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Her free hand reached foron h ot started…" I said, and taking a deep breath, I began "I’d just been shanked and was in the infir" I shook my head at the memory "Shit, I was in there for what felt like forever; a ton of guards and psychologists coet me to talk, to rat onin that place was to keep your damn mouth shut So I did I didn’t talk to no one, was constantly alone with hts It was laid up unable toshit You knohat I’d done in hts… and my family, what I’d done to the only three people who’d ever really gave a shit about ht aboute light, I suppose It was the first time in my life I’d been forced to lay there and think It’s real easy not to feel a dauilty about choices you’vesnow, you know, the usual"

Ally castat ht now, her perfect face placed on her fist, her face open and accepting of everything I was saying She was a fucking dreaed, and I lifted our joined hands to kiss at her soft skin

Staring down at her fingers, I continued "The ry I becary, Ally I couldn’t deal with all the htuilt, it was unbearable

"When I was physically getting better, one of the nurses as real good to ned them, and I told her it was aze darted to ned all these yourself?"

I nodded and Ally’s mouth dropped open "They’re so beautiful, so intricate"

I could actually feel ned most of Austin’s too"

Ally shook her head and sain and Ally leaned up to kiss ainstnew"

Pulling back, she re-took her place with her hand on her fist, her dark hair now brushed over to one side, falling over her shoulder And that was the shot That, right there, was the ie This was her at herthe nurse talked to you about your tattoos?"

Snapping back to the here-and-now, I said, "Yeah… erht, so, yeah, the nurse knew I could draw She told the docs, the shrink, and the next thing I know they’ve enrolled ram At first I was pissed I’d taken a business class and was doing okay Aust was proud of that, so I wanted to keep going But fro withinonfor the gang, that I hadn’t tried to find out what I could be good at Ten seconds in that roohed "A blessing in disguise"

"Yeah… I started drawing anything I could I was okay at sketching, shit at painting, but when the teacher, a guy called Daryl, brought in clay,clay sculptures Pouring allthe look on Daryl’s face when I’d finished the first proper piece "Daryl kept driving me more and more, until a few months later, he asked the warden if he could teach me how to sculpt marble I had no real interest in it But then one day, he brought e The very first thing I saas Antonio Canova’s--"

"Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss," Ally interrupted, her face all anireed, then frowned "You like it too?"

Passion flared in her dark eyes "It’s my second favorite marble sculpture of all time"

My eyes narrohen her face flushed with e in