My Summer At The Cottage

Another stand alone story in the Woodbine series (part 3)

This summer was going to be different for Samantha Walker.  Her sophomore year of college was coming to an end, but rather than returning to her part-time jobs at the coffee chain and the Dairy Queen she was given a great opportunity from her aunt.  Her Aunt Lisa and Uncle Jason were well off and owned a group of 8 small cottages in the small tourist town of Andover On The Lake.

Every year Samantha’s family would spend 2 weeks in one of the cottages visiting her aunt and uncle and most of all enjoying all the fun and games that could be found along the ‘strip’.  It was always the highlight of Samantha’s summer.

The offer her aunt and uncle made was for Samantha to spend the entire summer in their cottage and she would pay her twice as much as she would normally make in a summer.  The job they asked her to do was paint the exterior of each of the cottages.  Samantha didn’t have to give it a second thought and quickly told her aunt she would be there the day after classes ended.

Samantha couldn’t have a car at the University until her junior year, but luckily one of the girls on her floor of the dorm lived close to where she was going, so for a little help with fuel for the trip, she had a ride to right where she needed to get to.  As she opened opened the door to her aunts cottage she couldn’t believe she would be spending the entire summer in her favorite place.

She hadn’t taken the local shuttle bus to get any food she wanted to have in the house so she decided to walk down the strip to see if any of the food places were open yet.  It was only the beginning of May, and most of the places in the area wouldn’t be open for a few weeks.  About to give up and return home, Samantha saw one of the bars stayed open year round.  She had just turned 20, so she had never been inside of a bar, but she could already smell the food so she stepped inside.  To her surprise, even though she was a really petite girl, nobody ever questioned her about her age.  She assumed that the owner was just happy to have a customer during the quiet part of the year.  As she finished her burger and beer, she decided that she would treat herself to lunch many more times before her aunt came with her cousins.

She had made the call to the paint store, letting them know they could deliver the first part of her aunts order, and by the time she got back from lunch it was all waiting for her on the front porch.  Everything she would need was right there and Samantha decided it would be a lot better to get as much done before the weather got any hotter, plus she knew once her aunt and her kids arrived there would be a lot more distractions.

Samantha was a good worker, and by the end of her 4th day of painting, she was finished with the first cottage.   To reward herself she went back to the bar for lunch, again the owner didn’t question her as he filled the glass at the tap.  As she sipped her beer, and waited for her food to arrive, Samantha picked up a laminated card from the back of her booth.  It was a basic map where to find things in town.  As she read thru the list she came across the section for Beauty Services.  She reached up to push the hair out of eyes like she had continuously done over the past week, and thought maybe it was time for a trim.

She knew there was one of the chain salons she would usually go to in the main part of town, but really didn’t want to waste all that time on the shuttle bus just to have her hair cut.  Looking at the card again, there were only 2 choices in this end of town.  ‘Woodbine Beauty Parlor’ was not far from her aunts cottages, and she had seen that most of the woman who came out of there were very old, so she figured that wasn’t for her.  The other place was ‘Jane’s family Haircare’ which said it provided services for everyone.  The choice was easy, and once she was done eating, headed down the strip, towards the shop.

After the long walk to the farthest end of town she saw the place she was looking for.  As she approached the building she noticed how neat and well kept it was.  The blinds on the windows meant she couldn’t see inside, but as she got close she saw an older man was working in the flower bed beside the shop.  He looked up at her and smiled as she got close to the door…”Here for your summer cut?”  Samantha smiled back at him…”That’s exactly what I need.”  He continued working on his gardening…”This is certainly the place for that.”  With that answer she opened the door and stepped inside.

As she stepped inside the first thing that came into view was a pair of chairs that immediately made her feel like she might have made a mistake coming here.

She quickly decided that she would catch the shuttle bus and go to the chain salon, but as she turned to leave the old man from outside was now inside the doorway…”Have a seat young lady.  I’ll just wash my hands then we can get started.”  She felt the acid churning in her throat as first thought about telling him she changed her mind, but instead as he started to run the water over his hands, Samantha stepped onto the platform and lowered herself into the chair.

As she sat waiting for what was about to happen next she started to notice all of the unfamiliar tools in front of her.  The tall jar of blue liquid with combs inside, the many pairs of scissors laying neatly in a row, and what scared her most was the seven pairs of clippers hanging down from the counter.  She was so busy looking at each one of the different clippers she hadn’t noticed the barber was behind he moving in to place a strip of tissue around her neck.

This was a step she had never experienced before so she didn’t know what to expect next.  The barber took one of the neatly folded capes off the other chair, snapping it open just before swinging over Samantha’s shoulders.  Fastening it tight around her neck her then turned the chair away from the counter…”I’m Tom Jane by the way.  I’ve seen you working hard on painting Lisa and John’s cottages and figured you’d stop by once it got to hot for you.”  I’m Samantha Walker, my aunt and uncle own those.”  He smiled at her…”Well welcome Samantha.  I expect I’ll be seeing your aunt her with her kids in 3 or 4 weeks for their summer cuts too.”   He began to comb thru her hair making sure it was free from tangles.

Samantha waited for him to ask what she wanted done, but as he finished with his comb, she felt his fingers on the back of her head…”Just tilt your head forwards a little bit young lady.”  With he fingers still pushing her head forward she started to look down.  Still unsure what he was doing Samantha was caught off-guard as she saw something moving in just above the left eye.  Before her brain could catch up, the scissors made their first cut, exposing her eye as the hair that had been covering it fell to her lap…”What are you doing???”  She said in a hi pitched voice.

Tom made 2 more cuts, now exposing her entire forehead…”It easiest if we just get those out of the way first.”  Samantha didn’t know what to do, but Tom. just kept working.  His scissors were now at the sides of her head, chopping a line straight across towards the back.  Samantha again tried to speak out…”That’s not what I wanted.”  Tom still didn’t stop as he cut the back right up to the hairline…”Don’t worry young lady.  I’m giving you a girls summer cut.  I can always switch to a crew-cut later if you want.”  Samantha just kept playing what he said in her head about a “girls summer cut.”  Still having no idea what he was going to do to her, but once her put his scissors down again he combed all the hair on top of her head together a secured it with several spring clips.

Samantha sat nervously as she saw Tom at her side holding one of the clippers in his hand.  Using his other hand to tilt her head slightly over  he turned them on.  Samantha was surprised at how quiet the menacing tool was and for just a fraction of a second she was relaxed.  That all ended when Tom put them in front of her ear and moved them up the side of her head…”We’ll have you feeling a whole lot cooler before you know it.”  Her head still facing forwards, she could just see the large clumps of hair fall down the cape and onto the floor.  Her mind was still fighting to find a way out of this as Tom then pushed her head down and repeated his work on the back of her head.  As she watched more and more hair fall before her eyes she realized that this was the biggest mistake of her short life.

She knew what was next as Tom tilted her head the other way and continued running his clippers nearly to the top of her head.  She still had now idea how much hair was left on her head, her mind racing from bad to worse as to what her hair looked like now.  Just seconds later the clippers were stopped and Tom returned them to the hook where they came from.  Releasing the hair on top of her head, he began to again comb it all straight down again.  As her combed thru the right side Samantha raised her left hand up to the side of her head.

While she hoped to at least find a nice uniform head of hair, she instead found the tiniest of stiff bristles.  Even though she was very upset with what had happened to her hair, when she rubbed her hand up the side she found the feel of the stubble very strange.  Tom was ready to begin cutting the top when he saw what she was doing…”I can shave that smooth if you want.”  Samantha quickly pulled her hand back below the cape and sat silently, waiting for Tom to continue his assault on her hair.

Tom then began cutting the rest of her hair, repeatedly combing and snipping, a perfectly straight line of hair began to form on the side of Samantha’s head.  She held her breath as she felt just how high up the sides the scissors were held knowing that she was indeed going to end up with a very short summer haircut.  As he went over her ears he then began to angle the line slightly downwards towards the back.  The second side followed, meeting perfectly with the first side in the middle of her neck.  To give the cut a more finished look Tom started lifting her hair with his comb and scissoring away at the last couple inches with his thinning shears.  The finished line was just above the top of her ears except for the slight dip in the back.

Tom opened up the cape then unfolded a paper towel, placing it on her shoulder.  Samantha heard a different sound this time and just after it stopped she felt something warm being wiped across her neck and in front of her ears.  Tom took his hand and pulled her skin taught, then Samantha felt an odd scraping on her skin.  He repeated this all the way across her neck then the other side-burn.  A quick wipe with the towel and Tom carefully lifted the cape off of her…”There you go Samantha, this should keep you a lot cooler this summer.”

She turned to the big mirror and was shocked at the person starring her in the face.  No longer the look of a 20 year old college student, but instead she looked like she did before she reached puberty.  Her years of gymnastics now worked against her as her small frame combined with her nearly flat chest meant she could barely pass for someone in high school let alone about to start her junior year of college.  It was also at this point that she began to regret her decision to get braces on her teeth with the money she made last year.  She then paid Tom the $10 he charged for a summer cut.

As she walked back towards the cottages she keep seeing her reflection in the glass of every building she passed.  Shaking her head, she started counting how many weeks it was until she had to go back to school, hoping she would at least have a couple inches of hair on her neck.  When she added it up, she closed her eyes knowing her hair would still be way to short to go unnoticed.

She returned back at the cottage just before the next delivery from the paint store arrived.  Samantha didn’t need anything to make her feel any worse, but when the delivery from the paint store arrived…”Hi there, is your mom at home?”  Samantha told the driver that she had placed the order, but he didn’t believer her…”I need an adult to sign for this.”  It didn’t help that her face was becoming reddened with frustration, so it took her showing the driver her drivers license before he agreed to leave the paint with her.

She decided to concentrate on the task she had to do, getting thru the second cottage faster than the first one.  That’s when she was reminded again of how she looked.  As she had done with the first one, Samantha decided she would treat herself to a nice meal back at the bar that had her favorite food.  She had been there 3 times before even enjoying a beer with her lunch, she could smell the delicious food coming from the kitchen as she walked in, but that was as close as she would get to it…”Kids aren’t allowed at the bar.”  she tried to plead her case, but the owner wasn’t having any of it…”You have to come with your parents to be in here.”  Almost in tears she walked back to the cottage having lost her appetite.

Samantha put all of her anger into her work knocking out the next cottage in just 3 days.  Feeling a little better about herself, she decided to pay another visit to the beach.  Her first visit got Samantha plenty of attention from a few of the college guys who were there.  This Saturday there were a lot more people on the beach, but the only attention Samantha got was from a small group of young teenagers thinking she went to Middle School.  Dejected, she walked back to her cottage swearing she would never go back to the beach again.

A few days later Samantha was finishing painting the trim on the 4th cottage, well ahead of the schedule she had set for herself.  She spent the rest of day cleaning up the inside of the cottage as her aunt and 2 cousins were due to arrive the next day.  She knew that she would have no problems finishing the last 4 cottages by the end of summer.

Late the next morning Samantha’s aunt Lisa arrived with her 2 kids Bayleigh, 11, and Jason, age 8.  Her aunt was surprised at how much Samantha had already gotten done, thanking her for such a good job so far.  Her aunt then commented on her haircut…”I see you’ve decided pay a visit to Mr Jane for a summer haircut.  It looks really cute on you.”  Samantha, chose to hide her feelings about her haircut, knowing she was just going to have to wait until it grew out to look good again.

Lisa then asked Samantha to help the kids with their unpacking with Bayleigh pulling her along towards her bedroom.  A few minutes later Lisa came in the room and asked Bayleigh if she wanted to give Samantha her presents.  Samantha looked on as the little girl ran to the living room to retrieve the shopping bag they had brought.  Sitting on the edge of the bed, Samantha waited as the girl returned.  Lisa then told Samantha that because Bayleigh always thought of her as a big sister she wanted them to have some matching shirts.

Samantha smiled as Bayleigh pulled the first t-shirt out of the bag.  It was a pink shirt with ‘My Little Pony’ across the entire front of the shirt.  There were three other shirts with similar decals on the front, then came a pair of matching shorts.  Samantha figured she would wear them only when she was around the cottage, out of the eyes of anyone her age.  Aunt Lisa then told her that Bayleigh also picked out a matching bathing suit.  As she held it out it too had ‘My Little Pony not only across the front, but a logo on the back as well.  It was a perfect match to the little girls suit Bayleigh had, pale yellow with a pink ruffle across the waist.  Samantha then figured she would just stay busy painting so she would not have to been seen in the childish outfits.

The next morning as soon as breakfast was done, Lisa told the kids to get ready to go visit Mr Jane for their haircuts.  It had been raining that morning so Samantha would not be able to start painting today.  As the kids were ready to go Bayleigh then asks her mom if Samantha can walk with them.  Lisa didn’t really ask, but instead told her niece to get ready…”Come on and keep us company.”  Samantha wanted to stay behind but knew not to put up an argument with her aunt.  Just as they reached for the door, Bayleigh pulled her mom’s arm…”Samantha didn’t wear her new shirt like mine.”  Lisa looked over to Samantha who, without being told, went back to her room and put on the matching shirt.

Lisa held the door open for the kids to go inside.  When Tom looked up from reading his paper, he welcomed the crew back to the shop…”Lisa you look wonderful.  Boy, Jason and Bayleigh are getting so big.”  Tom then saw Samantha making her way towards the waiting area…”And you brought one of my favorite customers back.  Samantha how are you?  Samantha politely said hi as she sat down.

Tom didn’t need to ask what Lisa wanted done to the kids.  They were there for their summer haircuts, so with Jason sitting on a booster seat and all caped up, Tom took his clipper and began to  run them over and over up the side of his head.  Seeing every bit of hair falling to the cape made Samantha remember when it was her hair, just 3 weeks before.  It only took about 5 minutes before Jason was helped from the chair with nothing left but just a shadow of hair on his head.  Bayleigh was next, her hair was just to her shoulders so Samantha figured that was about as long as hers would be by next summer.

Samantha saw Tom going thru the exact motions that her had done with her, the hair on top held up while her took the back and sides to the skin.  As her combed the top down Lisa spoke for the first time…”Tom, can make her bangs a little shorter this time?  I want to keep it out of her eyes for as long as I can.”  Tom looked over…”Certainly Lisa, we can make them nice and short for her.”  Samantha thought her bangs were way to short, but her eyes opened wide as Tom inserted he scissors high on her forehead, only leaving about 3/4″ in the front.

Tom helped his young customer down from the chair and both Lisa and Samantha stood up from the waiting area.  As Lisa reached for her purse to pay for Tom’s work Bayleigh stopped her…”Mommy, Sammie doesn’t match me.”  Lisa looked at Samantha, then at Tom.  Tom, using the cape to clear Bayleugh’s hair off the chair looked towards her too…”Come on over Sammie and I’ll get you all cleaned up.”  Samantha certainly didn’t want Tom to cut off the little bit that had grown back, but Lisa ended any chance of her backing out of it…”Go on over Sammie, Bayleigh is counting on you.”

She reluctantly walked to the chair and sat down.  Tom caped her like he had last time, then started to pin her hair on top of her head.  Samantha knew what was going to happen and as Tom began to again take all of the hair from the side of her head, she saw a huge smile on both Lisa and Bayleigh’s faces.  As he finished with the clippers, she figured he would then let the hair down from the top of her head, but instead he rubbed the side of her head…”Your hair certainly grew in fast.  I’m going to help make it look good for a few days  more.”

Tom then started to wipe white foam on the sides of her head.  Samantha started to get upset trying to figure out what he was going to do, even Lisa paid close attention to what he was doing to her young niece.  He was again at the side of her head.  He put his left hand on top of her head, leaning slightly over as he raised his right hand, then with his right hand started to move down the sides with his razor.  Samantha felt the razor drag down her head and as she looked at herself in the mirror, she noticed the stubble that was there before was now replaced by pale white skin.

As Tom wiped the sides clean Samantha noticed how much her head seemed glow now.  Tom then combed the rest of her hair down like he had before.  Not expecting to much to be cut off, Samantha couldn’t believe as Tom took another 3/4″ of the sides.  Tom noticed her nervousness and thought he was helping her out…”Your hair grows so fast Sammie, this will be much better for you.”  Samantha wasn’t convinced as her hair now stopped a full inch above her ears.  Lisa didn’t hold back as she reminded Tom…”Make sure that Sammie’s bangs are short like Bayleigh’s.”  As short as Samantha thought her bangs already were, Tom was at her forehead with his scissors.  A few snips later and they were  now  barely enough to lay flat against her head.  Satisfied, Tom pulled the cape off of her…”There you go Sammie.  That should keep you cool until you kids come back next month.”  Tom then turned to Lisa…”It’s $18 for 3 kids cuts.”  She gave him a couple $20 bills and they headed for the door.  As Samantha passed thru the door she heard Tom’s last words…”She you 3 kids next month.”  She thought to herself…’20 years old and still treated like a kid’

As the family walked back to the cottage Samantha began to tell her Aunt that the weather is supposed to be nice the rest of the week, so she would start on the next cottage in the morning.  Lisa then surprised her…”I don’t think you should worry about painting the other units right now.  I’d rather you and Bayleigh just have fun playing with each other this summer.”  Samantha tried to tell her she wanted to keep painting, but Lisa then told all the kids…”Sammie is going to the beach with us tomorrow kids,”  Bayleigh and Jason were both happy that She would be there with them.  As she went towards her room, Lisa followed close behind.  She handed the new bathing suit out to her…”Lets make sure it fits.”  It only took a minute to put on and as bad as she thought she looked before, Samantha couldn’t believe how childish the new haircut and suit made her look.

They spent the rest of the day playing, then after dinner Lisa put a video on for the kids to watch….”Okay you three time for pajamas before the movie starts.”  Samantha couldn’t believe she was told to get ready for bed at 7:00.  It was still sunny outside, plus it was summer time and she was used to staying up well after midnight most nights.  As she came out of her bedroom, Bayleigh voiced her displeasure to her mom…”Sammie’s pj’s don’t match mine.”  Lisa settled her down by promising she would order some for her while they watch the movie.  Samantha rolled her eyes wondering how it could get worse.  Once the movie ended Lisa clapped her hands…”Okay you three time for bed.”  Samantha looked at the clock, it was just 9:00.  She hadn’t been to bed this early in 15 years, but did what she was told and crawled into bed.

The next day they all went to the beach as promised.  Even though Sammie looked more like a 10 year old she still wanted to check out all the hot guys there, and a few of them her..  Lisa, on the other hand, made sure to shut any of it down if one of them got too close…”Sammie, play with your toys.” always seemed to cause the boys change direction instantly.   With no other options Sammie would return to playing in the sand with Bayleigh.

When they returned to the cottage there were packages on the porch.  To Sammie’s dismay, Lisa told Batleigh…”That must be Sammie’s new pajamas, plus I got a surprise for the three of you.”  Two of the kids were excited, but Sammie started to dread what could be in the box.  Lisa first got them all some milk and cookies for their afternoon snack, then she began to open everything up.  As promised there were 3 new pairs of pajamas to Sammie to wear and then Lisa pulled out her surprise.  Three pairs of pink and white tennis shoes, and if that wasn’t bad enough to Sammie, Lisa then showed them that they have lights in the bottom of them.  The last thing Sammie wanted was to draw more attention to herself.

The weeks that followed saw them saw into a regular routine, the regular trips to the beach no longer even phased Sammie as she got used it.  Her diet of having multiple glasses milk with her snack everyday made her once loose fitting suit now show off a bit of baby fat as it became tighter.  The only thing that still upset Sammie was when Lisa would take them all to the strip for them to play games.  There was no hiding as she walked along with her matching t-shirt and the light up shoes.  She could see people smile at her expense as they all walked together.

Sammie hadn’t really noticed it was getting close to the end of summer yet as the days all just seemed the same to her now, but then one morning after breakfast, Lisa made an announcement that Sammie didn’t want to hear…”Kids get your shoes on, we’re going to see Mr Jane this morning.”  Sammie had hoped that she could at least have a little hair on the sides of her head when she returned to college, but now knew it wasn’t going to happen.

Lisa directed Sammie to the chair first this trip.  Any hope of Mr Jane leaving her at least a little hair on the sides ended when Lisa instructed him…”Just like last time for her.” The balding clippers left nothing but skin as the 1/2″ of growth was soon on the floor.  The shaving foam followed, then her pale skin was then on display again.  Sammie watched as Tom then started on the top, took it even higher then her last visit.  She then watched as Bayleigh and Jason both had their turns in the chair.  Surprising to her, Lisa told Tom to leave them both a little length this time.  It was the first time that Samantha thought that Lisa was enjoying having nearly total control over her.

During the final week of her summer break, Sammie was thinking that this might be her last time at the cottages.  She just couldn’t see herself spending another summer looking like a preteen and being controlled by her aunt.  Then her aunt sat her down at the dining table and told her over and over just how special this summer was for the kids.  Lisa then gave Sammie the check for painting, but it wasn’t for the amount she had promised.  It was nearly double what Samantha had expected…”You can finish painting the other 4 next spring when you return.”  Sammie thanked her aunt, and seeing the number on the check, committed herself to another summer with her aunt, even though she assumed it meant another summer of bowlcuts and kiddie clothes.

Even though Samantha left college at the end of the previous year, her junior year saw her instead deciding to keep being called Sammie instead.  It just seemed to fit her better now.  After the first week of classes, nobody really even noticed her anymore and Sammie was fine with that.  Instead of the frat parties that happened every weekend, Sammie stayed in her room, the pajamas that Lisa bought for her would be on by 7:30, with Sammie sitting down to watch some Disney movie, her cookies and milk at her side.  Then, just like she was still staying with her aunt, she would be in bed by 9:00 every night.

As her hair began to grow out, Sammie chose not to cut it for now, still deciding if she would go back to Mr Jane for her summer cut, or see if Lisa decides it’s time for her and Bayleigh to have a more grown-up look.

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