Laugh, Not Smile

"James puts his hand to my mask. I grab his hand. Because I know what he's going to do. James will pull it off. And then he'll see my face. My ugly, messed up scared face. But then, I know I'm safe with him. That he won't hate my face. I put my hand down. And slowly and gently, James pulls off my mask." Alice Young has been wearing a mask covering half her face since she was five years old. Ever since her parents died in the car crash in which her face got messed up. But when Alice moves in with her new foster family, things look up. Alice also meets a boy. But not just any boy, James Bengston. And though James is a regular student, there something about him. James loves Alice for who she is inside, not outside.