Lira1802
Amy and Gloria are smart, young ladies in the Girl Scouts. They worked dutifully in order to earn more patches: rising up the ranks so to speak. Amy was rational and a the brain of the pair while Gloria was a certified saleswoman, willing to go anywhere to sell the cookies. The pair worked together well and sold many boxes of cookies. But they could always sell more.
One afternoon, Amy and Gloria were staring out to the west side, the bad part, of town. Gloria wanted to expand their sales but Amy was very hesitant to agree. Gloria’s skills in persuasion influenced her girl friend to override her cautious nature. These two girls took a deep breath and started to walk into the bad part of town.
At first, everything was normal but the girls couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched and or followed. The girls picked up their pace to head towards the nearest house but a voice halted their feet.
”Hey, little girls”,a sadistic, hissing voice said,”Whatcha selling?”
The girls dared not to turn around but they could describe the monster approaching behind them. Before it could reach them, a figure leaned out of a shop doorway and yelled,”Oi! Get away from them babies, you freak of nature!”
There was a shriek and then the girls heard the footsteps behind them seemingly disappear. Quickly, both girls turned round to see no one behind them. They turned back round to see the female figure standing before them.
”You babies were nearly snatched up”,the woman said. She was older lady, portly and tall. She had on a thin but long dress that covered her modestly. Her head was wrapped up in a scarf that tucked in snugly around her hairline. The face of hers was devoid of makeup, except for a little blush. With her steely and sharp eyes, the woman looked down at the girls with crossed arms,”Why did you think it was a good idea to come over here looking like this?”
Amy and Gloria looked at themselves. They were wearing the same uniform issued by their club: a white, button up t-shirt, a short green skirt, white socks fitted into sneakers, a green beret on top of their heads, and a green sash across their torsos. The only difference was that Amy had braided brunette hair while Gloria had red hair. Gloria piped up,”We wanted to sell more cookies, ma’am. Would you like some?”
The lady started to chuckle loudly,”If you two want to sell your cookies in this neighborhood. You better look professional and come prepared. Come along, now”
Not a moment later, the lady had each girl by the hand and led them into the shop. Inside, the lights illuminated the shop dimly but totally. There was a barber chair waiting to be used with a striped cape draped over its left armrest. A subtle smell of strawberry perfume wafted through the air, meeting the girls’ nostrils stealthily.
Gloria looked up at the lady who asked,”How about you take a seat on the bench”,she pointed with her chin to the bench on the opposite side of the room than the barber chair,”I’ll call you over when I’m done with Amy”
The girls were secretly shocked. They had not told this woman their names. Gloria did as she was asked, taking a seat on the bench, as Amy was brought over to the chair and was seated in it. Amy sat still in the chair as her beret was lifted off her head and put on a nearby hook as the woman said,”Yeah, you girls came here super underprepared. My girls know that people round here aren’t nice and will try to bring down your self-respect. I taught them to dress modestly when out among people and to never lose their self-respect and dignity”. The woman took the cape from the armrest and flipped it over Amy’s body before enclosing it around the girl’s neck.
”All my babies are very smart. They are all on top of their classes and never lose sight of themselves or others”,the woman stated proudly in a sort of humble way as she grabbed her scissors off the counter that was below the mirror. Amy felt herself rise in the chair as the woman quickly pumped up the chair while saying,”They are kind, respectful, modest, and good kids. If they ever have a problem they can’t handle, they always come to me for guidance. I knew them ever since their mamas brought them into my shop for their first shave”
”What?”Amy blurted but it was too late. The scissors were already closing down on the last strands of her braid. And then her braid was dangling in the palm of the lady. Amy’s eyes opened wide as her braid was dropped to the ground.
“I know it’s going to be a big change”,the woman ruffled the the ruggedly bobbed hair of Amy’s,”But girls your age need to realize that you’re growing up and that people are noticing that fact too. You have to protect yourself and let others know you are a proud young lady who won’t stand idle while they take advantage of you”
Amy couldn’t believe it as the woman grabbed the clippers from a drawer under the counter, plugged them in, and turned them on. The clippers hummed loudly as they woke up to go to work. Their handler maneuvered Amy’s head with her free hand, tilting it down a bit. Up and over, the clippers went on the girl’s head. Torrents of hair rained down quickly as the clippers worked dutifully. Not a hair was left unclipped when the clippers were paused.
”You are looking so much better”,the woman smiled as she put her hands on Amy’s stubbly head,”All we have to do is get you a clean shave”
So many thoughts ran through Amy’s head as it was caked with shaving cream. She wanted to, at least, tell the woman to stop but she looked scary so Amy just kept her mouth shut as the woman scraped off all the shaving cream from her head.
”Don’t you look pretty”,the woman gushed as she turned the chair to inspect her handiwork, feeling up Amy’s head as she did so,”A little powder would be nice, huh?”
Taking up a small box and opening its lid, the woman took up a dabber and applied white powder onto the girl’s head.
”Now aren’t you just a doll”,the woman put away the powder box and used a soft brush to massage the powder into Amy’s scalp,”Much better. Down you go”
The chair shrunk itself down in a jiffy as the woman undid the cape. Amy rubbed the back of her freshly shaven head as she dismounted the chair and looked down at all the dead hair of hers that had piled up around it. For some reason, Amy didn’t really know what, the girl felt more confident without all that thick, brunette hair weighing her down. She did not vocalize her thoughts to the woman who just shaved all her hair off but instead joined her sister in the scouts on the waiting bench.
Gloria was clutching onto her red hair tightly. She never wanted to have her head shaved like Amy but her sister convinced her to take a seat in the chair. The process was the same for Gloria, although a bit more nerve-wracking. Her red strands joined the brunette ones on the floor. All of it was swept away, leaving both girls without hair for the foreseeable future. The lady was pleased with the girls and said,”You girls are looking sharper by the hour. Now, all you need is some better clothes and you’ll be seat to go out onto the streets”
The girls smiled as the woman offered two new dresses and gave them a private place to change. Amy and Gloria incorporated some of their scout clothes into their new style. At the end of it all, Amy and Gloria wore cream-colored dresses that fell down to their ankles and provided a modest appearance. Their green sashes and berets reminded them of who they were as loyal scouts: nothing could stop them.
”Alright girls”,the lady said,”Ready to sell some cookies”
Nodding, the girls and the woman went door to door and sold every box of cookies they carried. All the money that they received was counted up and totaled to 1,245.56. The operation was a huge success.
”Alright, girls”,the woman said, putting the money into an envelope and giving it to Amy for safe-keeping,”I hope to see you girls back here next time you have some cookies to sell. I bet it’s time for you two to go home”
The girls agreed and were escorted back to their side of town. Amy and Gloria said goodbye to the woman, who nodded and smiled warmly, and went to their scout’s headquarters before heading home.
