Page 3 of Big Deal Sweetheart

Nova liked the girl’s thought to question her professionalism. “I’ve been a stylist since I was nineteen, but I’ve been doing hair since I was fifteen. I’m a professional colorist and went to Paul Mitchell’s Parisian Beauty School in Paris. Anything else you’d like to ask me?” She truly had no problem explaining or showing clients her credentials.

“Um, no, that’s fine. I mean, that’s great. I’d love to go or do something like that,” Delilah muttered, looking down at her lap.

If she hadn’t seen the ID proving the girl was old enough, she’d be worried the girl was younger than she’d said. She focused on the request of her client, since she didn’t have the threat of some pissed off parents storming in after she whacked off their child’s hair. She began running her hands through the long strands, getting to know what she was working with. “You have really healthy hair, girl. Going black isn’t going to damage it, but if you decide you want to go back to your natural blonde, which I’m assuming is your natural color, it will be one heck of a process, and it can be hard on your hair.”

Nova looked at the girl’s face through the mirror as she spoke, paying close attention to her expressions while she did so.

“Yes, blonde is my natural color, but I don’t care. I have no wants to be blonde.”

She didn’t miss the way Delilah folded her arms over her chest or the slight tremble in her lips. “I see. Well, let me do the cut first, and then we’ll work on your color. How short were you thinking?”

Using her hands, Nova raised them to Delilah’s sides near her elbows. “Here?” she asked, but Delilah shook her head. Nova moved her hands up to mid arm by her biceps. “Here?” At this point she was cutting off a good twelve inches. She almost wanted to whimper in protest and refuse to cut the girl’s locks.

“Shoulders.” Delilah put her hands up to indicate where she wanted it cut.

Two gasps from her right had Nova staring over to see Linny and the older woman she was giving a cut to staring at them with wide, shocked eyes. Yeah, she felt their pain.

“Alright, I’m going to start out slow.” She wasn’t going to say it, but she was hoping the girl changed her mind before it came to her cutting it that short. She separated the thick length into three sections, tied them off and then made the cuts. Six inches of gorgeous hair now held in three bundles. “Do you want to keep these?” she asked.

Delilah took the hair from Nova, running them through her fingers. Sadness clouded her cornflower blue eyes. “Wow, I...I didn’t think. I mean, I hadn’t thought I’d be this upset.”

Nova let her process before she continued, pretending to monkey around with her tools laid out on the counter. While her Nana had her own stylist supplies, Nova had brought her tools with her, knowing exactly how well they were kept since she made sure they were good. She didn’t like to use others if she could avoid it.

“Why don’t we talk about color before I cut anymore? You said you want black.” Nova tried to keep from letting her own distaste for whacking off more hair show, or for Delilah’s color choice. Not that she didn’t care for black hair, her own was almost black just like both her parents. Being one sixteenth Native American, she embraced her heritage, which she loved.

“I like your color,” Delilah whispered, not sounding as sure.

“How about we do a peekaboo color?” She explained the concept of coloring the underside section of the hair and then sectioned off what she would do, letting her new client see. “This way, if you wore your hair up, you’d see the dark, but if you wore it down, you’d only see the blonde unless you curled it. It’s a fun way to have color without it being overwhelming in your face. Plus, if you decided you wanted to go back to your blonde, it’s a little easier to do the process slowly to the smaller section like this.”

Nova was really selling the concept as she spoke, running her fingers through the silky strands that felt like a million dollars had been spent on keeping it healthy. She knew clients at her regular salon that would pay a lot to have hair half as healthy as this girl.

“Alright, but if we are going to do a peek of color like you suggest, let’s do something fun. Like blue,” Delilah suggested, a smile breaking out over her face.

Nova grinned at their reflections, knowing just what shade she’d use. “I like your style, girl. Give me a couple minutes to mix the color, and I’ll be right back. Do you want something to drink while you wait?”

“A water would be lovely.”

The very proper way she spoke was another sign this girl came from money, even if her four figure purse and way she held herself hadn’t. “Coming right up.” Nova went to the back and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge for her and her client. She came back, handing one to Delilah before opening her own. “Cheers, Delilah.”

They tapped bottles then she took a long sip before she went to mix color in the backroom. Had she known life as she knew it was going to be tossed on its axis only a short time later, she might have made some different choices. However, like her Nana always said, life was full of moments that shape our tomorrows. It’s the todays that toss us on our asses. She only wished she’d worn something a little sexier for the ass landing than a pair of skinny jeans and chunky sweater she had on.

Two hours later...

“Okay, I’m going to turn you around. Are you ready to see the new you?” Nova asked, smiling down at the gorgeous girl. She had so many reservations before cutting Delilah’s hair, but now that the finished product was done and styled, she had to admit it was beautiful. She’d come in looking like Alice in Wonderland, now she was...a grown-up version. Much edgier and still beautiful, but the rabbit hole she fell into hadn’t been all that bad.

Delilah clapped her hands, a little squeal of delight accompanied her “yes”.

Linny stood at her station along with Darla, the younger girl who worked at the salon too, waiting with eager expressions on their faces, while Nova slowly spun the chair until Delilah faced the mirror.

“Oh, my goodness. Is that me?” Delilah leaned forward raising her hands to her head.

Nova fluffed the sides of the tresses forward over each shoulder so the electric blue she’d curled into the blonde was more visible. “Yes, it is. What do you think?”

“I love it. You’re brilliant. If you lived in—well, if you lived in a big city, you’d be making a lot of money.” Delilah picked up the three ponytails of her hair. “Can I have these?”

“Absolutely,” Nova agreed.

She walked Delilah to the counter, shocked when the young girl pulled out a black Amex card with her name on it. Yeah, she was clearly rich as fuck. “I’m sure you have great product to wash with, but since you hadn’t colored your hair before, washing and rinsing in cool water will help the color stay longer. Here’s a card with what I used in case you decide you want to replicate it wherever you go next time.”

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