaking. “ yeah, you did not secure anything fair and square. you ambushed an empty seat like opportunists. it’s giving playground capitalism, ” she’s being dramatic, but there’s that soft familiar tease in her voice. at least until he mentions the pity and that’s when she just keeps on going, more a matter of a fact now than ever. “ i expected … i don’t know, a moment of self awareness ? a flicker of charm ? something that would justify why i still tolerate you, maybe, ” her arms drop and her one hand gestures towards him vaguely, like she’s presenting a living and walking evidence. “ but no. instead, i got you, ” a pause. “ … and i’m still waiting, by the way, ” she hears milo’s laughter cutting through again and it makes her glance over, her face softening - it’s quite fascinating how he makes her shift so fast if you think about it - the same way miles does, because he brings up the car and she immediately groans. “ crybaby. you were not a victim. you were a privileged passenger. i drove, you’re welcome, ” she bites, that annoying smirk forming on her lips. now she sees it through, the reason that started it all, and it flatters her in a way. “ besides, you loved being a passenger princess. you were thriving. i saw that, ” she nods, as if she decided it’s a fact now. “ please … that was absolutely an emotional breakdown. you went through all five stages of grief, it almost made me worried, ” zoya stills for a second as his comment lands, eyes narrowing and she’s deciding if she’s about to be offended or amused. as her head tilts, she takes a step closer just enough to close the space, her voice dropping a notch. “ if that was the highlight of your afternoon, you seriously need better hobbies, ”
