(A/N: 200th story!!! I couldn't decide if I wanted to do angsty or fluffy for my 200th story. The argument in my head pretty much went like this: "But angst is so angsty…" "But fluff is so fluffy…" Then I wrote this and decided it was pretty good and had good balance between angsty and fluffy, so here it is. This takes place before Nessa becomes governor. But sometime in the intermission. Enjoy!)

Being Nessarose

"Nessa, would you mind telling me what you're thinking?" Boq asked, genuinely curious.

"Why would you possibly want to know that?" Nessa replied. "It's not like I'm that interesting."

"It's just…" Boq sighed as he tried to describe his curiosity. "I want to know what it's like to be Nessarose Thropp. I want to know what it's like to always be in a wheelchair, to have a sister who's green, to know that Munchkinland will someday be governed by you."

Nessa was silent. She looked down, examining her pale blue dress and silver shoes. She brushed a fuzz off her lap. She did anything she could to postpone answering Boq's question.

Finally, she ran out of distractions and sighed. "I think about how unfairly my father treats Elphaba," she admitted quietly. "I think about where Elphaba is. I think about my mother. I sometimes think about how I'm going to be stuck in this chair for the rest of my life. As for governing Munchkinland, well…" she laughed softly. "I just don't want to think about it. And…" She stopped suddenly and began to turn away from Boq.

"And?" Boq prompted.

Nessa didn't reply until her back faced Boq completely. "And I think about how much I love you."

(A/N: I honestly can't believe I'm up to 200 stories. Reviews are love!)