Making Liz VERY happy by Manny

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Checking the schedule, I was happy to see my first client of the day was Matthew. What a heart-throb! Movie-star looks and the most fantastic head of thick, glossy blond hair imaginable. Of course, he knew his mane was an asset because he wore his hair quite long. The natural highlights, the sheen, the texture -- all on perpetual display as he casually flicked his head this way and that, almost imperceptibly, to unleash dazzling shimmer and invite attention. For a stylist, Matthew's hair was heaven. Looking at it, washing it, fondling it, cutting it....

When I went into the waiting room of the salon to summon him back to the privacy of my styling station, his hair looked more amazing than ever...longer than ever too. The silken locks were at least six inches long with curtains of hair tumbling partly over both of his wonderful blue eyes.

Matthew flashed a toothy grin as I invited him to follow me.

"It's been a while," I commented nonchalantly.

"It has. Been busy, I guess," Matthew noted, running his fingers through his hair to try to clear his line of vision a bit.

While I could have led him straight to the washing station, I decided to have a little consultation with him first in the low-slung styling chair.

I took the brush and pulled his copious forelock straight back, away from Matthew's handsome face.

"So, it looks like you might have a bit of a growing out stage going on," I noted as my fingers smoothed down the thick hair. "You're blessed with incredible hair! I mean, it's the type that would look great at ANY length. Down to the shoulder blades or clipped close to the scalp, like a military crop...and everything in between."

When I mentioned a military length, I thought I felt Matthew squirm. Perhaps it was an instinctive dodging motion, as if to evade a huge set of clippers bearing down on his pampered locks to decimated his precious mane.

Oh, that would be a wonderful experience! Introduce Matthew to the clippers and watch the glory fall off in shimmering sheaves! Mounds of his silken treasure piling up at my feet! His shorn head sticking up like a naked lightbulb!

"How long would it take to grow my hair to my shoulder blades?" he asked, quite reversing my mental image.

I brushed the thick locks that hung from his nape to just below the shoulders. "Your hair grows quickly. Uh, I'd say about 6-8 months. You'd end up with one massive ponytail! Of course, you would want it trimmed periodically in the growing out phase to keep from getting a mangy, ungroomed look."

Matthew smiled a bit mischievously, "And in the other direction? How long would a crewcut take?"

"Six to eight minutes?" I laughed. "We wouldn't even have to wash this!"

"Straight to the clippers," Matthew chortled, pointing at the Oster's that were right within reach.

"Click, buzzzzzzz....and bald!" I laughed.

Then, he continued, "No, I'll take a pass on bald today."

He ran his fingers through his forelock again. "But, something needs to happen here. I have a new girlfriend....Liz....and this hair over my eyes drives her crazy. She's forever pushing it around, like she's a little mother."

"Don't worry. Liz will love the way you look when you leave here today. She'll be one happy lady after I've pruned back this overgrowth," I exclaimed, plying my fingers through his lovely hair one last time before taking him to the washing booth.

As I doused his hair with warm water, Matthew seemed to relax fully in his reclined position. "Ah, this is my favorite part of the visit! You have such strong fingers....the scalp massage feels heavenly."

His praise egged me on. I used my fingertips to stimulate his scalp with more force and to keep the wash phase going on twice what was needed to get his locks squeaky clean.

He groaned with pleasure as I hovered closely over him and worked my magic. Then I began rinsing the rich lather from his clean locks. A fresh towel of fine Egyptian cotton absorbed the excess moisture. Matthew seemed to savor all of my close attention and care.

"Do you make house calls?" he asked with a playful tone.

Was he flirting with me?!

"All right! Back to the chair to...." I replied curtly.

"....to prune the overgrowth!" Matthew quipped enthusiastically.

I caping him up snuggly; then, using a wide-tooth comb to untangle his dense locks, prepared him for a scissors-cut.

I combed the damp forelock straight down over his azure eyes. The longest part in the middle almost reached his lip!

"If you waited a few more weeks, this might be long enough to tuck behind your ears," I suggested.

Matthew grimaced a bit, "Naw, cut it," he instructed.

I brought my shears right to the middle of the eyebrow and pressed the outer blade against it. Almost three inches of wet strands hung beneath the gleaming metal.

"This length would make Liz happy," I noted.

Matthew smiled.

Then, I felt inspired to give him another option. I slipped the open blade behind the wet hair and moved the shears upward, a full inch above the top of the brow!

"And, this length would make Liz VERY happy!" I exclaimed.

Again, Matthew squirmed. I could see him gripping the armrests under the cape.

"Yes, let's make her VE-RY hap..."

Before he could finish the word, I clamped the shears closed and sent over four inches to the cape!! CHOP, CHOP. Off the bangs were snipped. SHORT! Extremely SHORT! Once dry, they would be even shorter, I thought to myself. Oh, he was in for quite a change. No more waves of shimmering gold cascading over his blue eyes.

Matthew's excitement of ordering the shearing was short-lived. My caped client's face soon portrayed his developing cold feet. Matthew's face morphed from a rapturous into a worried look. The bangs were so short!!!

"No more hair in your eyes," I announced as I combed the short strands to make them appear even shorter -- at mid-forehead.

"Yes," his dry-mouth replied. "I can see that clearly."

"And, the pruning has just begun! I'm taking at least four inches off all over," I announced cheerfully.

With that, I snagged another copious amount of wet hair on top, whacking off four inches. The sound of the shears sawing off the thick, wet hair was like music. Again and again and again. Seize, immobilize and CHOP! Seize, immobilize and CHOP! Hair fell in torrents to the cape. Matthew was going to leave my chair with a very short, tidy look!

He looked aimlessly down at the pile of cut hair collecting on his lap. The mass of wet strands grew and grew, until it began resembling a large bird's nest.

As I began whacking the hair off the side, his ear emerged from beneath the showy plumage. When had his ear last seen the light of day? Never, for as long as I'd been his stylist.

As I moved my focus further to the back of his head, away from his view in the mirror, I cut Matthew's hair shorter and shorter. Off came six to seven inches with each chop -- all the length was being removed. He was heading towards a short, standard haircut. A conservative taper.

My eyes darted to the clippers on the counter. I felt a surge of excitement. Yes, today, Matthew would feel the clippers for the first time! In my mind, with each passing minute, his haircut was getting shorter and shorter!

Then, I decided to let Matthew see where things were heading. Snip, snip, snip, snip....around the ear the scissors cleared off all length. Then, the other ear was unveiled. I snipped around it again, carving out an arch.

"Besides seeing better, now you'll be hearing better," I commented. "And, speaking of hearing...."

I reached for the clippers. "This might be a bit loud as I taper your hair short around the ears. I think it will be a good look for you."

Matthew squirmed. He eyed the clippers with suspicion, even dread...but he didn't say no.

"Short?" he finally croaked as the chattering metal teeth came up to begin the next phase of his makeover.

"Yes, let me show you," I replied.

In a flash, I folded his nicely shaped ear down and began tapering the blond hair short to the scalp, clearing away the bulk around his ear. It was a very close taper!

Then I began tapering it up the sides...a medium taper up to the crown. It was fun, cocking Matthew's head to the side and making sure he did not move while the clippers mowed away his copious locks.

His hair was drying now, revealing the wonderful mellow amber color with natural highlights of brilliant gold.

"That's a lot shorter than I expected," Matthew said, eying the taper cut with a tone of resignation in his voice.

Turning my attention to the back of his head, my urge to take him even shorter surged again. I bent his head forward and made him keep it bowed. The first swipe up the back was an aggressively short taper. All the lovely hair was coming off! Over and over, I drove the clippers up throw the glossy hair, keeping his head bent forward in the process.

When I let him sit up straight again, I asked, "Do you think Liz will like this short haircut?"

Matthew's cheeks reddened. "Definitely! I think she'll finally agree to let me meet her parents. She's never said it plainly, but I think my long hair would have been a bit award with her father. Maybe, even a bit embarrassing for her to have a longhaired boyfriend. He's an Army colonel."

"Shoot! You should have said that at the start!" I chided.

Then, boldly, I scooped up his short bangs, lifted them off his forehead, and brought the clippers up, menacing what remained on top.

"She won't feel embarrassed taking you to meet her pops once this is taken care of," I said, signaling my intent.

Matthew sat staring, like a deer in the headlights. He didn't object to my plan, as far as I could tell.

Then, I did it! I pushed the clippers into his hair and drove them straight down the top of his head! Any length that was left was quickly mowed off, taken down to a soft, tidy pelt!

Matthew watched in a sort of stunned glee. "OMG! It's a crewcut!" he gasped.

"It sure is!" I gloated as I clipped and clipped and clipped, ensuring no hair escaped longer than half an inch in length.

"How do you like the feel of the clippers close to your scalp?" I asked.

"A lot. As much as the massaging at the washing station," he admitted.

Then I went back and clipped everything to zero halfway up before pulling the clippers back a bit into a tight taper. The medium taper gave way to a full fledge crewcut.

Matthew was left looking like a newly minted soldier.

I fondled his clipped pelt.

He smiled.

I continued stroking the soft patch of fur on top.

"Feels amazing," I said.

He looked down in his lap. "So much hair there," he muttered.

"Just wait till you see the floor! It's like I'm standing on a sheep's fleece," I laughed.

He leaned over to look. "OMG!"

I began unfastening the cape. "I suspect Liz will be horny as hell when she sees you, soldier boy!"

Matthew felt his clipped head for the first time.

"You were right when you said my hair looks great at any length! And this feels so much better..." he murmured.

"So, it's a keeper?" I asked as he got up from the chair.

"At least as long as I'm dating Liz," he replied with a twinkle in his eye. "Thanks for the makeover, Buddy!"

"Maybe an aggressive barberette will capture your attention someday," I suggested.

"Or, a handsome barber...." he said, staring straight at me with his huge, beautiful blue eyes giving me the once over.

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