[Fiona's POV]
"Who is dumb enough to want to cross me?" Heath roared at his phone; not only was doctor-patient confidentiality breached, but this had also doubled my then non-existent insecurities.
I calmly looked at the stitched face for the first time in the mirror. I didn't believe I looked hideous, at least not hideous enough to be considered a monster.
But once this was for sure, I was no longer considered beautiful according to the modern beauty standards, and maybe that is why people find this change very interesting.
Maybe they wonder if a man of a stature like Heath will be willing to still be with a woman who wasn't as beautiful as she was when they met.
I had wondered how I looked walking beside Heath before, and I wonder if now there will be a difference that is enough to have people talk behind our backs.
'That beautiful man is with that hideous woman' is what they will say, and then they will giggle amongst themselves. The ladies would pridefully boast of how they could steal my man, and the men would ridicule him for not being a woman of the same beauty as himself.
And soon we will fight constantly because of my insecurities, and he will fall out of love with my face, then my body, then my soul, and he will leave and find an even prettier woman fitting for a man of his caliber.
"Fee!" I heard Heath yell, "Are you okay? Why are you crying?"
He gently tugs me away from the mirror, "Come on, Fiona Lennon, you are not letting those bums get to you, are you?"
I shake my head no while continuing to cry like a fool, "I will deal with them, okay," he tells me, kissing my forehead.
"Do… do you think I am beautiful?" I say. I look straight into his eyes and wait for him to tell me not anymore. He smiles at me happily.
"You will always be beautiful, Fiona Lennon," he says so confidently.
"Even with the scar that will form?" He chuckled again and looked me in the eyes; he looked amused.
"I will repeat what I said because it seems you were too emotional to hear me the first time," he says. He takes my hand before kissing it, "You will always be beautiful, Fiona Lennon."
"Are you still sexually attracted to me?" I said.
"Lord! Woman! Of course, I am. Didn't you hear me moaning about your name this morning?" He says," Come on, Fee, you are not really thinking that you are suddenly not the sexiest woman alive, are you?"
"Well, with the scar on my face.... I am sure many wouldn't be as attracted to me as they used to be."
"So what? Are you dating them or me? Why should you care about their d!cks, mine still stands instantly when I see you, or hear your voice, or think of you, that is all that matters, screw everyone else."
"I am sure a lot of people wouldn't mind screwing you if you ask nicely," I joke, making him burst out laughing.
"Believe me, only one woman in this world is allowed to screw me, and she does it so well," he says, "Come on, cheer up, you don't have to care about what others think of you, only my opinion matters."
"You sound possessive," I sarcastically say.
"Well, my woman keeps worrying if other men would still salivate over her since she has a scar now, and I don't like it," he grumbles before pouting.
"Come on, Heath, I said sorry," I plead.
"Wait till your face is all healed up, you are going to work overtime to compensate me for this," he gently pecks my lips, then the tip of my wound on my face, "I love you."
"Heath…..."
"Don't dispute me, just… just kiss me, okay," he says before passionately kissing my lips.
I was able to recover both mentally and physically with the month off work that Gian had given me, but today marks the first day at work since my hideous scar, and it scared me how everyone would react.
Yes, the people around me were all supportive and loving, but I am not sure how everyone else at work would react.
"Fiona, are you ready? I will drive you," I hear Heath shout. I take a deep breath before getting out of the bathroom.
Yes, their opinions on me probably don't matter, but has a person ever been pricked and not bled?
"I am ready," I tell him.
"Okay, let's go," he says, walking out. I slowly follow behind me with nothing but all the bad things my colleagues might say about me today.
The drive to the office felt short. Heath was telling a story. I would assume it was to cheer me up, but I don't think it was. Heath was just so ignorant of the fact that no one would respect me like they used to in the office.
"You will be okay, right? I can come work with you until you are okay if you want," he says, "It will also create an opportunity for us to work together."
"No, it is okay, I will be fine. I have worked here most of my career, and I will manage," I affirmed to him.
"You sure have a funny way of showing it," he says, "fine, I will walk you to your office then."
The walk to the office felt dreadful; everyone looked at me, some with sympathy, some with disgust, but most with confusion.
But like normal days, most greeted me with a smile, with a few pleasant welcome-backs. Maybe I had overthought this whole thing; that is what I thought. Guess the colleagues were not the ones I should have worried about.
"I am sorry, you will have to talk to Mr. Easton to reschedule this meeting," Mr. Apostrophe shouts.
"But sir, you have been doing this project with me directly; what is causing you to change your mind about this?" I asked, confused.
He looked at me as if I had just asked a ridiculous question, "Little girl, are you sure you are Fiona Lennon, whom I have been working with?"
"Of course, I am, sir," I said firmly.
"Then you must have lost your brain when you attained that scar," he condescendingly said, "The main attraction of our company is appearances; the reason I was okay with a mere secretary running this project instead of Mr. Easton himself was because you had somewhat of a decent appearance."
"I believe the reason you appointed me was because of the three successful campaigns that I have singlehandedly done for your company," I angrily replied.
"Well, whatever the reason, you are no longer fit to run my campaigns, tells Mr. Easton, I want you off the project and to schedule a meeting with me directly."
I wanted to scream at him, tell him how ludicrous he was sounding, but I had no standing; Mr. Apostrophe's business brought more money for our company than many other companies could combine.
"I will let him know, sir," I say, gritting my teeth in anger, day one, and I already have clients be brainless about my scar.
"Are you okay?" I hear Gian chime from the door.
"Sir? I am okay."
"I met Mr. Apostrophe on his way out; he seemed to have been out of it," he says.
"He requested that I get taken off the project."
"What? That is ludicrous, you have been doing so well," he says angrily, "I will talk with him."
"Thank you, sir," I say, defeated, "but sir, aren't you supposed to be with Clover right now?"
"Oh… Hea…... I mean, someone called me that I was needed in the office," he said. "Clover gives back next month, and I was thinking of hiring someone part-time to stand for me. Do you want to stand in for me or should I…..."
"Clients already want me off their projects; it is better if you get someone else," I say.
"Okay, well... I saw Heath's car in the parking lot. Is he here to see you?" he sneakily asked.
"Oh… no, I haven't heard from him."
"Maybe you should go check him out and see what he wants. I mean, it is almost time to knock him off, and it will help you get your mind off things."
I take a deep breath, maybe he is tired of a hideous woman like myself in his office, "Of course, sir," I say before taking my things and leaving.
[Meanwhile – Third person POV]
Heath waits anxiously in the car for Fiona to come out. He had called Gian to come help, as he was not sure how he would break the news to her already.
This is going to hurt her, but if he keeps pretending, more damage would be done, so it would be better to rip the bandages off quickly.
He stared at his phone with Gian's text explaining she was on her way; he had already made this aware to her friends, as he knew she would need more emotional support after the conversation.