The High and Tight Terrorists (Parts 1-3 by Buzz (recovered)

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The High and Tight Terrorists


By Buzz`


A THRILLING SEVEN-CHAPTER HAIRCUTTING SERIAL



Chapter One: INDUCTION



Jared Black had always been a trouble maker. He had gotten into his share of hassles with the police, but they always chalked it up to the antics of a kid who didn`t know any better -- a typical high school football jock. And when they hadn`t, his father had paid off the victims of Jared`s pranks, and they dropped all charges. All Jared had to do was endure a litany of threats from his father. `I`m cutting you off! I`m sending you to military school! I`m disinheriting you!` But in the end, Jared got always gotten off easy -- until now. This time he had gone too far. Jared had gotten hold of a huge balloon and some white paint, filled the balloon until it was ready to burst, then took it to an overpass which rose far above a highway below. The fifteen-year-old thought he was totally alone -- in the darkness he didn`t notice the kid bicycling near the start of the overpass. Jared waited for a real expensive car to approach, then let the balloon fly. WHAM!


His makeshift bomb scored a direct hit on the hood of a dark blue Caddy. White paint exploded from the balloon, and went splashing across the wind shield. Jared started laughing hysterically -- but his laughter suddenly stopped when the car skidded into the overpass abutment with a deafening crash. It was totaled! Jared watched as the driver staggered out of the heap of twisted metal, then beat it as quick as he could. As he ran home, strands of his long black hair sliced across his face like a thousand tiny whips. His heart was pounding like a jackhammer.


The police showed up at his door two hours later. The kid on the bicycle, a highschool classmate named David Thompson, had ID`d him to the cops! David wasn`t exactly the perfect witness. He looked like a hippy -- a typical 15-year-old who, like Jared and alot of the younger kids in the area, had near-shoulder length hair. The police might not have believed David, but Jared`s previous record of trouble-making added credence to his claims. There was no getting out of this one. Jared was busted.


As usual, his father bought off the Caddy`s owner. Jared had no idea how just how much money his dad had spent to keep the driver from pressing charges, but he figured it was a small fortune. And he knew his dad was totally fed up with his antics. `I`ve had it with you, Jared Black!` Jared could tell he was in real trouble when his father used his last name. But beg as he might, Jared`s pleas fell on deaf ears. `I don`t want to hear it,` his father wailed. `There`s only one thing left to do with you, young man!` A month later, Jared was sitting on a bus bound for Patton Military Academy.


`My name`s Bobby,` said the long-haired young kid sitting next to Jared. The light brown hair covering his ears and spilling well over his collar was only slightly shorter than Jareds, but where Jared`s wild black hair had no part at all, this kid`s mop was parted sloppily in the center. The faintest beginnings of a mustache were forming on his upper lip, and his bangs nearly covered his eyes. He reminded Jared of himself. `I`m Jared,` he finally said sullenly.


`What`re you in for?` Bobby asked with a grin. Jared managed to smile. He wasn`t the only one being forced into military school! He told Bobby the balloon story, and how some asshole named David had ratted him out to the cops. Then Jared asked why Bobby was on the bus. `Well,` Bobby told him, `I flunked out of junior high school, and then my Dad caught me smokin` pot a few times -- so here I am.`


The bus pulled into camp, and Jared and Bobby were hurried out and into formation. `Welcome to Patton Military Academy,` a commanding voice boomed at them. Within minutes they were stripped of their clothes, issued t-shirts and immaculately pressed tan slacks, then ordered to wait on a line. `What`s this line for?` Jared whispered to Bobby, who was in front of him. `Haircuts,` Bobby said softly.


A hugely-musceled man in a uniform ran over to Jared, and roared in his face with the fury of a bomb blast. `YOU! NO TALKING! SHUT THE F*** UP, BEFORE I SHUT YOU UP!` Jared swallowed hard. He wasn`t ready for this. This s**t was scary! Since as far back as he could remember, he`d fought with his father about his long hair -- and when his father insisted he get a haircut, he`d always been able to satisfy him by allowing his mother to trim a half inch or so off his mane. He`d never even been inside a barber shop! He wondered what kind of haircut he was going to get. Whatever they did, he told himself, he was going to grow it back. As he neared the door of the camp barber shop, the sound of buzzing grew louder and louder. As they were ushered closer and closer, Bobby caught a glimpse inside. `S**t, he whispered, `They`ve got the chairs facing away from the mirror!` Jared was confused. `So?` Since he`d never had a real haircut, he didn`t know how unusual this was. `You idiot,` Bobby told him, `They do that so we can`t see what`s being done to us!`


`YOU THERE!` a man in a uniform screamed at Bobby, `KEEP QUIET! YOU`RE NEXT!`


Although Jared didn`t realize it, they were already beginning to change his behavior. He wanted to stick his head around Bobby to see what kind of haircut he was about to get -- but he was afraid they`d catch him and scream at him again, so he stood motionless. Bobby had an unobstructed view of the proceedings. He watched in horror as the fresh-faced young kid in front of him had his shoulder-length brown hair buzzed into a military high and tight in under two minutes. `NEXT!` the barber shouted at Bobby. It was his turn.



Bobby slid reluctantly into the chair, and instantly a white cloth was snapped tightly around his neck. Jared watched in growing terror. With a few quick passes of an electric buzzer, the hair on the top of Bobby`s head was shaved down to a quarter inch. His head was jerked roughly from side to side as the clippers made their rounds. Huge mounds of Bobby`s light brown hair began to pile up in his lap, and soon a wet, slick gel was being rubbed into his head. The short, bristly hair remaining on top of his head was brushed neatly into place. In minutes, Bobby had been transformed from a sloppy hippy into a neat military cadet with a fresh new high and tight haircut. Jared was paralyzed. He`d never seen such a short haircut! He was horrified at the change in Bobby, and couldn`t fathom that in seconds it would be HIM under those clippers, and he`d end up looking exactly the same. The barber whipped the white cloth off Bobby. He glared at Jared. `NEXT!`


Like a sleepwalker, Jared moved hesitantly to the chair, running his fingers through his long black hair for the last time. A clean white cloth was snapped tightly around his neck. His heart hadn`t pounded like this since the night of the balloon incident. Damn that f***ing David kid! This was all his fault. Jared was brought back to reality by the startling sensation of a cold, sharp electric clipper plowing through the hair on the top of his head. The barber wasn`t stopping to ask Jared to turn his head, either. When he was done with the top, he just grabbed Jared`s head and roughly jerked it to the right. `Hey!` Jared exclaimed, `Easy!` A response came immediately. `KEEP QUIET!` another uniformed mass of muscle screamed in his face, `TAKE IT LIKE A MAN!`


In instants, the clipper was attacking the right side of Jared`s head. Then the barber, who was now annoyed, pushed Jared`s head down so his chin touched his chest. He began to buzz the back of his head. Long clumps of black hair drifted lazily down to the tiled floor. Another jerk and he started in on the left side. Each pass of the clippers removed another clump of hair, and another piece of his identity. Jared thought it was finally over, when suddenly he felt a new pair of clippers biting into the right side of his head, shearing him even closer than before. Still more hair spilled down to his lap -- not clumps this time, but tiny bristles. `Oh my God,` Jared thought, `He`s buzzing the sides and back of my head clear down to the skin!` He had seen Bobby being given the same haircut, but it hadn`t really registered. Now it was being done to HIM!


With the sides and back of Jared`s head properly buzzed, the barber applied a dab of shaving cream on his sideburns, upper lip, and behind his ears. A few quick strokes with a straight razor erased all traces of Jared`s sideburns, obliterated the faint beginnings of a mustache that had started to sprout recently on his upper lip, and neatly squared off his hairline behind his ears. Next, Jared felt cold, wet gel being massaged into his head, and then a stiff brush was applied. He felt what was left of his hair being brushed to the right side, then straight back, completely off his forehead. It had been less than a minute, and his haircut was finished. As the barber whipped off his cape, huge mounds of Jared`s long black hair spilled down to the floor. Jared couldn`t believe what was being done to him -- what had BEEN done to him! He whirled around to look at himself in the mirror.


He didn`t recognize himself. The change in him was stupefying! The long black hair that only minutes ago had completely covered his ears was gone. Gone! His ears were totally exposed. All that was left on the sides of his head was a short, barely visible bristle. What little hair remained on top of his head -- about a quarter of an inch -- had been brushed to the right, forced into wet little ridges, and severely parted on the right side. The part was as straight as a ruler! His gelled hair was shining in the glare of the barbershop`s harsh florescent lights. His first traces of mustache had been shaved completely off, and his short bangs were glued straight back. He could see his white skin showing easily through the stubble on the sides of his head, and his short, neatly shaved, perfectly flat sideburns. The stubble above his ears had been evened off into twin, perfect round arcs which rose well above his ears. He reached to feel the back of his head.


The grainy sensation of his fingers rubbing like sandpaper against the stiff bristles on the back of his head sent him into a state of shock -- and when he moved his hand across the hair on the top of his head, he was dumb founded. The short, stiff ridges barely moved at all! There was no messing up THIS haircut. The reality of his situation hit him like a ton of bricks. He was no longer himself. He was a plebe! One of hundreds. He had been totally stripped of his individuality. He had the exact same haircut as Bobby -- and every other plebe! With his handsome face, white t-shirt, tan slacks, and freshly cut high and tight, Jared was the very picture of a clean-cut young military cadet -- an image he despised. But it was now HIM! Suddenly someone was barking orders at him with a deafening roar.


`YOU! PLEBE! Who told you could feel your head?`

`Well,` Jared answered tentatively, `No one ...`

`WHAT THE HELL? YOU ARE TO ADDRESS ME AS SIR AT ALL TIMES, PLEBE!`

`Yes sir.`

`WHAT?`

`YES SIR!` Jared shouted loudly.



Oh God, Jared thought, I can`t believe this. He glimpsed at the mirror again. There was a military cadet standing in a stiff, braced position of attention. His T-shirt was spotlessly white, his pants were perfectly creased, and his ultra-short haircut was perfectly groomed. But it wasn`t some stranger in a movie -- it was Jared! It was HIM! If they had made this huge a change in him in one short day, what would they do to him in a week ... or a month ... or a YEAR?


He vowed that some day he`d take his revenge on David, the mother f***er who had gotten him into this. He`d kill him! He`d strangle him! He`d ... his thoughts were abruptly cut off. `YOU! PLEBE! MOVE IT!` `Yes SIR!` he shouted reflexively. Oh my God, he thought, is this me? But as he was hurried along to the auditorium for a few hours of mind-numbing speeches, he ran his hand up the back of his bristly head, and along the short, rock-hard ridges of hair on top. No, he thought, this ISN`T me!


His room mate was a guy named Cody Miller. Cody`s identical twin brother, Jordan, had also joined the academy that day. `Nice haircut,` Cody said to Jared as he stowed his gear in the closet. `Can you believe this f***in haircut?` Jared replied. `No,` Cody answered, rubbing the back of his own head. `They call it a high and tight -- it`s HIGH on the sides and TIGHT on top. It`s the haircut Marines have! And you know what`s worse?` Cody asked. `Nothing could be worse,` Jared said with grim certainty.


`Oh yeah?` Cody countered, `Well, what about getting a haircut EVERY WEEK!` Jared`s mouth dropped to the floor. `You`re not serious.` `Dead serious,` Cody said. `I heard they make us get haircuts every damn week. By the time they`re finished with us, we`re gonna forget what we looked like with hair!` They`ll have us HATING long hair!


`Not me!` Jared said as he glanced at his reflection in the mirror in disgust. He noticed that on the dresser there was a jar of the same gel-glop they had put in his hair when he got his induction haircut. `God,` he asked Bobby, `they aren`t expecting us to keep putting that crap in our hair are they?` Bobby laughed. `Expecting? Hell no! They`re ORDERING us to use it. Every day! Take a look in that mirror, Jared buddy. That`s your new haircut -- for the next four years! You`d better get used to it.` Jared frowned. No matter what Cody said, he`d NEVER get used to his new high and tight haircut. Never! But he knew one thing -- that David kid, the one responsible for his being forced to go to military school, was going to pay. Oh, how he was going to pay. He`d beat the crap out of him! He`d strangle him! He`d kill him! He`d . . . he`d . . . TERRORIZE him!








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A THRILLING SEVEN-CHAPTER HAIRCUTTING SERIAL



Chapter Two: CODY`S BLACK BAG



As Jared marched down the hallway of Polk Hall, the overhead fluorescent lights made the polished brass insignia on his grey uniform throw off sparkles of light. His stiff, perfect high and tight glistened in the reflected light. Jared was proud to wear a high and tight haircut -- a real man`s haircut. His closely cropped head was a public demonstration of the dedication he had to Patton Military Academy.


Three and a half years ago, he had arrived at Patton as a trouble-making high school football jock -- forced by his father to `enlist` after an asshole kid named David had turned him in to the cops for bombing a car with a paint-filled balloon. He was a stupid kid with long hair and a bad attitude back then, and he had vowed they wouldn`t change him -- but they had. He could remember clearly the moment when he had realized he was different. His induction haircut had been traumatic, but the trauma grew less and less as he was forced to visit the Academy barbershop each week. After a few months, his weekly military haircut became routine. His father had marveled at the change in him during his first vacation back home. After being home almost two weeks, Jared noticed that after missing his weekly high and tight haircut for the first time in four months, his hair had grown in a bit. He couldn`t see the skin on the sides of his head any more, and it just didn`t feel right. He decided he needed a haircut. The look on his father`s face when Jared told him he was going to the town barber was priceless!


He`d never forgotten that trip to the barber. It was the first haircut he`d ever gotten where the barber`s chair faced the mirror! For the first time, he could watch as his head was buzzed -- and as he did, he felt not like his identity was being removed, as it he had during induction, but restored! His high and tight haircut was now part of who he was. When the barber showed him the shaved back of his head in the mirror, he nodded his approval, and felt a strange new satisfaction -- and in that moment, Jared Black had discovered who he was. He wasn`t a kid anymore. He was a young man. Since that moment years ago, he had made it a point to NEVER go more than a week without a haircut. Sometimes he let his room-mate Cody, or his twin brother Jordan, or one of his other buddies, buzz his head -- they`d all gotten pretty good at giving haircuts in the last three and a half years. More than anything else -- even more than the uniforms -- their high and tight haircuts set the cadets apart from everyone outside the walls of Patton.


Underclass cadets, seeing Jared`s approach, slammed themselves against the wall in the stiff, braced position of attention. Jared didn`t permit the smile he felt to reach his face. He never failed to feel a sense of elation at the sight of underclassmen frozen stiff at his approach. Their manequin-like forms represented their respect for his power. The underclassmen knew that Jared`s word was law.


As cadet colonel, the senior ranking cadet at the academy, Jared Black had only slightly less official power than the cadre and administration. In fact, inside the barracks, Jared had even more power than the cadre officers. Everyone knew it -- the other cadets, the cadre officers, even the administration. As cadet colonel, Jared moved among the cadets all day, every day. He knew the cadets inside and out. Nothing escaped Jared Black`s gaze. Since arriving at Patton Military Academy -- against his will, Jared reminded himself -- he had worked hard to join the elite corps of senior cadet officers.


Despite the odds against him, Jared had practiced and worked until he had become team captain of the gymnastics squad. The bulky muscles he had arrived with first semester were quickly trimmed down until his uniforms no longer constrained his movements; rather, they flowed with them. He had spent years practicing `The Look` in front of a mirror. Every cadet quickly came to know `The Look,` that unnerving gaze focused upon underclassmen which took in everything and revealed nothing in return. Every upperclass cadet officer had their own variation of `The Look.` Some used half lowered eyelids to give the impression of sleepy menace, some went for the narrowed slit-eyed look -- but none could match Jared`s ice cold gaze.


Jared knew that `The Look` wasn`t a physical manifestation of narrowing one`s eyelids, or half dropping them. `The Look` was a reflection of the inner essence -- if one demanded perfection and nothing less, it came through in `The Look.` Jared`s bright blue eyes never wavered right or left as he strode down the hallway, yet they missed nothing. Ahead of him, a plebe tried vainly to find a place to hide before bracing to attention. Already he knew Jared had spotted him and the one flaw in his appearance. Jared stopped smartly in front of the plebe -- for a full thirty seconds he remained as motionless as the cadet. He watched with pleasure at the fear rounding out the younger boy`s eyes. It never failed -- they tried to remain impassive while bracing, but the fear always showed.


Jared`s right hand rose -- the index and middle fingers extended slightly, the other two fingers and thumb curled -- and brushed the side of the plebe`s head. The plebe had tried to dodge academy rules regarding military appearance by letting his mousy brown hair grow long, and was trying to hide this fact by brushing it straight back. That way, it didn`t touch his ears. The trick didn`t fool Jared -- his slightly curled fingers clawed the plebe`s hair down until it touched his ear. `You seem to have a problem with following the rules, maggot.` Jared`s voice was quiet, but commanding. He seldom raised his voice above a normal speaking tone.


`This is the second time you`ve been warned,` Jared`s extended index finger shot forward in front of the plebe`s nose, cutting off his protest before it reached his lips. `Sergeant Carmody gave you two demerits three weeks ago.` The plebe`s eyes grew rounder in defeat. `You have an appointment with Major Miller at nineteen hundred tonight, shower uniform. Tell him to show you the black bag.` Jared wheeled away without waiting for a response. None was needed. Back at the room he shared with Cody Miller, Jared finally permitted himself the luxury of a smile. He entered without knocking. Cadet Major Cody Miller was stripped to the waist, pumping ten pound dumbbells, his back to the door.


Jared closed the door with a loud click, causing Cody to turn in surprise. He lowered the dumbbells, grabbed a towel, and mopped the sweat from his closely-cropped blond crewcut. Except for that crewcut, it was impossible to tell Cody apart from his twin brother, Jordan, who wore his hair just slightly longer. `I saw Pettimore in the hall a moment ago,` Jared said, dropping onto the bed. Cody cocked an eyebrow. `He`s coming around for some `special counseling` at nineteen hundred. I told him you were going to show him the Black Bag.` `Matt warned him about his hair this morning,` Cody said. `Brushing it straight back to keep from visiting the barber as often as he should -- what bulls**t.` Cody opened his desk drawer and glanced at the small Black Bag inside.


`He`s in your company,` Jared said softly. `I`d hate to hold YOU responsible for HIS shortcomings.` Cody`s hand shot to his head, feeling the soft blonde hair and the tiny fringe of bangs that feathered across his forehead. He had just gotten out of the shower, and hadn`t gelled his hair yet -- he knew that annoyed Jared. How he had changed since first coming to Patton! `I`d hate to do it,` Jared continued wryly, `but, I don`t like the same infractions repeating themselves again and again.` Cody nodded in understanding. He knew Jared was his roommate and his buddy, but he also knew Jared was his superior -- and he WOULD shave Cody`s head if he didn`t fix the problem. Jared rose, automatically smoothing his uniform. `Catch you later.`


The chapel bells had barely finished tolling the hour when Henry Pettimore pounded on the open door and snapped back to attention. Even from across the room, Cody could see the trembling in the plebe`s limbs. He looked almost ridiculous standing at attention in his maroon bath robe and flip flops. `Enter, knob.` Cody growled. Pettimore stepped smartly into the room and took a breath to announce himself. `SIR! CADET PETTIMORE REPORTING AS ORDERED! SIR, COLONEL BLACK ASKED YOU TO SHOW ME THE BLACK BAG, SIR!`


Cody`s twin brother, Jordan, stalked across the room. Dressed in gym shorts and a tight grey academy tee shirt, Jordan looked almost as if he was on the wrestling mat about to take down an opponent. Circling behind Pettimore, Jordan reached out and grabbed a handful of hair on the top of his head. Jordan couldn`t believe it -- the knob had over two inches on top! Jordan pulled his hand away and sniffed his fingers -- the little prick had been greasing his hair down to fool his squad sergeants. Jordan crossed to his brother and whispered the information to him. Cody nodded curtly. He`d soon fix the problem in his company.


Without warning, Cody spun away from his brother and stood nose to nose with the frightened plebe. `Colonel Black made a special visit to me today, knob.` Cody said quietly. `You know why?` As Pettimore opened his mouth to answer, Cody slapped him lightly on the side of the head. `SHUT UP! I don`t to hear one f***ing word come out of you, knob!` Cody`s face turned bright red as the muscles stood out in his neck. `The ranking cadet on campus came to ream me out because YOU don`t like getting a haircut! He told me to make sure you get with the program -- or else he`d see to it that I learned a lesson. Do you want to see me get my head shaved, knob?`


`NO, SIR!` Pettimore replied instantly.


`You have a problem with keeping with the program in Alpha Company, knob?` Cody leaned forward until the tip of his nose actually touched Pettimore`s. `Answer me, asshole.`


`Sir, Alpha Company`s haircut regulations are stricter than the rest of the academy.` Pettimore said. `That`s because we`re the f***ing BEST!` Cody screamed. `You know why we`re the best?` Pettimore began to open his mouth to answer. `SHUT UP!` Cody broke in. `I`ll tell you why we`re the best -- it`s because we exceed all requirements. We have the best athletes, the best scholars, the best JROTC, the best appearance.` Cody stepped back, taking a deep breath. The color began to slowly drain from his face. He softened his voice again. `Are you content to be less than the best, Henry?`


The use of his first name confused the plebe. `Sir?` `You came to this school because it`s the best prep school in the state, right?` Jordan smiled to himself at his brother`s sudden change of strategy. Keep the enemy off balance, Jordan recalled from Tactics Class. `Well, my job is to make sure that you leave here the best you can be.` Cody pulled a chair from the desk, placed it in the middle of the room, then pulled the Black Bag out of his desk drawer. Pettimore stared at it in terror.


`Get the robe off and have a seat, knob. Let`s get that nasty s**t off your head. I`m going to give you a man`s haircut!` Pettimore swallowed and unknotted the sash to his robe. His gym shorts and tee shirt hung loosely on him. Cody made a mental note to make sure the knob got harder workouts during P.T. Pettimore sat stiffly in the chair as Jordan reached out and took his robe from him. Cody stepped in front of the plebe holding his Black Bag. He placed it on the desk, zipped it open, and produced a can of shaving cream, a jar of butch wax, a black-handled razor, and -- most ominously -- a pair of black electric hair clippers.


Cody had to force himself not to smile at the look of dejection on the plebe`s face. He plugged the clippers in and clicked them on. Buzzing filled the room as Cody took the Pettimore`s chin in his left hand, tilted the boy`s head back and held it firmly in place. Cody placed the clippers on Pettimore`s forehead and pushed them straight back towards the crown. Clumps of mousy brown hair piled up in front of the blades and rolled to the sides. With a flick of his wrist, Cody sent the clippings tumbling to Pettimore`s shoulder.


From the edge of his bunk, Jordan watched as his brother ran the clippers over the frightened knob`s head. Cody had started right in the middle of the plebe`s head, giving him a reverse mohawk. The single wide path of white skin under the remaining brown stubble gave the plebe a ridiculous look. Jordan grinned as he watched his twin reposition the clippers for the second pass -- in a way, it was almost like watching himself in a movie. Cody took his time setting the clippers on the plebe`s forehead and resting them for a second before slowly pushing them straight back. The strip of fuzz doubled as the clipped tufts of hair dropped away from the buzzing blades.


Two passes later, Cody stepped back to regard his handiwork. Jordan couldn`t help letting a chuckle escape his throat. The top of Pettimore`s head had been buzzed to stubble, leaving a fringe of mousy brown hair around the sides and back of his head. Pettimore took the opportunity during the pause in Cody`s clipping to reach up and feel the top of his head. Jordan almost fell off the bed laughing at the terrorized look in the plebe`s eyes. Obviously, the kid had gotten used to being able to get some hair between his fingers every time he ran his hand over his head. Now, the top was reduced to little more than stubble. Pettimore`s vision seemed to blur as his eyes filled with tears.


With perfect timing, Cody snapped the clippers back on and attacked the right side of Pettimore`s head. Now the tufts of hair dropped directly onto the plebe`s shoulder, piling up with each pass of the clippers. Cody worked smoothly, pushing the humming clippers up the side of Pettimore`s head in straight even rows. Each pass of the clippers took Cody farther and farther around Pettimore`s head. A tear rolled silently down the seated cadet`s face as Cody finished his work, then rubbed some butch wax on what was left of Pettimore`s hair. Jordan watched, and began to feel a growing disgust with the plebe.


Cody snapped the clippers off and casually brushed the clippings from Pettimore`s shoulders onto the floor. `That`s the last time you`ll ever see that much hair on the floor, maggot,` Cody growled. `From this day on, knob, you will report here every Saturday night at nineteen hundred hours for a haircut.` Cody snapped the clippers on and off to emphasize his statement. `Every Saturday, your head will look exactly like it does right now.` Cody lead Pettimore to the mirror over the sink in the corner and forced him to take a good look. The plebe choked back an involuntary sob at the sight of his newly-buzzed head. As Cody watched Pettimore fight back tears, a wild gleam filled his eyes. He couldn`t help but let out a demonic chuckle. A fantastic idea was forming in his mind -- a plan he couldn`t wait to put into action!








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A THRILLING SEVEN-CHAPTER HAIRCUTTING SERIAL



Chapter Three: JORDAN`S SACRIFICE




`What are you bawling about, you baby?` Jordan demanded from his top bunk. `It`s only a haircut!` Pettimore turned, unsure of what to say. He stood teary-eyed, rubbing the stubble covering his head. He looked pathetic standing there, pouting because of the forced high and tight haircut he had just been given by Jordan`s twin brother, Cody. More than anything else, Pettimore`s stupid little boy look enraged Jordan. He suddenly leapt down off the bed and grabbed the clippers from his brother.


Snapping them on, Jordan snarled, then ran the clippers straight over the top of his own head! Wheat-colored tufts of hair fell past his face with each pass of the clippers and mingled with the mousy brown clumps of Pettimore`s hair on the floor. Jordan continued pass after pass with the clippers, quickly reducing his golden burr cut to fuzz. His eyes never left the pouty plebe`s face. When the last of his blonde hair was on the floor, Jordan straightened, ran his hand over the top of his head and smiled savagely.


Pettimore gulped and quickly wiped away his tears. This guy was a maniac! He glanced fearfully from one twin to the other -- both wrestlers just glared back at him, smiles playing across their faces. Involuntarily, Pettimore took a step back. Cody shot a pile of shaving creme into his outstretched palm and pretended to study it. Pettimore`s knees turned rubbery -- the upperclassman looked serious. Grinning wider, Cody spread the white foam on the right side of the plebe`s head, then the back, careful not to get any of the shaving creme onto the top of the plebe`s head. Finishing in front of the left ear, Cody stepped back and admired his handiwork.


Pettimore looked even more ridiculous -- his eyes round and frightened and the sides of his head covered in thick white foam. `Turn around.` Cody ordered. Pettimore spun on his heel and faced the mirror. He felt his bladder weaken slightly and almost wet his gym shorts. Bright red patches of humiliation colored his cheeks and ears -- making him look even more comical. He stood stiffly in front of the sink, biting the inside of his lip to keep the tears he felt forming in check. Cody rummaged in his black bag and came up with a fresh disposable razor. He laid the blue plastic razor on the sink, turned on the hot water tap and stepped back. `You got the guts to finish the job?` Cody asked quietly, sitting down next to his brother.


Pettimore swallowed and glanced down at the razor again. He could see the twins reflected behind him, watching him intently. He knew they both thought he was a wimp. Maybe he was. He had tried to hide his long hair by greasing it back, and Jared had discovered him and ordered him to the room Jared shared with Cody for a haircut. He hadn`t been able to keep from crying while his hair was being cut. Pettimore noticed Jordan leaning close to his brother, whispering in Cody`s ear. Pettimore glanced down at the blue plastic razor again. He was surprised to see his trembling fingers reaching for the razor. He plunged the razor into the stream of hot water, took a deep breath and raised it to his head. Pettimore placed the razor at the top of the white foam and let it rest there for a moment. He couldn`t believe he was doing this. He glanced back at the twins -- they expected him to drop the razor.


Pettimore could see the look of doubt on each of their faces. Screw you both, he thought. Pettimore pulled the razor straight down past his right ear. The fresh blade easily plowed through the foam and stubble, leaving a path of shining pink scalp in its wake. Pettimore rinsed the blade in the hot water and made another pass, suddenly amazed that he was actually shaving the side of his head. Making a third pass, Pettimore glanced at the reflection of the twins again. Neither showed any expression of interest -- they just sat side by side watching him. Pettimore continued moving the razor around the side of his head. Reaching the back, Pettimore paused. `Uh, I`m going to need some help with the back,` Pettimore said. `Finish the other side, plebe` Cody ordered him.


Pettimore nodded and quickly began shaving the left side of his head. Despite his actions, his knees were still rubbery and most of his body continued to tremble. Only the hand with the razor seemed to remain steady. Suddenly, Cody was behind him. Cody took the razor from Pettimore`s fingers. The plebe`s hand dropped limply to the sink. Cody scraped the razor around the back of Pettimore`s head, removing the white foam and remaining stubble. He carefully drew the razor around the edges of the patch of hair on the top of Pettimore`s head, leaving a sharp line of demarcation between the stubble on the top of his head and the smooth skin below. Cody dropped the razor into the waste can and tossed Pettimore a wash cloth. `Clean yourself up.` Pettimore rinsed the cloth in the water, wrung it out and swiped it across his scalp.


Setting the cloth down, Pettimore turned and faced the older cadets. `Is this better, sir?` Cody held back laughter. `How do you feel?` Jordan demanded. `Not nearly as terrible as you thought, was it?` Pettimore was surprised to find that he actually liked the attention and the feeling of acceptance from these two upperclassmen. `It wasn`t bad at all, sir.` Suddenly, Cody couldn`t hold back any longer -- he busted out laughing. Jordan and then Pettimore quickly joined him. Pettimore roared as he ran his hands ran over his freshly buzzed and shaved head. Jordan laughed so hard he was in tears!


Walking back to his room later, Pettimore was amused by the shocked glances of the other plebes. Several of them instinctively rubbed their own short hair as if wondering if the same fate awaited them. Pettimore was already looking forward to next Saturday, and his next haircut. He decided he`d keep the sides and back shaved smooth himself -- he`d let only the small patch of fuzz on top grow week to week. That would impress the twins, and Pettimore knew that he would do anything to maintain the respect of the two blonde cadets.


Back in the twins` room, Jordan handed Cody the clippers. `Hey bro,` he told his twin, `Clean me up.` Cody began buzzing his brothers head, evening up the wild strokes Jordan had used to shave his own head moments ago. Cody still couldn`t believe that Jordan had run the clippers over his beloved hair! Back before they were forced to come to Patton, both twins had been proud of their wavy blonde, nearly shoulder-length locks. Jordan, however, was the more vain of the two -- he had always been combing, brushing, or just running his fingers through his straw colored waves of hair. The first haircut at the Academy had been hard on both boys, but Cody knew better than anyone else how pained Jordan had been to have the clippers remove his prized mane. Jordan wouldn`t have submitted to that first shearing for anyone but Cody. As twins, they were even closer than most brothers.


In his sophomore year at high school, Jordan had been sick with the flu when Cody got caught vandalizing a rival high school just before homecoming . It had been a long-standing tradition -- students from each school marked the other school. In the past, activities were usually confined to tossing rolls of toilet paper in the trees and stupid s**t like that. Cody decided to really make a mark that no one would ever forget. He`d turn the biology lab into a swimming pool! It had taken him hours to make preparations -- quietly removing a small pane of glass in the door to the room, caulking the cracks around the door and letting the silicon caulk harden. Then, Cody snaked the emergency fire hose down the hall, slid it through the transom and tied it place.


Turning the valve on, Cody watched as water gushed into the room. Within minutes, a couple of inches spread evenly across the tile floor, and an empty waste basket began to float before capsizing. Cody decided to wait until the water depth was about three feet and then turn off the hose -- a big mistake. While he was sitting on the floor in the hallway, Cody had heard the sounds of someone moving furtively up the stairs. He quickly ducked into the girls room opposite the stairs and, keeping the door cracked, watched the staircase. A moment later Todd Bryant, a student at Cody`s rival high school appeared. He spotted Cody.


Todd had been hanging posters of the captain of the rival school`s football team throughout the building. The posters had the team captain`s head photocopied onto a ballerina`s body, making it look like the football player was wearing a tutu! Cody led Todd to the biology lab to show off his handiwork, and instead of being impressed, Todd was horrified. He insisted that Cody turn off the water immediately -- he even tried to pull the hose out of the room. In the struggle that followed as Cody tried to stop Todd, the hose fell free and began spraying water across the hallway, soaking both boys and setting off the fire alarm.


Every bell in the school immediately went off, filling the halls with an earsplitting ringing. Somehow, Todd managed to get to his feet on the slippery tiles and make his escape. Cody had more trouble keeping his balance and lost precious minutes slipping and sliding to the stairs. Once on the steps, Cody managed to jump three stairs at a time down to the main floor. Without bothering to look back, Cody burst through the front doors of the school and straight into the arms of a cop. In the end, Cody`s dad had paid for all the damages, which the old man was not too happy about, and Cody was kicked out of school.


Cody and Jordan`s dad had played football in high school himself, so even though he was furious, he wasn`t completely without understanding -- although he did ground Cody for 6 months. Cody thought he`d dodged a bullet -- but the following week his father walked in on him while he was smoking a joint. If not for the previous incident he might have been willing to forget about that too -- but combined it was just too much to take. Cody was turning into a `bad kid.` Within a week, Cody`s dad informed him to pack up for Patton Military Academy.


Jordan was horrified -- he didn`t want to be separated from his brother. Jordan lobbied their dad every day, begging him not to separate them. In the end, the old man agreed to keep them together -- at Patton. Jordan agreed to sacrifice his own plans to be with his twin. Cody remembered the first day at the academy -- the shouting, the marching, the uniform issue. But most of all he remembered the barbershop.


As Jordan slipped reluctantly into the barber`s chair, Cody could see the pain on his brother`s face. Jordan flinched when the barber snapped the clippers on. Not only could Cody see the pain and discomfort in his brother`s face, he could actually feel Jordan`s pain. Digging his strong fingers into the carefully brushed waves of blonde hair on Jordan`s head, the barber forced his head forward and plunged the clippers into the mass of wavy blonde hair curling over Jordan`s neck. Cody watched as the blonde locks fell onto his brother`s shoulders. The pile on Jordan`s shoulders grew with each pass of the buzzing clippers until it finally tumbled down into Jordan`s lap. The barber gave Jordan`s head a shake to keep him still as he plowed the clippers up the side of the boy`s head.


The straw colored waves kept raining down onto the cape covering Jordan`s lap as more and more white scalp was exposed. The barber moved at a fast, steady pace, grinning evilly. Finally, only the top of Jordan`s head had any hair left. The long waves of golden blonde hair spilled across his face as the barber shifted his left hand from the top of Jordan`s head to the back. Holding Jordan`s head steady, the barber forced his head forward even further, so that his face was pointed directly at the huge mound of shorn hair in his lap. Cody watched as the clippers moved from Jordan`s forehead back across the top of his head. He felt sick, knowing his twin was suffering because of something he did. With five athletic swipes of the clippers, the barber easily buzzed the top of Jordan`s head to stubble.


After what seemed like a very long time, it was over. Jordan`s long hair lay on the floor. Jordan got out of the barber`s chair, then turned towards the mirror. His face was a mask of shock as he stared at his new haircut. He rubbed a hand over his freshly buzzed head, and glanced over at Cody in disgust. Their eyes met. Jordan knew Cody felt for him, and Cody knew Jordan forgave him. Cody had promised that day that he would make it up to his brother somehow. He`d never figured out just how to do it -- until now.


Cody finished up the last few strokes on Jordan`s`s impromptu haircut. `All done,` he said as he rubbed his hand across his twins head. `Thanks man,` his brother told him. Cody smiled. Remembering how a kid named Todd had ruined his carefully laid plan -- and caused Jordan to suffer for his mistake, and watching Jordan roar with laughter at Pettimore`s forced high and tight, a fantastic plan clicked in Cody`s mind. At last, Cody knew exactly how he was going to atone for Jordan`s sacrifice!

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