running down
to his arm. He found a mirror on the table, next to the fan, and
picked it up. Holding it in front of his face, he gazed at his
reflection.

It was the same as it had always been, of course, except that where
long, frizzy hair used to be, there was now a tightly wrapped bandage,
stained with blood. It was clearly the face of a young boy staring
back at him. For the first time, he wasn't repulsed by it. It wasn't
like looking at a stranger he grudgingly had to put up with. It was
more like... he thought about this. It didn't really feel like
anything at all. His reflection didn't provoke any kind of emotion in
him. It wasn't good, it wasn't bad, it was just who he was. That had
always been the problem with Faye, though: not that her body was _bad_,
just that it simply wasn't who she was.

He could remember everything. Not just Faye's actions, but her
innermost thoughts. He remembered the way that some evenings, as she
went to bed, she would look down at her flat chest and lack of curves
and feel the headache that meant she was about to cry. He even
remembered how she'd secretly started to feel about her best friend,
Rebecca. Those memories were his now, but the feelings weren't.

Looking down at the outline of the slightly malnourished but otherwise
healthy young body hidden beneath the bed sheets and medical gown, he
felt no repulsion any longer. Despite the nausea and the overwhelming
feeling that he needed to get some rest, in a weird sort of way, he
felt fine for the first time in his life. It was finally over.

As he walked up to Rebecca's house, David scratched the scar on the
back of his head. He still wasn't used to the feeling of the short
bristles of hair against his fingers. He pressed the doorbell and
waited.

Rebecca's mother answered the door, but she didn't greet him with
enthusiasm like she usually did. Instead, she looked at him like she
was expecting him to introduce himself.

"Hi. It's me, David," he said. Seeing no hint of recognition in her
eyes, he added, "Henley."

"Oh." She seemed taken aback. "Of course. Please, come in." She
opened the door wider and turned around to face the stairs. "Rebecca!
Your friend's here!" Turning back to face David, she assured him, "I'm
sure she won't be long," before disappearing into the kitchen.

David waited in the hallway until Rebecca finally crept down the
stairs, coming to a stop half way down the staircase.