Inferno Part 2

~64~ Scar

Ellie's POV

Today is my first day back to work. It's actually the first day I've done my hair and makeup since the incident. When I come down the stairs, I'm frustrated. Everybody is downstairs, eating breakfast.

As soon as Taylor sees me, he knows I'm upset.

"What's wrong, Ellie?"

I start to fight tears. "I can't get my makeup to cover the scar" I say, feeling stupid. It isn't about me being vain about my looks. I just don't want to always be reminded about what happened. I don't want to see pity in my coworker's eyes.

When he punched me in the face, a ring he had on cut my cheek bone. It was deep. I'm sure it will fade eventually, but it's always going to be there. Always a reminder.

He grabs my face gently and inspects my scar. "It's not that noticeable, baby girl."

"No need to lie" I snap.

He sighs and kisses my scar.

Sasha comes up to me and looks at it. "I have some really good stuff, but it won't look right with your complexion. I'll pick your shade up tonight after school. Where's your concealer?" She asks.

I get it out of my purse and hand it to her. She gently tries to cover up my scar. When she's done, she nods.

"You can still see it, but it isn't as noticeable. When I get you that stuff tonight, it will be even harder to see. It will fade, momma." She says.

I just nod. I don't need everyone to keep seeing me sad. I'm trying to help them get over it too. Taylor's eyes are full of pain. I don't want to keep causing him pain.

"Ellie, can I give you a ride today?" Mason asks. I haven't driven since my accident either. Knowing that he was in my car has been hard for me for some reason.

"No, I need to drive myself today." I say with a smile.

He just nods as he kisses Sasha and Drew goodbye and heads out the door with the kids. Luke and Emma kiss me as they leave, and then Taylor pulls me to him.

"You're beautiful. That scar doesn't define you."

I kiss his lips gently and nod, leaving. I'm nervous. I'm nervous to see Lance. We haven't talked since I "broke up" with him.

I get to school and I go straight to my office. Thankfully Lance wasn't out in the hall. He's always in the hall in the morning. My guess is he was trying to avoid me as much as I wanted to avoid him.

I spend the entire morning rearranging and organizing the mess that the temp left my room. How hard is it to keep things tidy?

After a couple hours, there's a knock on my door. It's Lance.

I give him a small smile. He looks nervous.

He comes in and looks at me hard. "How are you?" He asks softly.

"Fine, sir."

"Ellie, don't do that."

"Don't do what?"

"Don't call me sir."

"Why?"

"Because you never call me that. Please don't call me sir."

"What can I do for you, Principal Mills?" I ask.

His face falls. "Ellie, please. I'm so sorry. Can we try and fix this?"

"There's nothing to fix. We're fine."

"We're not fine. You won't even look at me. You won't call me by my name. Please just look at me."