Inked

She was too young to realize people were shallow. They couldn’t see past the bold lines and bright colors on her skin.

“What’d you do to yourself?!” her mother had yelped.

In the bath, she reached for the bar of soap, watched the colors swirl down the drain. Toweling off in front of the mirror, she grinned at her gap-toothed reflection.

“All clean!” she called to her mother.

68 words