Natalia stepped out of the bath, skin still warm and faintly glistening. She had washed thoroughly... every trace of sweat, every lingering mark of two days of fevered sleep scrubbed away until the water ran clear.
A thick towel hung forgotten over her arm, but she did not reach for it. She walked straight to the tall standing mirror.
The moment her eyes met the glass, her breath caught.
Her lips parted, but no sound came out.
She took an unconscious step closer, as if the reflection might vanish if she stayed too far away. For several seconds she did nothing but stare... eyes wide, chest rising too fast, a faint tremor running through her fingers.
Then she blinked hard, shut her eyes, and opened them again.
The same woman was still there.
Natalia let out a shaky, almost disbelieving laugh under her breath. Her hand rose on its own... first to her cheek, then to her collarbone, then down the line of her waist, as if she needed to feel the changes to believe them.
