"I heard it's all wrinkly..."
"It's completely distorted..."
"No, they saw it the other day. You can't imagine how blemished it looks..."
"Yea...it's awful..."
"Hell, it's disgusting."
"If I were to bear something macabre as that, I might as well kill myself..."
"Sh...they're looking this way..."
I glared resentfully at those presumptuous idiots, clenching my fists altogether. If they thought that I couldn't hear them, they had got to be underestimating my sensitiveness. They all turned away nonchalantly upon spotting my creased eyebrows. I couldn't help peeking at Jeff from the corners of my eyes. He was standing right next to me, with his head down and his hands tucked tightly inside his pockets. He didn't stir a bit. For a second, I doubted if he even existed there. But when I caught sight of that deadpan expression, I realized he was in fact meditating which, in my opinion, wasn't a pleasant thing. It would only mean that he was picking up and processing every single offensive and mortifying mock the others were tossing at him.
I wished I could appease him. I wished I could suffer in his place. I wished I could cradle him and let him cry as much as he wanted...
He was pretending that he didn't care, but I knew he did.
Two weeks had passed since Jeff got released from the hospital. He was going back to school with us all, but nothing was the same as before. I couldn't stop mourning over the drastic damage of his body. His face, in particular, was our concern. Everyone was making their best effort to adapt to the radical changes, to accept Jeff as the boy he used to be, to love him regardless of his faults...But no one could deny while doing so, it took a great deal of pain and distress. No matter how many times Jeff asserted that he was perfectly fine with the aftermath, he wasn't. Among all the people, he was the one who cared about his appearance the most. And I could just tell it because he had never genuinely looked into my eyes since. He refused to even confront me, to speak to me face-to-face. He would hug me though. He would still kiss me. But he couldn't smile. He wouldn't reveal his entire face to me unless I promised to keep my eyes shut when he gave me the smooch. At school or anywhere outside his home, he wore a surgical mask and a cap. Those hazel eyes that were once so gorgeous and captivating were now always directed towards the floor. I could never admire them again.
"Jeff, just ignore what they say." Liu muttered. "Guess those bitches wouldn't stop gossiping unless they get their mouths stitched."
Jeff nodded silently, still glancing down at his own shoes.
"Jeff, what do you want for lunch today?" I asked, steering away from the topic effectively. Jeff twitched a little and babbled something underneath his mask. I guessed it was "whatever".
"Well, I suppose we still have a few hours to think about it." I shrugged and giggled. "Mom said there's a new ramen shop opened in town. I've always wanted to try some Japanese cuisine. Perhaps we can drop by there at lunch and skip the afternoon classes?"
"Sounds like a fabulous idea to me." Liu chuckled. "What do you reckon, Jeff?"
"Some ramen would be nice." Jeff answered, finally turning to face me. He attempted a grin but it never showed successfully with that mask tightly wrapped around his mouth. He gave my hand a slight squeeze though, signaling that that he was pleased with my idea. I smiled and kissed him swiftly on the check.
And then, the bell started chiming.
"Let's go." Liu urged and we all started trotting back to our classrooms.
