I entered the kitchen to sound of something sizzling. Amelia, my roommate, gave me a warm smile as the the smell of her cooking filled my lungs. It was only our third day as roommates but we already knew this wouldn’t be the last apartment we would share.
“It’ll be about 20 minutes Nat”
Me and Amelia met at some society event during our first year freshers week. Although we both decided the society wasn’t for us, we immediately clicked and she became my first friend at university. In a mad dash to secure second year accommodation we decided to move in together. It came as a surprise to both us then when our relationship changed to something more then friendship.
“Can I help?”
“there’s something you could help with” Amelia responded with her signature infectious smile.
I loved that smile. It stretched across her face, lighting up every room she enters. She was beautiful. Deep brown eyes were perfectly set in her smooth, complexion and ‘librarian’ glasses framed her soft features.
She was blessed with beautiful thick honey blond hair. It fell straight to her shoulder blades with a slight bounce. She told me she had dyed streaks of her hair pink and a sky blue on her 17th birthday and 2+ years on some colour still clung to her hair.
The days of long haired Amelia seemed to be numbered. I knew she liked short hair and would catch her eyeing girls with pixie cuts. Last night confirmed my suspicions as we spoke about short hair. Now I could only wonder whether she would cut it all off at once or step by step.
Amelia approached me and held my hands in hers. She leaned in my chest pressed against hers before her lips met mine. Still holding my hands, she wrapped hers around my waist.
Click
I felt something attach to my wrist and my hands were locked together behind my back.
A finger was pressed against my lips and I was ushered onto a chair.
Somehow this didn’t surprise me. Amelia was adventures, for lack of a better word, always pulling me out of my comfort zone and jumping on every opportunity that came her way.
“what are you doing?”
“I just want my girl to sit still” She said playfully, ruffling her hand through my hair.
I’m a long haired brunette. My hair’s naturally a dark coppery brown that was both very thick and very soft.
It had been shoulder length until I was old enough to decide to grow it out and I had kept it long ever since. It fell to my lower back well past what could be considered medium length but still a few inches shorter then what would be considered very long.
Amelia started running her fingers down my hair. She started brushing out my hair before gathering it into a ponytail. I loved when Amelia played with my hair.
“now just be a good girl and sit still for me”
Amelia across the room and got some thing out of one of the draws. She started to walk back towards me, now with scissors in hand.
“wait, what are you doing?”
No response.
“if your thinking what I’m thinking the answer is, no”
I started to get up but she pushed me back to my seat.
“no, don’t please… please”
My desperation was clear in my voice. Was this actually happening. Would she dare.
I tried again to get up but Amelia tugged on my ponytail pulling me back into my chair.
Amelia tugged again on my ponytail before sliding the scissors in and starting to cut.
My jaw dropped. I didn’t believe she would do it.
I tried to speak but I couldn’t think of what to say. Then I tried to move but my hands were still locked behind my back.
The scissors continued to saw through my hair until finally severing my ponytail. I felt my head get suddenly lighter and Amelia’s pull on my ponytail suddenly stop.
A 20 inch ponytail was throw onto the table in front of me.
“what the… FUCK”
“don’t worry, your going to look hot short”
“but what the actual fuck”
Amelia leaned over and planted kiss on my neck.
“I’ll be back in a second”
Tears were starting to form in the corners of my eyes. I loved my hair, it was part of me. And now it was on the table in front of me.
It didn’t feel real. Like a vivid dream or I was watching someone, except it was me.
Amelia returned a towel in one hand and a large pair of clippers in the other.
“what do you think your doing?”
The towel was wrapped around my neck forming a makeshift cape.
“sit still Nat, I don’t want to give you a hack job”
“do you even know how to use those”
“yeah I use to cut my brothers hair.” Amelia could hear the sadness in my voice. “do worry your going to love having short hair”
Amelia pulled her hair back and tied it into a simple ponytail, the end of which just tickled her neck. I heard the clippers roared to life before letting out a vicious hum.
I didn’t resist Amelia adjusting my head or plunging the clippers into my nape.
“it might be a shock but you’ll get use to it”
Amelia pulled back the clippers before returning for another swipe at my nape. The bulk of what hair remained at the back of my head was sheared.
“besides it was you who said you liked short hair”
“what?…”
“Yesterday you said you liked girls with short hair. You said we should have one of us with short hair and one long so we can try out different styles”
“I thought you were going to cut your hair not mine”
My head was pushed to the side. Amelia started to run the clippers over my ear.
“well if you want you can always play with mine” she laughed.
The fact her hair was now much longer then mine wasn’t lost on me.
“your hair isn’t even that long”
The realisation of how short I was being sheared hadn’t yet hit me as, Amelia tilted my head and started to cut the hair on the other side of my head.
“you know what, just for you I’ll grow it out then”
“you’d hate having long hair”
“I don’t know”
The humming of the clippers stopped, before my head was again adjusted. Amelia brought a comb to my head and started to run it through my hair.
She reached for some kind of spray bottle and dampened my hair. Cold trails ran down my neck.
Amelia used the comb to pull up a section from my crown. She lifted the comb until two inches from my head and quickly snipping away in line with the comb. Dusting of my mane fell onto me, rolling down my face before falling onto Amelia’s makeshift cape.
My hair was freed from the grip of her comb and shrank back into my head. As if it was second nature, Amelia grabbed another section and shortened it before another and another slowly taming my mane.
Amelia ran her hand through my crown sending a tidal wave of lose hair flying into my lap.
“we’re nearly done” Amelia reassured me.
Once again the clippers roared to life. They set about shortening the hair around my ears even further before returning to my nape to fix up my neckline.
After what felt like an eternity Amelia finished. The towel was removed from my shoulders sending a shower of hair onto the floor. My hands were realised from what I learned were handcuffs.
A silence echoed off the walls.
“please say something” Amelia ask shyly, as if asking forgiveness.
I stuttered for a second trying to think of what to say.
“why do you have clippers?”
“well, you deserve only the best”
She new exactly how to make me blush. My mind started to catch up, was this planned? how long had she been preparing this?
“your going to grow to love it” her voice sounded almost smug. “and your going to thank me before long”
“hardly likely” I blurted out as my freed hands felt my new hair.
It was a pixie cut. My crown was cut to just over 2 inches into a slightly shaggy mop. The back and side had been cut even shorter to sharp blades only an eighth of an inch in length. My ears were left naked, for all to see. My neck was, for the first time in my life, unsheltered exposed to the icy chill from a nearby open window.
“do you mind cleaning up while I finish cooking”
“oh yeah sure” they whole experience had disorientated me. I seemed to have forgotten where I was.
“you are going to love it” Amelia repeated, kissing my check before ruffling my hair one last time.
She walked back towards the hobs. Her thick ponytail swaying from side to side as she stepped, as if to taunt me. I looked down at redundant elastic on my wrist. When would be the next time I could have my hair up.
“It’s only hair” I said more to myself then Amelia
“yes exactly”
“it grows back”
Amelia turned back to me.
“yours wont you’ve got another appointment in 2 weeks”
fin
