MISSING: Chapter 6 (II)

MISSING
Chapter 6: Es muss sein (Pt. II)

She develops underarm hair in the first grade! This is documented in her baby book: “Date: September, 1991; Illness: Hormone Development; Comments: FHS (Follicle Stimulating Hormone) = 2 standard deviations above the normal limits, developing secondary sex characteristics early.” She starts shaving her armpits in about second grade; she is always very self-conscious of her underarms. She sees a poster somewhere that always stays in her mind: a pinup, almost, of a swimsuit-clad Baywatch babe. The suit is a red one-piece or a yellow bikini, or maybe there are multiple pinups. The model hugs a long surfboard with one arm. Her underarm on that side is completely exposed. To her first-grade perspective, this is more intimate an exposure than she has ever comprehended. She marvels at the perfection of this model’s clean underarm. Is it airbrushed? She has no hair! She shaves, but she must also have no hair – there is no stubble. She is transfixed. She stares. She has found this secret, a small patch of beauty that is exposed only to her. Only she appreciates this – and she appreciates this beauty more because of its singularity. This model is hers. This clear patch of underarm: to die for.