“But she did lose you both,” I quip.
He tells me his step dad was after him with a gun that night and if he didn’t leave, then Sam would’ve lost him for good. He also explains about the regular beatings he used to give him and his mom. I’m no virgin to violence, I’ve seen and had my fair share of it myself, so nothing he tell me shocks me.
I stare up at the ceiling wondering what I should say now. What he’s been through is shitty, but if he feels so bad then why does he keep coming back here?
“Why would you choose to keep coming back here? Surely that’s a little insane, to risk what happened yesterday? Do you have any idea what you’ve dug back up?” His eyes flash with pain.
“I didn’t mean for her to ever find out, I’ve always been so careful. It’s something I’ve needed to do for me and I realize how much she’s hurting; believe me I do. Sammy was my everything and seeing her again… look, I’m just going to come right out with it. I need you to try get her to listen to me.”
Say what now? “Oh do you? You may have spun me a heart wrenching story but it doesn’t take away the fact that you’ve had eight years to drop by and explain this to her yourself. That girl is like a sister to me and I won’t have you coming here ruining everything she’s pieced back together. Tiny piece by tiny piece. We’ve all had hard lives, believe me, but Sam deserves to put the past behind her, for good.” My chest heaves as I think over what I’m about to do. What is the right thing to do? He tries to speak but I put up a finger, silencing him. “But, I can’t shake this feeling that she needs a little closure on the past instead of just burying it away. She has a habit of doing that. I can’t guarantee I can get her to listen to you but there’s a fundraiser Saturday night that we’ll be at, be there and I’ll have her on her own so that you can talk to her.”
I don’t wait for an answer from him in the fear that I’ll change my mind and tell him not to bother. Is it really such a good idea to go behind Sam’s back like this? Well tough shit it’s a little late for that now.
Worst idea ever! What the hell was I thinking?
I didn’t get to speak to Lewis after all, so now on top of all that and the drama from this morning, my mind is so preoccupied that I forget to pick up lunch. So I’m sat here feeling guilty while Sam gets it instead. I slap my forehead. Hell, I’m the worst best friend on the whole planet! I look up at the clock, I have a kids cut due in five minutes and I’m really not in the mood to be around people, but I have no choice.
I force out a smile as a timid looking woman walks into the salon with a wired looking toddler trailing behind her. She’s around my shoulder height, probably putting her at just over five foot. She’s an itty bitty little thing. “Hey, Faith is it?”
She nods sheepishly at me and clears her throat. “Yeah, that’s me, but the appointment is for my daughter.”
She strokes her daughter’s hair lovingly and it makes me smile. The little girl, probably around three or four, bounces up to me. “You have pretty hair.”
All my worries from five minutes earlier go out the window, I smile at her and kneel down. “Well aren’t you just the sweetest little thing. What’s your name?”
She twirls her finger in her hair. “Katy, and I’ve just had my birthday.”
“Is that right? Let me guess, you’re eight,” I say jokingly.
She giggles. “No silly, I’m four.”
I laugh and stand up. “Silly me! Well, Katy, shall we get you up in this chair here and make you look like a princess?”
She beams at me. I’ve always had a soft spot for kids, I don’t know why but there’s something about being around them makes me thaw out my icy exterior. There’s no prejudice with kids, prejudice is learned, you’re not born with it. Kids are always honest and they take everything at face value, I liked that about them.
Faith lifts her daughter up into the booster I place on the chair and I smile at her as she takes a tentative step away.
“So what we doing today then?”
I aim the question at Faith and she clears her throat. “She just needs a trim, thank you.”
She gives me a weak smile and I have to bite my tongue to stop myself from asking if she’s okay. “Would you like a coffee or anything while you wait?”
She shakes her head. “No, thank you though.”
I give her a once over. She’s wearing a well worn pale blue summer dress and I notice it’s way too big for her, she catches me looking and I quickly turn back toward Katy. “How good are you at playing musical statues?”
She grins at me in the mirror in front of her. “I can be a statue for a long time.”
Faiths snorts and I smile over at her before turning back to Katy. “Oh I bet you can, can you show me now while I cut your hair?”
She freezes, her eyes filled with concentration as I go about cutting her beautiful long blond hair. I spin her chair around and start cutting her bangs.