Acting Upon a Confession by noguard

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(DISCLAIMER: These characters are not real nor a self insert and this is not based on any real events. These characters are purely from my head.)

"I should tell her…", Andy told himself which he thought was silent enough.

I responded with a "Hm?", which immediately caught his attention. Andy stared at me nervously, obviously oblivious of his accidental blurt. An awkward silence traveled between us as we waited for our buses to arrive, sitting casually on the hard plastic bleachers in the auditorium.

"Andy; what were you going to tell me?" I opened the conversation again, a slight smile on my face.

"Lorna;" Andy proceeded to look at me and then his lap.

He took a silent deep breath. "Have.. have you ever wanted to change something about your physical appearance.. like, your completely sure of it, but you're scared of how others would react afterwards?"

I looked back at him. "Well, what do you want to change?"

He choked on his words for a minute. "..my hair. For some reason, I’ve always wanted to cut it real short; like, to the scalp. I’ve always dreamed of doing it; I know that my head shape and hairline are about perfectly fitting, I’ve always imagined how much more.. comfortable I’d be if I just did it, you know? But it’s always the future reactions that recoiled me from doing it."

I was shocked. All of this? Now? Why’d he never told me any of that? Andy was a little timid, yes, but he was never the one to hide such a thing from me.

Andy was even more shocked. I could read his face: "Why did I just say that?"

Suddenly, an idea manifested in my mind. "Well; we’re planning to hang out later, right? I could ask my mom to drop us off where I get my hair cut."

"Well.." he debated. Suddenly, Andy looked at me.

"…you know what? Let’s go for it."

All of a sudden, both of our buses were called. We said goodbye, even though we were destined to see each other again in just an hour and we’d be messaging one another online anyways.

Before I continue, I think I’d like to tell you who I am. My names Lorna; Lorna Hayes. Me and Andy have been friends since 5th grade. Andy has always been a bit shy.

Andy had straight, brown hair. The sides & back were usually cut to about 3 inches off of his head, while the top, including his bangs, would drape over most of his forehead, stopping barely above his eyebrows; they were always swooped to the left. His sideburns would usually be an inch going down. This had never changed. Ever since we met, his hair was that way and stayed that way.

When I, or we, got home, I took a shower and got dressed for where we were about to go. I’d told my mom about what the plan was, and we were about to pick him up.

"I’ll be in the car, Lorna!" My mom said, slightly above average volume as she got her bag. I didn’t respond as I rushed to get my stuff and hopped in the front seat of the car.

Andy’s house wasn’t far, and we picked him up in about 3 minutes; where mom started to ask him things.

"So, what’s this immediate trip about?"

Andy responded, sarcastically. "Just a trim, really." He winked at me.

She saw the wink too but didn’t speak up on it, getting the point. We continued to talk about how our day went until we arrived.

When we got there, my mom stayed back in the car while me and Nady hopped out. Andy rustled his jacket and slowly approached the building which was about a 2 minute walk away.

"Billy’s Cuts" wasn’t exactly old fashioned or new aged, sort of in between. There wasn’t even a Billy there. It was Ted. Ted was the man who had cut my hair for the past 4 years. He was an older guy, about in his late 40s. His hair varied from time to time; sometimes it’d be in his face, sometimes he’d be shaved bald. We got along well; usually talking about things we were interested in at that point in time.

As we entered, the bell rang which startled Andy. The slowly setting sun of a Friday afternoon crept through the windows.

Ted saw us. "Hello, Lorna! I see you’ve brought a friend? Which one of you is first."

"Oh no, I’m not getting a haircut today. Andy is, though." I smiled at him.
Andy shyly tugged his coat and smiled, although nervously.

"Sit, Andy." He did what he said and cautiously approached the chair and finally sat down. Ted cranked the chair a bit taller.

Ted clamped his hands together. "So, what are we doing today?" Andy froze for a minute.

I told him: "Come on, you know what you want!"

Andy told Ted everything he’d told me. What he wanted and why he hadn’t done it yet to almost perfect detail to what he had told me.

"Well, you seem pretty sure!" Ted laughed.

He leaned in. "Though, if I gotta tell you something; if somebody is judgmental towards a decision you made about your appearance, should you really consider them a friend?"

"..thanks." Andy let out a soft smile.

Ted smiled back and patted his shoulder while putting his cape on. "No problem, bud."

Andy took a deep breath. She could tell his heart was pounding.

"You ready, Andy?" Ted raised his eyebrows and smirked.

"You can start now, yeah." Andy’s smile still held. I knew it; the smile looked genuine. He handed his jacket to Ted and he put it on a shelf.

Ted put a #1 guard on the clippers and clicked them on as the mechanical hum filled the room. When I sat back down, Andy gave me one last look for encouragement. I gave him a thumbs up and smiled. He smiled back as Ted turned his chair away from the mirror.

Ted kneeled his head down. He let the machine travel up Andy’s nape as I could barely see his hair being shorn off slowly. When he got done with the back he went to the side which I could not see. The whirring filled the room, Andy’s face filled with determination as his hair piled up fast on the cape. I was proud.

Now the clippers were placed where I could see, the other side of his head. It was satisfying and shocking watching it get peeled off slowly, the dark brown being replaced by light brown stubble. When it went to his sideburn, you could see his ear. Now Ted went to the top, Andy’s head decreasing in volume due to the loss of hair. His face was now exposed, gleaming with barely hidden excitement.

Ted switched the guard with.. nothing. He started to retrace the sides and back, making them even shorter, no evidence of brown lingered as he blended it into the "longer" hair on top. The pile on the cape was now large.

Ted suggested they wash his scalp to rid of excess hair and Andy agreed. They relocated to the sink as Andy tried his best to not look in the mirror. They quickly rinsed and shampooed his scalp. When they went back to the chair, Ted proceeded to blow dry it and any other hair stuck on him.

Ted rubbed Andy’s head and turned his chair around. "Tell me what you think."

Andy stood up and was stoic in shock, but he knew one thing; he loved it. All of a sudden, he felt more comfortable with his hair that he had now done what he’d wanted for so long. He was still timid, but now the reactions of people mattered less. Andy’s hair was now barely a phantom, light brown stubble on top contrasting with his eyebrows while the rest of his scalp was a slightly lighter hue of his skin. Andy couldn’t help but smile.

"I love it." Andy offered to pay, but Ted refused, saying it was "on the house". Andy took his jacket and fit it back on and walked back to me.

"What do you think?" God, did Andy look different.

"It looks great! .. could I touch it?" I asked awkwardly.

He blushed. "Uh.. sure!" It felt unreal, seriously. I didn’t even recognize this kid!

As we left the building and walked back, Andy stopped.

"Hm?" I looked at him.

"Thank you, Lorna." He said as he hugged me. He went back and smiled.

I blushed. Did he really just do that? "Uh.."

"Seriously. I wouldn’t have done it without your incouragement. It sounds silly but I feel so much better now." Andy smiled; the late sun reflecting on his brown eyes and soft stubble, highlighting his dimples. He truly did look way more comfortable.

I looked at him and smiled back sincerely. "You’re welcome."

"We better head to the car now, though." We both talked and laughed as we approached the car. Tonight was already interesting.

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