28th of August-Happy Birthday Rebecca!
@loveofescapism
I love you and I am so glad I get to call you my best friend 😘🖤
-CURVE-
“I don’t feel beautiful.”
Rey examined herself in the mirror, she felt much the same but all too different. A month had passed since her surgery and the old age tale of time healing all wounds had fallen flat.
Physically, she was well enough. No longer did her stance hunker or dip to the left. Where she had once struggled to breathe, she now found the action easy and without obstacle. It was odd, no braces cut or chafed against her skin and left her raw and sore.
Scoliosis.
It was a word that had defined her, a term thrown about since her earliest years, a medical intervention was sought and a team of specialists were assigned to her case.
The curvature was minuscule back then, noticeable but without pain or problem and so they monitored her closely and observed her condition’s progress as she aged.
Childhood was fine enough, one day in Primary School, a boy had mentioned that her head dipped to the side but she paid him no mind.
In secondary school, she avoided physical education if she could, there was no hiding or brushing off comments about how she carried herself or how she appeared lopsided.
It was hard not to notice the stares, some pitied her, tutting their tongues as they all changed and others belittled her and spat cruel names in quiet voices but she heard them, she heard them all.
That was when her medical problems increased, she was riddled deep with ache. Her muscles strained as the curve worsened. It was hard for her to breathe at times, her clothes did not fit right, it was just plain difficult.
Her only saving grace was Ben, her closest friend since childhood and staunchest protector. While she was hardly intimidating, often the punchline of jokes, Ben was tall and feared by many. Despite his softness around her, he had earned a reputation, his temper was fiery and well known, he had been suspended from school more times than she could remember.
He was a Solo, through and through, act first and think later. So if Ben heard or saw anyone making comments or staring at Rey too long, he let his fists fly and blood coat his knuckles.
Alone, they had fallen for each other, despite her imperfections, he had made her feel like a goddess, a perfect incarnation of true beauty. He was the only one who treated her like she was not made of glass when they had lost their virginity to one another at the age of sixteen during the summer holidays, he had handled her as such, like she was a strong woman made of flesh and bone. His hands touched her like a man’s should, he was loving but rough and listened to her when she begged for more.
With her increasing pain and malformation of her spine, it was decided that surgery would be the only option. Metal rods and bolts would would correct the curve. Ben had joked that she would be his very own ‘Terminator,’ to which he proceeded to quote the entire movie as she laughed alongside him. It was the distraction she needed from the worry that lingered deep in the pit of her stomach.
He had seen her through it, he was there when she awoke from anaesthetic, dazed and confused, she was bleary eyed and in agony. Ben was there to smooth her hair away from her flushed face and whisper quiet assurances.
The healing process was difficult, she had to learn how to adapt to the world with a straight spine. She walked differently, she held herself in an altered manner and things seemed better. All the while, Ben was there, urging her on.
One day she noticed the scar left behind. It ran down the length of her back, red, angry and raised.
It brought her to tears, it was something else, a reminder of what she had endured but at the same time, it invited attention she did not want.
One summer day, she braved wearing a bikini at the local pool. She had lasted three minutes before she was reduced to tears, someone had commented on the scar, they called her Frankenstein and so she covered up and near enough gave herself heat stroke that summer.
Now, she stood in front of the mirror, nude and observing the thing that had caused her so much trouble. It was early morning, Ben had made love to her the evening before and as always, he worshipped her.
He came up behind her, bare and exposed like she was and planted a kiss along the length of her scar, leaving no spot untouched or unloved.
“You’re beautiful.”
In that moment, she believed him. She was a fierce warrior, a strong force who overcame what had tried to cripple her.
“I feel beautiful,” she whispered.
The beautiful accompanying art was made by the talented @persimonne 🖤