Emily
I was in love. In love with a guy whom I’d seen a couple of times at the pub where I liked spending Saturday nights with friends. He was just gorgeous and I wanted so badly to catch his attention. But I was too shy to approach him. I was only dreaming to touch him and feel his warmth. My best friend Emma, on the other hand, was extroverted and ready for new acquaintances. Seeing my struggles, she offered to help me. I was observing how easily she came up to him and just struck up a conversation. “Why can’t I be like her?” I was asking myself. After ten minutes, which seemed eternity to me, she came back with some information. “His name’s Oliver” she started. “And he’s a hairdresser. He runs his own salon. You can visit him and get a haircut” she smiled. “Do you know the adress?” I asked with excitement.
Two days later I was determined to go there. Not for a haircut however, just to see him. I had waist-length hair, not particularly thick and quite damaged, but anyway I didn’t feel like cutting it. I liked to feel it on my body. I reached Oliver’s salon with my heart pounding. I just wanted to look at him at work and admire his beautiful face, unnoticed. I came to the window and peeked inside. I didn’t see anyone. There weren’t any customers at that moment so I shied away from the window, determined to wait for someone to turn up. I didn’t even think he could spot me. But he was there, fully aware of my presence, probably amused with my efforts. The door suddenly opened and Oliver stood there smiling. At this sight I felt my heart was in my mouth. “Come inside” he started, “I’m free now”. “But I…” I stammered out ” …”I don’t want a haircut.” I felt I was turning bright red. “Come on, I think you really need it” he smiled again, scanning my hair. I felt ashamed. He was standing so close to me. I could see his face, merry eyes and well-maintaned hair. And hear his voice for the first time. After a while I found myself sitting in front of a mirror, covered with a cape. I still didn’t want to cut my hair but it was too late to escape. Oliver ran through it with his fingers and gave it an unfavorable look. “You haven’t had a haircut for a long time, have you?” I was so scared I wasn’t able to speak. “Shoulder-length will be perfect” he made a decision for me. When he was touching my hair like that I knew there was no turning back. My heart was racing so much I believed he might hear it. I saw him reach for scissors and felt nervousness and excitement at the same time. “You’ll look great, I promise” he said smiling, seeing my hesitant look. Then he started snipping. The sight of my hair sliding down the cape and falling onto the floor sent shivers down my spine. His gentle touch and the sound of the scissors, unexpectedly made me feel relaxed. “He knows what to do” I thought. “I need to trust him.” The final effect really surprised me. “Much better”, he concluded, styling my new hair. “But…”, he looked at me intently, “I guess you should go even shorter.” “What do you mean by shorter?” I asked, feeling goosebumps all over my body. Oliver sent me a mischievous smile. “A boyish cut. It would look amazing on you.” No matter how much I liked him, I couldn’t imagine myself with short hair and this time I was ready to protest. “No way, that would be too much for me. I like it as it is now”, I said touching my hair. But his hypnotising eyes were looking at me in such a way, I just couldn’t move. “You should go for it”, he continued .”Girls with short hair are really sexy. Trust me please.” I was just staring at him, completely stunned. I felt as if he put a spell on me and I was ready to let him do whatever he wanted. He grabbed clippers and started to cut the back of my head. I closed my eyes, feeling the cool air on my neck. The sound of buzzing was echoing in the salon. When I opened my eyes for a moment I saw more hair scattered on the cape and the floor. Suddenly I felt I didn’t mind, I only wanted him to be so close. I guess he noticed I started to enjoy the process cause he took my hand and put it on my freshly cut nape. “It’s so soft now, isn’t it?”, he said dreamily. “Then he took the scissors again to cut the rest of my hair. He was so focused. I was observing my transformation and our eyes met in the mirror for a moment. I felt another thrill of excitiment. When he finished I couldn’t believe he really did it. My hair was only a few centimeters long. I wasn’t sure if I liked my new look but the sensation of having short hair was kind of exhilarating. “What do you think?” Oliver seemed to be smug, “cause I really love it. You look great.” “I need to get used to it”, I smiled at him. At that moment I plucked up the courage and decided to tell him the truth. “Oliver”, I started shakily and saw him looked amazed. “How do you know my name?”, he asked.”I saw you a few times in the pub”, I started to explain. “You talked to my friend and gave her the address of your salon. I wanted to meet you again.” “What a story”, he looked really surprised. “Anyway, I’m glad you came. Cutting your hair was a pleasure. You look so beautiful”, he said stroking my short hair. I looked in the mirror once again and thought he was right. I looked different but not bad. My cut hair lying on the floor made me feel thrilled again. “Do you have any plans for the weekend?”, he asked smiling. And then I knew it was the beginning of something wonderful.
