Mei froze mid-rant, her fingers tightening just a little around the bandage she was wrapping around his leg. Her eyes narrowed into dangerous little slits. "Oh-ho, crispy, is it?" she echoed, voice deceptively light. "Just a little crispy? Owen, you look like a marshmallow that someone dropped into a campfire and then tried to convince everyone was still edible!" Ok, so maybe she was exaggerating a little, but she was just trying to get her point across.
She huffed, pressing the bandage down with just enough extra force to make him wince. "And elbow grease and a scrubbing brush?! Oh wow, thank you, Mr. Domestic, for your deep and insightful cleaning wisdom! Iâll be sure to remember that while Iâm on my hands and knees scraping your poor life choices out of the floorboards!"
Her frustration hitched when he grinned at herâgrinned!âlike this was all some big joke. Like she wasnât currently battling the very real urge to smack him upside the head with the nearest throw pillow. "Owen, I swear to everything good and sparkly--If you make one more jokeâ" And then he called himself a big, glazed doughnut.
For a moment, silence. Then, a deep, slow inhale through her nose. "Oh, you did not justâ" The glare she gave him was like none other she'd ever given.
But just as quickly as it flared, her anger deflated. She sighed, shoulders slumping, as she secured the last of the bandages with a little more gentleness. "You know I hate this, right?" Her voice had lost its sharp edges, replaced by something quieterâsomething raw. "I hate seeing you like this. I hate that you act like your pain is just⊠a funny little inconvenience. I hate that you think I only care because of the mess or because I have to clean you up." She tied off the bandage with a little flourish and then sat back on her heels, arms crossing. "I care, you big, dumb, freshly burnt doughnut because you matter. Because you being okay matters."
She sniffed, then nudged his uninjured leg with her foot. "And because I like stealing your medical supplies, but thatâs beside the point." A pause. Then, grudgingly, "... You are kind of a glazed doughnut, though."