Center of attention (Commission) (Patreon)

Clara stretched out on the concrete ledge, the afternoon sun warming her back as she leaned against the palm tree. She had her prosthetic on today and it felt both strange and strangely reassuring to see it stretched out in front of her instead of the empty space she’d gotten used to. With her remaining foot, she tapped the smooth surface of the artificial leg, a small habit she’d developed without noticing. A check. A reminder. A confirmation that it was there.

The park wasn’t busy, but it wasn’t empty either. And she’d started to notice something: people looked at her now.

Not with pity, the hospital had been full of that. Out here, the looks were different. Curious. Quick. Sometimes lingering. Eyes would slide from her face to the prosthetic, then back up, like they were trying to solve a puzzle without being caught staring.

She’d assumed at first it was just novelty. But a late-night search on her laptop had opened a door into a corner of the world she hadn’t known existed, forums, blogs, comments, people openly admitting their fascination for amputees. Devotees. A whole community of them.

It should have creeped her out. Maybe a part of her expected it to. But instead she’d found herself sitting back, thinking about it with a slow, amused grin. Losing her leg had taken plenty from her, but attention? That it seemed to multiply.

She flicked some ash off her cigarette and let her gaze drift across the park. A jogger slowed down a little as he passed. A couple pretended not to glance her way but still did. Even a kid tugged at his parent’s sleeve, whispering something before being shushed.

Clara didn’t shy away from any of it. If anything, she basked in it. The stares rolled off her like warm sunlight. She felt… visible. Not as the girl who’d lost something, but as someone worth looking at.

She nudged her prosthetic again with her toes and allowed herself a small, smug smile.

Little did she know that she was about to get even more attention.