Like a mirror, we have the scars on the software version in the same place, in the opposite side to the piercings in the hardware version, paralleling one another.
One side, the hardware version, could represent the exterior, the side that everyone sees, or alternatively, the hardened persona acting as a protective armor.
The other side, software, the scars indicating the presence of pain and vulnerability, the somber expression in his eyes.
The progression of the photos starting with a clean face, profile, third picture, his eyes avoiding, until finally, ending with tears in his eyes and the scar on.
Face is both a noun and a verb, and facing anything is a process, sometimes a painful one.
Personally, his expression made me a bit teary eyed. There's something almost resigned in it, like finally accepting the pain but not fully giving up either.
His eyes almost screaming, "I'm human, too".