The pain underneath the bandages was unbearable, although the doctor said there would be none. When she mentioned it to him at her first review, he was surprised to hear her complaint. The bandages were carefully removed, revealing an unusual wound, which the doctor attended to immediately.
"This is something we didn't anticipate," said Doctor Fordjuor to Amihere. "She has been through a lot of trauma, I can tell. Make her forget all of it if you can." Why is he telling me this now? Of all the things he could say, why should he elect me to take care of his patient. His patient? That sounded strange in his ears. He was closer to her than the doctor was. He had better accept the challenge and stop complaining.
"I thought you doubted my abilities?" he asked.
"After all I've witnessed, I've changed my mind about you."
Thank goodness! He thought. "She has a long way to go. It's going to take several years to find herself once again." Amihere suddenly fell into a pensive mood.
"I'm ready to go all the way," he said.
"I wish you the best of luck. You'll need a lot of it but I know you so well. You'll make it through."
It was very disturbing to know that the wounds were taking too long to heal beyond the stipulated time. Doctor Fordjuor, who was unusually in a hurry to unveil her new face to find out whether he had been able to give her a more beautiful one was more disappointed than anyone else. Mamle waited and waited and so did Amihere.
"What's happening?" Mamle asked Doctor Fordjuor.
"Unfortunately, we don't know yet. We might have to conduct a few tests to find out the reason why. Don't be anxious. Everything will be alright."
"I wish I wouldn't be, doctor. This is really disturbing." Amihere held her hands.
"No matter what happens, I'll be right beside you," he said." We're in this together."
"Thank you Amihere," she replied." I don't know what I did to deserve this kindness."
Amihere kept running to and fro the laboratory, the doctor's office and Mamle's ward. Perhaps, because of his resolution, he never grew weary of doing so.
"Why did I ever allow you to do this to me?" she said to him. "You could have been free by now had it not been because of this." As she pointed to her face, Amihere gently brought her hands back down.
"I haven't started blaming you yet and I don't think I ever will," he said "This is for our own good and I'm sure posterity will vindicate us." Trusting him made her feel better. All was not yet lost. At least, she had come back alive from the theatre.
The laboratory results finally revealed the discrepancy in her system. Mamle had a blood condition that did not allow for wounds to heal quickly, known as haemophilia. Had they known about this earlier, they would have been more cautious than ever and might not have proceeded with the procedure. Mamle's premonitions were right after all. All the questions she was asking should have led them to conduct tests on her, yet, they were only concerned with the results. The surgeon apologised profusely for the major failure. Amihere secretly blamed himself for putting Mamle through all this. The counselling team were at their best keeping both Mamle and Amihere sane throughout the waiting period which was not going to be an easy time for any of the parties involved.
"Why didn't you tell me about this condition early on?" the doctor queried Mamle.
"I never knew about it, doctor," she replied.
"It's not your fault anyway. I should have done a thorough background check. Now, I must let you know that it's going to take a little bit longer to heal." Mamle was distraught although no one could tell her emotions from her face.
"How much longer do I have to wait?" she asked
"A few more months, I think," Doctor Fordjuor replied.
"Oh no!" she exclaimed. "I have to work to recover all I've lost."
"Perhaps this will slow you down a bit. You must be wearing yourself out. I believe the gentleman over here is ready to help with that," Doctor Fordjuor replied.
"No…I can't always be a burden on people," she said, swallowing the words which would have ensued. I want to do it my own way. I can't trust people with my life any longer,
"Don't be too hard on yourself," he replied. "Perhaps this experience will help you change your mind, my lady." Pulling a chair to her bedside, he whispered into her ears what she dreaded all along to hear. Had she not been successful in hiding her feelings? Or perhaps it was because he was a man, he could tell from her actions what was really going on in her mind?
"You have met the kindest of all men," he said. "I grew to understand this fact the hard way; that in the midst of all this wicked and cruel world, there still are some kind-hearted, loving human beings who refuse to be corrupted by this fallen world." Wicked and cruel indeed! Reminiscing about how her friends had caused a bitter separation between herself and Dome.
"Are you telling me your own story?" she asked, snapping out of her negative thoughts.
"I do tell everyone who wants to hear, so they will give themselves a chance every time they fail at something."
"You think I should give myself a chance?" she asked.
"Of course, you must, my lady. It will do you a lot of good," he replied.
"I do need a lot of it. That one I do know," she replied, reminiscing once again. Her works had kept her sane so far and Amihere had been of good help so far.
Amihere made it a habit to be reading to her from the book of healing from one well-acclaimed therapist.
You are not to blame for anything that has happened to you, so stop torturing yourself with guilt.
You can always start all over again, however difficult it may seem.
You are beautiful if you see yourself so.
No one can take away your dignity until you allow them to.
One day, his efforts paid off as he kept reading. Mamle opened her mouth and recited the favourite words after him. When he peered at her, her neck was upright; with her head supporting it proportionately.
Recovering
A voice was calling out his name from a distance; yet, Amihere was not sure yet where it was coming from. The bandage had surely covered part of Mamle's lips. This was the last one on her face and soon, she would be able to see her new face. Amihere could not tell where the tiny voice was coming from. Could it be coming from the well-wishers trying to catch his attention from afar? No! He had kept this particular mission a secret. No one would be looking for him nor for Mamle as his neighbours had done before they burnt down his house. He peered around and looked back at her. It was Mamle.
"Oh my goodness!" he exclaimed. "You can talk!"
"Yes I can," she replied. "How did you expect me to relate to you when you had me all bandaged up like a Mummy?"
"Sorry about that," he said. "You needed it." Utterly engulfed in reading to her, Amihere had forgotten to relieve her of the bandage since the nurse had not yet arrived.
"What did you do to me?" she whimpered.
"Just what you needed to get away from your sorrows," he replied.
"You didn't confer with me. I need my old face back!"
"Fortunately, this is the last bandage. I'm grateful you didn't complain early on." Seeing his determination, it was no use arguing with him anymore. It would be tantamount to ingratitude to continue to do so. These were one of the few days when she got into one of those bad moods.
Amihere wheeled Mamle into the courtyard for some fresh air, granting her the perfect opportunity to feel the sun peering through her soul to the place where it hurt the most. It was as if it was taking her pain away. If it would make her feel better, he would do this every morning. Obviously, she loved every second he took her out into the open. With every deep breath she took, he wished her well and muttered a few words of prayer for her recovery although he did not believe much in prayer. A layer or two of dead cells on her face made way for rejuvenated skin as the wheelchair moved to the beat of the song he was humming.
I do not know what I would do without this man. Were the words coming from her innermost soul? Could Amihere hear her words? Sitting beside her, he thought of the life he could give her after she recovered fully as if he was truly communicating deeply with her.
"I feel better already!" she exclaimed. "Can we go and see the doctor? Amihere?" Amihere's thoughts suddenly ran wild like an eagle that had just spotted its prey.
"He said we should wait for his call," he replied. "And that's what we're doing". Living a new life would not be easy, yet they would take it one step at a time. Mamle's upkeep and recovery were his total responsibility. What life could he offer her? It would be too rash to consider this so soon, yet, the ideas would give him no respite like a marketing company shoving goods down one's throat with numerous adverts. In the meantime, no one could deny that Mamle had a perfect body. How could she make good use of it? What kind of personality would match her body? Mamle was somehow reserved. Howbeit, with a little boost of her confidence, she could gain some boost in her self-esteem as well. If that did not happen, her current low self-esteem would not be able to carry her body and beauty and the great opportunity he was seeking. Would she be up for it and agree to show herself to the world? First things first. To begin work on her new identity would be a step in a good direction. What if his idea worked out perfectly? A star would have been reborn. He leered at her once again. This would be the perfect opportunity to create an image the world would be ready to receive in their minds like in telenovelas. Mamle would be the main character. He would be the knight in shining armour. This could be a perfect marketing strategy for the new star. This was his field and his success depended on how well he executed his task. Mamle would have a Public Relations Officer who would be her mouthpiece. What if some paparazzi chased her and coerced her to answer their numerous witty questions? That would be the worst disaster ever, even worse than when the twin towers fell flat. Would she be ready with appropriate answers for curious minds who were never content and would keep chasing her to ask more and cause more damage whilst they enjoyed doing so? Would people be able to tell the difference between the old Mamle and the new one? At least, she had a new look now. Oh! That reminds me. Doctor Fordjuor spoke about finding a new name for her. We haven't thought about that yet. Without it, she could be at risk of exposure in a very damaging way. For three good years, Mamle and Amihere brainstormed over a new name and identity for her. Whilst they were at it, she gained admission into a school that would train her in etiquette. True to his concerns, she was hesitant. Howbeit, he didn't give up on her. In the meantime, she kept working on her creative skills and even printing out some of her artworks on some plain fabrics. Suddenly, their patience paid off! Amihere finally had a good idea.
"Why not model in your own clothes and take photoshoots?" he asked.
"That will be a good idea," she said. "Wait! Is it not the same as modelling?" saying the word with her eyes open wide as if she had been asked to spell the word. "Am I going to show off my body or my face?"
"Both," he said.
"But you know I can't sell my body for money?"
"Come off it, Mamle. That's not what I'm talking about. Don't get me wrong," he replied, embarrassed that she could not interpret his idea rightly, and regretting he had not made himself clearer early on. "You can't do that and I will not allow you to do that."
"You are going to be the face of a designer, and that is, yourself, for now. Later, you might employ others to help you. You'll be a human manikin."
"I may need to practice a little more because my face feels stiff."
"That shouldn't be a problem," he replied. To appear to the world once again in the full glare of all humankind frightened Mamle every time it came to mind. "To begin, you may not need much skill yet, I'm glad the training you're receiving will help you a lot."