Her face had been horribly burned, and she had been undergoing skin grafts. Her right hand looked smaller and her forearm was heavily bandaged all the way to the elbow. Her hair had all been shaved off in order to treat the burns on her head.
"Go away," she pleaded. "Go away… Please. Please, don't look at me."
Cris moved to her and kneeled beside her.
"No, please," she said, trying to hide her face from him.
Now he had his good arm around her and was gently pulling her to him.
"No," she said.
"Stacy… Stacy… please don't." His voice was a whisper, and despite the fact that the explosion had scarred her, the mere act of holding her took away the ache that had been living inside him since they'd been separated.
"No, please go," she said, with tears in her eyes.
"Never again," he said softly. "I can't let you go. I love you," he said.
She pushed him away. "How can you love this?" she said, turning toward him.
"Because real beauty is on the inside. I know how much I loved Kennidi, and in the end, her tumors were everywhere. And still she was the most beautiful person I ever knew… until you. Only one thing will make me go. Look at me and tell me you don't love me."
"Please, Cris."
"Then tell me."
She looked at him with tears in her eyes, and she shook her head. "I can't," she said, "but this will never work."
"I've already had my Golden Boy life. Guess what? It didn't work. This is what I want. I love you. I want to make my life with you."
She was laughing and crying all at once, then he held her close.
"They say after the grafts take and the hair grows back, and the-"
"Shhhh, none of that matters. I've come a long way," he said softly. "I still have a lot to learn and a long way to go… But one thing I'm sure of: This is where it all starts. I've finally found the beginning."