Find Beauty In Her Scars-A Burn Victim

"I'm fine,"she said,a million times over.Never believing herself for a single moment.
She was not expecting it.Nobody does.
One fine evening,she went out with a friend.It was a casual walk just upto the gate of the college,just like any other day.Her friend pestered her to come across the road and accompany her till the shop.Her instincts told her something was wrong yet she pushed them aside and went anyway. So much for the so called "sixth sense" women have.
They hung around for a few minutes,drinking soda and getting their recharges done.It must have been like 7pm and they finally started crossing back to the college gate,discussing about their work.She heard the sound of a bike engine revved up and the screech of tyres as somebody whizzed past them.She thought she heard the rider shout something out to her. Seconds later her arm started burning with a pain so intense that she couldn't control her eyes from tearing up and shrieks of pain escaped her lips. Her friend ,shocked,looked at her arm and gasped. It was blotched red and her sleeve was damaged.She begged her friend,cried out to stop the pain and do something. The friend hailed a passing auto and rushed her to the hospital. People on the road kept wondering what happened.

"You are lucky,this was a very mild acid," said the doctor applying an ointment to her wounds.He was known to her and since it was an emergency,he offered to take care of the formalities. He asked her to turn around and checked her back.Nothing more than a few drops there. "It will take time to heal,you might have scars forever," he said in a grave tone.
She took the prescribed medicines and returned back.

"Are you ok?," he asked her over and over again on the phone.He was the love of her life.She could not put across her agony to him. "I'm fine",she said a million times,never believing it once. He was far away from her and as much as she needed him,she underplayed the whole incident,trying to keep him sane enough from losing his temper.Her misery came later.She was more concerned about the well-being of her loved ones.It had happened to her.She didn't want that for anyone.She wanted him safe.She did not want him to worry.She thought she could handle it.She could never have been more wrong.

A burn victim.That is what she turned into.She was not expecting it.She was nothing compared to the numerous women who suffered acid attacks to their faces and even their whole bodies.But she was one of them now. The trauma she underwent,the stinging pain in her arm,the way the acid hissed and burnt when it hit her skin,could anybody ever understand that?The agony in her shrieks,the fear inside her when she saw what happened,the look on her friend's face,the unending road to the hospital,would anyone kow what went through her mind?
It upended her in a day.She could not sleep freely,taking care all the time to keep her arm from brushing against fabric-it would only hurt her more.She could not take a shower properly,water tinged the burns more.She could not move her arm about or cover it up,it pained like a bitch.Every time she looked at herself in the mirror,all she saw was her red,burnt arm.The cooling sensation and the smell of ointment,the frequent visits to the doctor to keep her away from catching infections,the passive-aggressive behaviour,the hurt,the fear of stepping out on the street again became a part of her life.
She worried.Her arm was marred by scars.Forever.She wondered whether people would shy away from her in the future or what she could do to hide it somehow.She was conscious.Reading up on stories of other burn victims,she tried to learn how they coped up,how they tried to heal themselves and keep them going.
She wondered whether her friends would still take up her arm casually while crossing the road.She wondered whether her bestie would still buy her bracelets.She worried whether she'd still be beautiful in the eyes of her lover.She wondered whether he'd someday see the gory scars and feel repelled by it.
She ,now, saw herself through their eyes.
She is a burn victim.As much as she'd love to be strong and act like a hero,she will suffer breakdowns.You could not imagine the pain even if you wanted to,You could not take away from her what happened in that unfortunate moment.Least you could do is Not offer her sympathy,just be there for her when she needs you.She knows it is her misery and that within a few ays you wouldnt be bothered enough to ask.You have your own life and everybody else will forget about her and move on. Unluckily,she will always be stuck there,alone.Don't pick on her for living in a shell.She will take such a long time to get over the incident,It will be impossible to cope up.It won't leave her memory ever.Don't tell her to move on.It isn't easy when everyday she looks at the mirror and the burnt image stops her from forgetting the past.Don't expect her to love herself.She can't do that until you start loving her for what she is now.
Don't point out her scars. Find beauty in them.