05: Brad Inspires A Friend by burrlypup

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This tale continues the previously numbered series involving the razor wielding seductress, Charity,

*Jacob’s Perspective*


Sam has been my boss for nearly five years and he’s always worn his wavy blond hair clipped on the sides with a #3, tapered up to three or four inches on top, and swept to the side without any product. I overheard him speaking with a customer about haircuts – the customer had a completely shaven head, by choice – you could see where his hair was and he definitely was not going bald. He kept rubbing his shaven scalp as they spoke. Sam commented how it must take balls to ‘go all the way’, which made the customer – seemingly a regular – blush deeply. As I bagged customers groceries on auto-pilot, I listened as Sam continued his conversation which changed to football. They really seemed to hit it off and I could hear them planning to watch the next game at Sams’ place on Sunday. Now Sam is looking at me. I fumble the celery and can of beans, then re-gain my composure and continue bagging.

*Perspective changes to Sam*

I can’t believe Brad shaved his head! He’s always had a long, ginger braid to his butt, so I was floored to see him completely bald. His scalp was so white, my eyes must have bulged. I hope he doesn’t think I was being rude. It was like a trainwreck, I couldn’t take my eyes off with his tan face and white dome. It’ll be nice to catch up with some beers and games this weekend. Hope he wears a hat though, I can’t imagine leaving my house looking like that. The thought of him making such a huge change stuck with me and I started to ponder my own interests in short hair. Then, my thoughts drifted back to work matters. It’s been a slow afternoon so I figured I could pull one of my checkers to help me stock pallets. I caught a glimpse of a very robust looking Jacob, so I turned off his checker light and we headed back to the backroom. Perhaps I chose him also because he’s worn a buzzcut for as long as he’s worked here, recently taking it down to almost nothing. I start to wonder if he’d ever shave his head like Brad? As we unload the truck, I take the chance to strike up a conversation.

"I saw you looking over a few times during the rush, did you need something?" I asked.

"No, Sir. I was just distracted by that guys head. It was so shiny." Jacob replied, walking right into where I had hoped he would.

"Oh, just call me Sam, and yeah, that’s Brad, he’s a friend of mine. I was distracted too, totally caught me off guard since he usually wears his hair past his butt. Your hair is already short, probably a week to grow back after a full cueball like Brad." I played my card, seeing if he’d bite.

"The dress code is vague about extreme hairstyles, so I tend to play it safe with the union being so persnickety. They told me my shoes weren't black enough."

"If you want to try it I wouldn’t say anything. As far as the union, they're all bark and no bite."

"Maybe after I get a tan, then," Jacob winked at me and we both laughed.

"Why don’t you come to my place on Sunday? I’ll have a bunch of buddies over, free beer, and I’ll get you off Monday if you’re hungover," I offered. "And Brad will be there, though I might require him to wear a hat so we're not all blinded," I said, Jacob chuckled.

"That sounds fun, count me in." Jacob replied, then piled the last of the boxes onto the pallet. We walked back to the front of the shop and it was still slow, so we backed into the cash counting room. I hadn’t noticed how built Jacob was; in my mind, he was always this scrawny kid who started here at sixteen, but at 21 he certainly has grown into a strapping young man. Not that I’m much older, I’m 26, but tall and lean with much less muscle mass.

"Do you work out?" I asked as we walked side by side.

"Sure do, tonight is chest and arms. Do you need a workout buddy?" Jacob asked candidly.

"I might. I was just noticing how muscular you’ve gotten since you started here."

"Thanks, it’s hard work but I’m glad it’s paying off. You know, I think a bald dome might suit me. I was going to eventually, when I get totally buff. I usually buzz my hair on Saturday nights and now that I have your permission, I might just ‘bic’ ‘it."

"’Bic’ it?" I asked.

"Oh, ‘shave’ it. I wouldn't use a bic. Gillette sent me one of those fancy five bladed razors in the mail, so maybe this is a sign to finally go for the Vin Diesel look." Jacob explained, rubbing his half inch pelt of thick, brown hair.

"Can I do it? I’ve kind of always wanted to shave a dudes head." I asked, prepared to hear a 'no' or for Jacob to backpeddle out of it.

"Man that would be awesome! That way, I wouldn’t worry about missing a spot. I mean, I’ve seen dudes with unshaved patches on the backs of their heads and thought, ‘that will never be me.’" Jacob explained, to my delight. I don't know why, but the thought of shaving Jacobs' head excited me. Perhaps more than it should.

"Cool, well bring your clippers and stuff over to my place Saturday night then, we can start the party early and you can crash on my couch. It's really comfy, sometimes I prefer sleeping on it rather than my bed."

"Sounds like a plan. I hope this doesn't come across as tactless, but I’ve been meaning to ask about the upcoming pay raise. Last year I got bumped up a nickel because of the unions terrible negotiating skills. I stayed because I own stock now, but I’ve got a good offer at the new Complete Foods across town," Jacob mentioned.

"Well, get me a number to match and we'll talk. If it's reasonable, I’ll ask HR to retroactively increase your pay and the next increase definitely will be more than a nickel if I'm still around," I told him, which he responded with two thumbs up and an exaggerated nodding motion, smiling. The office was getting hot with two adult males, perhaps I was redder in the face than I let on. Jacob seemed to be pushing all the right buttons and I started to wonder who was in control?

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