"Oh Mrs. Potato Head tell me
Is it true that pain is beauty?
Does a new face come with a warranty?
Will a pretty face make it better?" ~ Mrs Potato Head, Melanie Martinez

"It's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then." ~ Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll

———

She tapped her foot nervously. The door was just a few feet away so she could easily get up and walk away. No, she shouldn't. It was too late to turn back now. The appointment had been made and now she was there. Though she could always pretend to be sick and just reschedule...

The taste of blood filled June's mouth as she hit the ground, her teeth clamping down on her bottom lip.

"Stand up, ugly! Come on! Get up!"

There was a creak as a door swung open and a short woman dressed in scrubs stepped into the waiting room. "June?" She called out, reading the name on her clipboard.

Stiff as a board, she stood and made her way towards the friendly looking nurse. A numb feeling came over her as she followed the white coat down the winding hallways.

June's back was pressed against the bright yellow lockers as my eyes frantically searched for a way out.

"You're not leaving, until I say you can leave."
"You scared, four-eyes?"

"Do you have any questions?" The man's voice brought her back to reality.

She stopped fiddling with the paper sheets that covered the bed and shook her head quickly.

"Okay, then. I guess we're ready." The doctor stood up and the nurse began rushing around the room, doing what she was trained to do. Moments later, a needle was stuck into her arm. Her eyelids grew heavy as she sunk into blackness.

"Why are you crying, dear?"
"None of the other kids like me. They call me ugly and fat." June said with a sniffle as she wiped her nose on her sleeve.
"That doesn't make it true. And who cares if those other kids don't like you?"
"I do!" She wailed. "I wish I could just change what I look like."
"Well, once you do, you can't go back. Why would you want to anyways? You're beautiful just the way you are."

She studied herself in the mirror, her fingers slowly tracing across the smooth skin of her new face. The new June was prettier and younger looking. Everything she had always wanted to be.

She blinked and felt a single tear slip down her cheek. Quickly dabbing it away, she took a deep breath and forced the feelings down.

She was a different person now, and she couldn't go back.

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