I shook my head adamantly. “No, I can’t. You see this rag on my head? I need you, Princess. Just get me right, and I’ll be out of your way,” I lied. I had no intentions of ever leaving her life again, but she didn’t need to know that. I pouted and did my best impression of puppy dog eyes. “Please?” I even did the prayer hands for added effect.
She scoffed. “Whatever. Just this once, because your head does look a damn mess. Have you been in a damn cave for the last three years?”
“Something like that,” I replied honestly, because my isolation season was much like the wilderness Jesus was in. Lots of tests awaited me on my journey, and a haircut was the least of my concerns until now. Hell, when I first left, I couldn’t even afford one.
She hesitated before getting closer. “What do you want to do?” She did her best to avoid my eyes, and I allowed it for the time being. I knew I couldn’t pop back up and expect it all to be good. I would have to work to get back close to El, and I was willing to do just that, no matter how long it took. Hell, I’d already waited three years. Nothing could be worse than that.
“Cut it all off.”
She froze. “All of it?”
I nodded. “Yeah. I want to lose the beard too, for a mustache and goatee.”
I felt a chill race down my spine when she ran her fingers through my hair. “Okay, I can do that.” She turned to look behind her when Trinity spoke.
“Well, since you got it handled, I am going to head out.”
I watched El in the mirror as she nodded. I loved the way the big, curly hair she had framed her round face. “That’s fine. I will close up shop after I’m done with him.”
“Okay, girl.” She eyed me as she walked toward her booth. She paused before she got to it and began tapping her chin in thought. “Now that I think about it, you look just like?—”
“See you tomorrow!” El yelled, cutting her off.
I lifted an eyebrow as Trinity blanched. She looked between me and El then nodded. “See you tomorrow.” She grabbed her things and left shortly after.
Now that it was only me and El, the shop was heavy with silence. “Let’s get started,” she mumbled halfheartedly.
She walked to the workstation and picked up a remote. After a few clicks, the shop filled with music. I chuckled because if that was her attempt to keep me from talking, she was sadly mistaken. For the time being, I kept quiet, watching her switch her heels for a pair of Crocs. Looking over her tools, she picked up the scissors and came to stand behind me. She lifted some of my hair and snipped it off.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to feel when she began cutting, but I was looking forward to seeing the new me. It was the final proof of my growth over the years, growth that I needed her to know about. “I know I’m the last person you want to talk to,” I told her. “But I am happy to see you. I love your shop.” She chewed on her bottom lip but kept quiet. “I think it’s dope you created this safe space for women to work.” Again, she remained silent, and I kept going. “You’ve come a long way from that shed me and your dad fixed up for you.”
She scoffed. “Mmhm, surely did.”
I chuckled. “You really not going to talk to me, Princess?”
“What am I supposed to say?”
“Humor me.”
She paused her process and stared at me in the mirror. “Why? It’s not like you humored me before you walked out almost three years ago.”
I nodded because she was right. “You couldn’t save me from myself, El. I needed to learn to stand on my own. But you can’t say I didn’t tell you I would be back.”
The laugh she released was cold and lifeless. “Yeah, not three fucking years later. You might as well had not written that note.” Her voice cracked, and I could hear every emotion she was trying her best to keep at bay.
“Nah, I needed you to know what my intentions were, no matter how long it took me to get back. I was always coming back.”
She fell silent again, and the sound of clippers came alive behind me. “Listen, Perfect. You don’t owe me any explanations. It’s not like you were my man for real, just someone I let move into my guest room.”
My head jerked back, and I mugged her. “Yeah, the guest room you were damn near in every night, getting put through the mattress. Stop playing with me, El. We might not have established any titles, but we both knew what was up. We’re not going to sit here and pretend there weren’t feelings involved.”
She shrugged. “Maybe. Until you walked away.”
I fell silent while she went back to cutting my hair. I wasn’t expecting a warm welcome, but damn, I was expecting a little less ice. Any feelings she had toward me were justified. I knew that. “I apologize for walking away without an explanation, Rockel. You deserved better than that.”
She came to stand in front of me, and I tried my best not to reach out and wrap my arms around her waist. She smelled so good, and I loved every curve she’d developed. Licking my lips, I decided to tease her a little bit. “Damn, Princess. When the fuck you get thick like this?”
“When my man started fucking me from the back,” she replied smartly.
