1269_UgliesFreeBook

278 Scott Westerfeld
“Listen, Tally. That’s not what’s important to me. What’s
inside you matters a lot more.”
“But first you see my face. You react to symmetry, skin
tone, the shape of my eyes. And you decide what’s inside
me, based on all your reactions. You’re programmed to!”
“I’m not programmed. I didn’t grow up in a city.”
“It’s not just culture, it’s evolution!”
He shrugged in defeat, the anger draining from his
voice. “Maybe some of it is.” He chuckled tiredly. “But you
know what first got me interested in you?”
Tally took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. “What?”
“The scratches on your face.”
She blinked. “The what?”
“These scratches.” He softly touched her cheek again.
She shook away the electric feeling his fingers left
behind. “That’s nuts. Imperfect skin is a sign of a poor
immune system.”
David laughed. “It was a sign that you’d been in an
adventure, Tally, that you’d bashed your way across the
wild to get here. To me, it was a sign that you had a good
story to tell.”
Her outrage faded. “A good story?” Tally shook her
head, a laugh building inside her. “Actually, my face got
scratched up back in the city, hoverboarding through some
trees. At high speed. Some adventure, huh?”
“It does tell a story, though. As I thought the first
time I saw you—you take risks.” His fingers wound into a