Gifts of Magi
He cut his hair.
The veil that hid his scars.
The crimson shield that announced his shame but masked his vulnerability.
He sheared his defenses away for a person without a name.
Someone who looked at him and understood what they saw.
Someone who came back.
He shed his mask.
Three tiny slivers of metal that hid the monster within,
And the smile that hid everything else.
He removed it for a person who saved more than his life.
Someone who looked at him and understood what they saw.
Someone who winked when they should have flinched.