Work Text:
Svetlana hadn't understood—not really—not until she saw that look on Mickey's face. The look that said he'd go to hell and back if it would make Orange Boy healthy again.
Her entire life had been about doing what she had to in order to survive. When she'd been sold into prostitution she'd lost any ability to choose her own path. Marrying Mickey wasn't something she'd wanted, but prostitution wouldn't pay the bills forever and she and Yevgeny needed security.
She'd been determined to make it work, maybe even falling in love over time like so many arranged marriages. But instead of the husband she expected, she'd ended up with a broken boy, playing at manhood, who didn't understand the cold hard truths of her world. He wanted everything and owned up to nothing.
When she saw the desperation on his face, it made her realize that he was walking an even harder path than her own. For the first time she understood what she'd been forced into the middle of by Terry.
She saw the true face of love and hoped it never found her. She'd settle for a comfortable arrangement with Nika over that pain any day.