PART SEVEN — WHAT WAS TRULY BEAUTIFUL
On the morning Liam wore his wig to school for the first time, Noella invited us to meet outside the entrance.
The wig was dark brown and neatly cut above his ears. Liam kept touching it, smoothing it down, then pulling his hand away as if afraid he might damage it.
Maya’s own hair had begun growing past her chin.
They stood together near the front steps while students passed around them.
Liam glanced at Maya. “Do I look weird?”
She studied him with the seriousness she usually reserved for difficult homework.
Then she shook her head.
“You look like Liam.”
His shoulders relaxed.
They walked into the building side by side.
A few children looked. No one laughed.
That evening, Maya sat on the floor between my knees while I brushed her hair. The task that had once taken twenty minutes was finished in less than one.
