“I look ridiculous”,Sarah gazed at the yellow mess atop her head; she tried to dye her short fro platinum blonde but it came out yellow and amateur.
”I have to shave it”, she sighed.
Walking into her barbershop, hoodie covering up her mistake, her embarrassment was high. Don’t look at me, don’t attract attention to yourself, she told herself, OMG, they’re looking at me
Mirada, her stylist, looked at Sarah and paused the cut she doing to talk with her. ”Hey, Sarah.What’s up?”
” I can of did an… I messed up”,she replied, pulling back her hoodie just enough so her stylist knew what Sarah had done.
”Dang”,Mirada said to herself,”Well, as soon as I’m done with her, I-“
”Can I just wait til closing, I don’t want these other people to see”,Sarah blurted quietly.
”Sure”,her stylist okayed,”Just sit and try to keep calm”
”Thank you”,Sarah took a seat on the waiting bench.
Mirada finished the cut she had present, a bob with highlights. A man, jolly and big, sat beside Sarah as Mirada rang up her client.
”I’m ready for you, Bob”,Mirada said, gesturing to the chair.
”This young lady can go first”,Bob replied,”She was here before me”
”Bob, she has a reservation for a later during the day”,Mirada explained.
”Then why come so early?”Bob didn’t understand.
Sarah rose,”It’s fine”
”Sarah”,Mirada said softly,”You said”
” I know what I said”,Sarah replied, something snapped in her; she just wanted to get rid of this hair.
”Okay”,shrugged her stylist, fitting the girl into the chair.
With a deep breath, Sarah removed her hood, her blonde mess was exposed for the world to gawk at. But no laughs came from anyone’s mouth.
”So, how’d you want to do this?”Mirada asked, dusting the blonde mass.
”To the skin”,Sarah replied.
Mirada nodded,”Okay”,flipping the cape onto Sarah’s body and spreading it on her wholly.
”To the skin?”Mirada asked to confirm.
”All off”,Sarah sealed the deal, a flick sounded and a whirling hum followed it.
Mirada wasted no time, mowing off the blonde, Sarah’s chocolate skin showing as it was stripped away.
”Is this the first time you’ve had your head shaved?”Mirada small-talked.
”No”,Sarah responded with, the clippers rounding her crown,” I just wanna get this stuff shaved off so I can get to growing it back to hopefully not do this again”
”I hear ya”,Mirada placed her hand atop the shorn cranium to tilt Sarah’s head down.The clippers ran up the back of her head to just flick off the blonde menace.
While her head was moved left, a gorgeous lady in a sundress and rocking a big Afro with hoop earrings came in. Mirada had to stop and stair as did her client. Bob smiled at the new-comer as she took a seat near him.
While a brush swirled her brown head in white cream, Sarah looked at this girl. The razor made quick work of her left-over blondeness and Mirada removed the cape.
Sarah got up and stared at this girl, she smiled at her; Bob stood up and patted his pants,”Guess it’s my turn”
Mirada welcomed him into the chair and Sarah was at the threshold of the shop when she turned back to stare at the beauty.
She was looking at her phone, eyes shifted from it to see the bald girl staring at her. Sarah tried to leave but the girl quickly got up to stop her.
”I caught ya staring”, she said,”You like what you see?”
”Very”,Sarah replied,”May I?”
”Buy me dinner?”she dealed.
”For you, absolutely”,Sarah replied. The lady smiled and took Sarah’s hand and placed it into her hair, Sarah felt how soft the curls felt in her palm.”It’s so soft”,Sarah said.
”I know, right”,she smiled,”Makes it all the more tragic that I want it shaved off”
”What!”Sarah almost screamed,”But it’s so-“
”Yeah, yeah”,she replied,”But over the years, I realized this ain’t for me. And seeing you bald makes it worth it”
Sarah blushed,”You really think I’m pretty?”
”Girl”,she said,”You’re smokin’ hot”
”Guess that’s it for me”,Bob said, getting up out of the chair and took his coat and hat, ”Have a good one, ladies”,he waved as he left the shop.
Sarah looked at Mirada gesturing her new friend to the chair.”My turn I guess”,the new girl said, turning to Sarah,”Care to watch?”
Sarah only nodded, taking a seat on the sofa as her friend sat in the chair for the barber.
”So, what’s your name love?”,Mirada asked, turning the chair to the mirror,”And what’re we doing today?”
”Well, my name is Celé”,the girl introduced herself,”And we’re losing it all”
”To the skin?”
”Hey, babe”,Celé called to Sarah,”To the skin, right?”
The girl was shocked that she called her babe and butterflies began fluttering in her belly. She blushed, then smiled, Sarah arose from the sofa and came over to the chair. She ran her hand through the thick, tight curls and answered,”I do like you smooth”
”Okay”,Mirada nodded and got to work, buzzing off the fro. Watching it fall made Sarah fall deeper in love with this girl, she really was shaving it off for her.
The floor was littered with clumps of natural curls and those that fell on the cape were played with by Celé, the smile on face as she took apart the hair was so cute, Sarah thought.
Mirada dusted off the black tufts from her client and made sure all the hair was shorn with the clippers.A thick dollop of shaving cream was spread on the shorn head as the two friends had their way with words to plan the date.” I do like sea-food”,Celé said, spying the razor in Mirada’s hand.
”I don’t”,Sarah confessed,”I can’t bring myself to swallow shell or fin. How about Mexican?”
”Spicy”,Celé smiled seductively, pausing her shaving to look deeply into Sarah’s eyes,”Just like you”
Sarah, in that moment, was awake and alive. She had found someone special.Celé had made Sarah her girlfriend without the girl doing anything. Celé was even shaving her head, which she was going to do anyway, just to match a girl she barely knew.
