Unexpected quarantine haircut – Part 1 by Tzara

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Note: This is a fictional story

I have been quarantined for about 4-5 months and it was also the last time I got a proper haircut since the quarantine started. I have always had medium-short hair neatly trimmed into a long business cut. I have had this haircut for such a long time, but I haven’t thought about getting a different haircut or maybe I was just scared of what will people think. On the other hand, I have always admired people with military short haircuts because they just look so clean and neat, and I secretly in my mind wanted one too. The ones I completely loved were flattops, buzzed mohawks, and high and tight.

I was getting very frustrated by my haircut because it was getting out of control and I just didn’t like how messy it looked. I had my hair all over my ears so it looked like a helmet, which I completely hated. Every morning I tried to style it to make it look normal because I didn’t want to go to my university online classes with a messy haircut like this. It was mostly because my "friends" were making fun of me in front of 50 other students and I felt completely embarrassed every single time they did that. I have tried a couple of times to tell the professor that my camera isn’t working, but he always knew that I was lying and made to turn it back on.

I wanted to make it stop, but the only option was to get a haircut which was almost impossible because barbershops and salons were not allowed to be open. I have tried to text my stylist if she could come to my house and give me a regular haircut, she never replied. I was getting frustrated that I couldn’t find a way how to get my hair cut to make it normal, until one day.

I was looking out of my window when I saw something that gave me hope. When I looked at my neighbor’s garden I saw my neighbor. She was a medium tell, a mid-aged woman with light hair cut into a very short symmetrical bob with the completely shaved nape. She was standing in front of a very young boy sitting on a wooden chair with a cape and paper towels around his neck. There were also another 4 boys in the same age as the boy sitting in the chair, two of them had their head buzzed into a very short stubble.

I could see their very light pale skin on their head and their hands going over and over through the shorn head. The remaining two boys had very long mob hair and I could see that they have almost started to cry because they knew that they are about the get their heads buzzed to the bone. There was also a medium-age man standing next to the 4 boys, probably their dad, with a military haircut looking similar to a high and tight recon. The boy in the chair was not even breathing how tight the woman was holding his head and making a white stripe on his head with every single move.

I was kinda curious to see them all get the same haircut so I kept watching until they all had the short haircut. After seeing this I got an idea that she could probably help me to get a proper haircut, but I wasn’t sure if she is a real hairdresser, because everyone knows how to buzz someone’s head so I wasn’t sure about her skills. After some hours I have decided to go and ask her if she knows how to cut hair and maybe ask her if she could give me my regular business cut. I knocked on her door and she opened it within ten seconds, I was immediately surprised by how nice she was. After some basic talk, she told me that she is a real hairdresser and there is no problem with giving me a haircut. She told me that she is free tomorrow at 4 pm and I agreed.

When I got back home I was happy that I’m finally gonna get a haircut and no one is gonna make fun of me. The next day when I woke up I was getting kinda stressed because I have used the same hairdresser for ages, and she already knew how to cut my hair without even asking what I want. I was trying to come up with the best explanation so she knows what I after she comes to cut my hair. I was anxious about it because I didn’t want her to mess up my haircut even more. To make it easier for me I have decided to look for some pics on the internet so I can just show her what I want. After an hour of searching, I have found exactly what I wanted and I was ready to just show her the picture. Ten minutes before 4 pm I put a bedsheet on the floor in the kitchen and put a chair directly in the middle to make everything ready.

Exactly at 4, someone knocked on my door and when I opened it was her carrying a small bag full of various barber tools. I let her in and we immediately went to the kitchen. When I sit down she very kindly told me to take off my shirt. I was a little bit confused but I did what she told me. After that, she put a paper towel very tight around my neck, and then she added a black barber cape. When I was quietly sitting in the chair, she was going through my hair with her finger and said, "That’s a lot of hair, but don’t worry I will make it short and neat again" I nervously smiled and she asked me, "So what are we doing sweetheart?". I took a phone from my pocket and showed her the pic I already prepared to show her. She was looking at it for 10 seconds and said, "That’s still pretty long" and grabbed her phone and showed me a picture of a soldier with very short hair with almost no hair on the sides and a flat box of hair on top of his head and asked me, "What about this one sweetheart? It’s perfect for your face shape."

I didn’t even have a chance to reply when she suddenly pushed my head until my chin was touching my chest and said, "Let’s do it I will make it a little longer for you, you are gonna love it!". When she did that, I could imagine how the boy I saw yesterday getting his head completely buzzed was feeling. I could feel sharp blades running through my hair and see huge bulk of hair falling on the bedsheet and the cape. After 3 minutes my sides and back were done and she moved to the top of my head. It took so long until she was fully satisfied with the look of my flattop. I was very nervous to see how it’s gonna look like and how short it is. Then she took a hand mirror and handed it to my hair so I can see the final results of her work. When I saw myself in the mirror I couldn’t believe my eyes. Instead of a man with a shaggy haircut, a saw myself looking exactly like the guy in the picture she showed me before. She kept running her hand on my back feeling the little hair and said, "What do you think sweetheart? Do you like it?" I wasn’t sure what to say so I just slowly nodded.

She put the paper towel and the cape away and told me to wash my hair in the bathroom because I had small spiky hair all over my neck. When I came to the bathroom I immediately looked at myself in the mirror and started to inspect my new haircut. I didn’t know what to think because my feeling was very mixed but mostly I was anxious about the new change and what others will think. It could be a lot shorter but still, it was a huge change for me. I could see my white scalp on my sides that was caused by the big amount of hair that was blocking my shin from sunlight for such a long time. The hair on top of my head was much longer than my hair on my sides, perfectly flattened. Before I washed my head, I have run my hands through my shorn scalp because I have never felt anything like this before and I kinda liked the feeling of the short and spiky hair. I completely loved the feeling of running water on my short hair and I was enjoying every minute of it. Once I washed my head I took a towel and returned to the kitchen while I was drying.

It looked completely different when my hair wasn’t standings perfectly, when she saw it she giggled a little and run her hair again through my shorn scalp on my neck and said, "Have a seat sweetheart, I will show you how to style it." I immediately sat back to the chair shirtless and still a little wet from the shower. She was working very precisely to make it look perfect and neat. It took her almost 10 minutes until she was completely satisfied with the look. After that, she handed me a hand mirror and told me some tips on how to always keep it looking neat like this. To make it easier for me to style she gave a special hair wax to make the hair standing perfectly.

I paid her very generously for coming to my house and giving me a haircut during the quarantine. She gave me her number to call her every other week to keep it looking fresh. I wasn’t sure if I’m gonna keep this very short haircut or so I just politely nodded. After she left I picked up the bedsheet with a huge amount of hair and threw it into the bin.

To be continued… (Difficulties with styling, online class with my new haircut in front of others, possible horseshoe version of the haircut, and many more)

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