I took the rose carefully by the stem.

I lowered myself to one knee so my eyes were perfectly level with hers.

“He brought me home too, sweetie,” I told her, and I genuinely meant it.

That night, alone in my small, spartan quarters on the ship, I took off my uniform shirt.

I stood in front of the small metal mirror above the sink and looked over my shoulder.

I looked at the thick, jagged, pale scars crisscrossing my back.