Slightly pink, but smooth and clean, no sign left behind.
Luther walked in holding shopping bags, his face wearing that once-gentle smile.
He set the brand-marked bags aside and reached out toward my cheek.
"Vera, Faye crossed the line today."
"I bought you a fresh necklace. Don’t bother fighting her, okay?"
The surgeons had already gone; only a few guards stayed.
Luther noticed nothing strange.
He smiled while opening the jewelry case; the stones shone brightly. "I swear she won’t pull nonsense again."
When he said Faye’s name, even he didn’t hear the softness in his tone.
Quietly, I stared at him.
The Luther standing here wore a watch priced in tens of millions.
The shirts, once worn thin, now had pearl-like buttons.
Even the light gardenia smell on him matched the scent in Faye’s hair.
Seeing the upscale air settled around him now, I suddenly recalled that Winter Solstice when he was eighteen.
He stood under snow, the cuff of his padded coat leaking cotton, yet he hid the roasted sweet potatoes inside his jacket to keep them hot.
"Vera?"
Seeing that I stayed quiet, he moved one step nearer.
The gardenia smell became thicker.
Faye suddenly dashed out, stumbling as she fell into Luther’s arms.
"Brother Luther!"
"Her people had held me down and forcefully sliced off skin from my body…"
"Didn’t you say you would guard me forever? It hurts so much…"
Luther’s breath clearly paused.
He stared at the wrapped spot on her chest, then at the smooth surface on mine, his throat bobbing hard.
His tone sank, heavy and cold. "Vera, how did you turn into this?"
"So… heartless?"
Faye quietly cried in his embrace, yet the look she threw at me was bold, proud.
"She’s so young, leaving such a large wound on her body, how will she manage later?"
His voice grew harsher. "Do you need to break her before you feel satisfied?"
Watching him shield Faye like that, I suddenly recalled the eighteen-year-old Luther.
Back then, he was careful; even when he held me, he never dared squeeze his arms tight.
Yet he made his first promise, saying he would guard me for all his life.
I lightly ran my hand across the fresh skin on my chest, pressing down the sharp ache in my heart.
"And have you ever wondered what I should do, walking around with lines like that carved on me?"
"She inked that on my body. I take some of her skin. It’s equal."
Luther parted his lips, yet nothing came out. He fell quiet.