11 - It's the "I won't say I'm in love" musical number but there's also a frat party somewhere in the middle

Michela snorted. "Yeah, knowing just how much you hate paperwork I think that would have been a very poor career choice. Even though I've heard that if you're very good, you can make a lot without having to write too many articles", she agreed with a little smile, finishing off her brownie. "Besides, you said you like what you do just fine. I don't think I've ever asked if designing was something you've always enjoyed to do or if you're just a very lucky artist."

"Well, from what you've told me, once a year is plenty enough for you to make a whole industry sail off for a good while, so. That works fine, even if you don't put down a thousand projects", Michela observed, drinking the rest of her cappuccino. "I guess I'm glad my work doesn't work like that. I mean- can you imagine me, getting in the obituary, looking at some dude and going 'Hm. No, I'm not really feeling it today guys. Inspiration's lacking'." She snickered at her own joke. "Anyway. Good on you and your inspiration for working away lately, then. What's motivating you?"

"Maybe the dead body wouldn't, but their living relatives would be at my throat for sure", Michela countered with a small grin. She did pause when Hypnos vaguely referred to someone he had met - and was meeting on the regular - recently, who was the source of his inspiration.
Did he mean-?
She felt blood rushing to her pale cheeks and was quick to try and dismiss it, scoffing and crossing her arms on her chest. "Well- good for you", she just blurted out. She franctically looked for an escape route, something that would distract Hypnos from her reaction. She looked down at her bag as if it could swallow her whole - and instead saw something peeking out of it.
Ah. An escape route.
"By the way, Lucia told me to bring you these", she said, ducking to grab a cookie box and putting it on the table. "She told me you've paid her one dollar more than what you had to, and she wants to be a honest and upstanding little citizen apparently." It was a little too late to pretend she wasn't flushing, but at least she could try to divert the attention.

Michela snorted - secretly happy that her diversion had worked. "Please, she's already selfish enough without my encouragement", she answered. "You're spoiling her, by the way - she's way too full of herself for all the money she's bringing in on her own." She paused. "Speaking of Lucia- I am going to strangle you out of existence for rickrolling me via hand-made card", she exclaimed, suddenly remembering the absolute outrage she had felt when, at the end of an - admittedly - thoughtful-looking letter, she had found the unassuming post scriptum 'Now read only the first words of the sentences ;-)' and by doing so she had found herself reading the lyrics to the song.

Michela barked out a laugh. "Look, I don't mean to underestimate you or to hurt your feelings, but I'm positive I would manage to catch you before you even reach the front door. And I will not promise that I won't strangle you next time we meet, because who knows what will be written in your next card, right?", she commented with a grin, shaking her head. She was still irritated about the rick-rolling, but she didn't feel like ending this meeting, honestly. "If you really have to go, though, that's another story."

Michela squinted at him. "If the Nyan Cat sproings out at me with its obnoxious music and a cascade of glitter when I open the next card, you'd better change address", she threatened him again, pointing her finger at him in a menacing way. "I've had people on my autopsy table for way less." Granted she wasn't the one who had sent them there, but. You get the message. "But I won't murder you for now, I guess. Too many witnesses, and. Well. You are paying for my stuff", she added, gesturing for the money he had put on the table, "so we're even."

Michela's eyes narrowed more. "Don't you dare", she threatened - a void threat, again. "And you're only allowed to play the 'friendship' card on me only if you're willing to be called in the middle of the night and hide me from the cops if I was ever in need to." She crossed her arms. "I don't think I'm overestimating you, anyway. I know another couple of people who are on the artist side of things besides you, and each and every one of them is able to do things that go outside my comprehension."

"Bold of you to assume I'd even call to begin with instead of straight up knocking on your bedroom window with a corpse hidden in the truck of my car", Michela quipped back with an amazingly well-kept poker face. She tilted her head then, thinking over her answer. "One of my friends wants to be a writer and he can put down some pretty amazing poems. Another one is a fashion designer - she makes all the clothes she draws herself too, from scratch. I've seen her at work, and honestly it's- really amazing how a simple sketch can just become something that can be worn on a catwalk." Carleen was super good at what she did, for sure.

Michela threw him half a smile. "Seems like many things make you sleepy", she observed - kindly, by her standards. "I have the opposite problem, you know. I sleep an average of five hours per night. But do you have a favorite audiobook, then?" She threw a distracted glance at her phone and grimaced. Time was flying by, and she'd soon have to go fetch Lucia at her girlscout's camp.

Michela followed Hypnos' instructions and made sure to note down in her phone the title to the book he was suggesting to her - even though, being a chronic insomniac, she wasn't super positive it would help her anyway, but she didn't say that out loud.

She was buttoning up her coat when Hypnos spoke to her again, and she threw him a little smile. "As always, you mean?", she joked. "I had fun too. You can get out of here on your own without getting bullied on your way to the door or you want to accompany me?"

Michela scoffed when they were stopped on their tracks by Alecto. "Wonder why anyone would want to leave this place, service is lovely", she muttered under her breath, before adding out loud "Yeah, actually. We were heading out, so..." She raised her brow at her. "Honestly, don't you have anyone else to harrass, really? Friends? Relatives?" She paused, seemingly thinking it over. "Venomous snakes?"

Michela snorted. "I'm afraid unless he stops being funny and you stop being an asshole that's not really gonna happen, is it. So I'll be staying out of your league for the time being, honey." She turned around and nodded at Hypnos, before walking out the café with him. "Well. She's a bucket of sunshine, isn't she", she commented once they were well away from the door. "Sure hope her sister's nicer, or I'll start getting really worried for your brother."