Laura surveyed her schedule for the day. It was a busy one as usual. She read it aloud to herself. "9 AM, perm... 11 AM... hmmmmmm got some free space... I'll take my break then... 11:30..." Laura's voice trailed off. She saw that a customer had requested her, her first repeat client! She was happy about that, but the only thing was, she didn't recognized the customer's name. Laura checked for the client's file in the computer. "Hmmmmm, he's never been here before, I wonder how he knows me." Laura walked over to where Janet, her boss, was setting up for the day.
"Janet, do you know who this Jim guy is? It's a request client for me, only I don't know him, and he doesn't have a client file in the computer..."
"Ooooh Laur, maybe you have a stalker already," Jennifer, one of Laura's coworkers and a new friend, joked.
"Stop that Jen, I'm serious! Janet, it's in your writing... do you remember the call?"
"I can't honestly say that I remember word for word, but I guess someone referred him to you. I don't know about a 'stalker,' but it seems you do have a 'fan' out there," Janet said and smiled warmly. She was definitely a great boss, and Laura was fast becoming friends with her too.
Laura blushed. "Thanks Janet. You're sweet to say it. Well, I guess I'll just have to wait and see who this mystery client is!"
Laura was getting anxious. Her morning went so slow. Normally she's not that conscious about the time, only just to check once in a while to make sure she was still on schedule, which she usually was. Laura had just finished her 9 o'clock perm and was heading to the back room for her break. She popped open a soda and relaxed. She was so nervous. Why was she so nervous? If someone who didn't know her saw her fidgeting back there, they would have thought she had never done a haircut in her life! Laura stared at the clock. She was almost in a trance when Jennifer came in and startled her. Laura jumped. "Oh Laura," Jen said with an amused smile, "I didn't realized I'd scare ya just by walking into the room," she laughed. "You must have been a million miles away!"
"Oh I guess I was, just daydreaming a bit..."
"Well, welcome back to reality," Jen chuckled. "I came back here to tell you that your friend Heather and your cousin Leah are here."
"Why are they here? Not that I don't want to see them, but I told them I was going to be busy today... UGH!" Laura paused for a few seconds. "OK, tell them I'll be out in a flash." Jen nodded with a smile and left the room.
Laura attempted to pull herself together. She was still nervous about that customer. How... where did he know her from? In a few short minutes all her questions would be answered. Laura walked out of the back room to the front of the salon.
Meanwhile, on the way there and while they sat in the waiting area, Leah had filled Heather in on what was about to occur. "I can't believe you, Leah! You know how incredibly nervous she's going to be? She'll be lucky if she doesn't lop off his ear!" Heather joked. Just then Laura came up to them.
"Hey you guys, I'd love to chat but I'm incredibly busy today, and..." Laura said. Leah cut her off mid-sentence.
"And you're nervous out of your mind, aren't you? Dying to know who that 11:30 customer is, huh?" Laura stopped breathing for a second. "Leah, what do you know?"
"Know? Hey Heather, Laura wants to know what I know!" she joked. Laura smiled. She knew that it couldn't be anything bad because Leah wasn't the type to do things to hurt people, she was all about surprises, and good ones at that. Great ones, actually. Laura was very intrigued.
"Leah, you've got to tell me! I'm practically having a stroke here! PLEASE!" Laura begged. "Laura, it's 11:26, I think you can wait 4 minutes," Leah laughed. Heather smiled knowingly, looking back and forth between her best friend and Leah.
"Oh, ok, I'll sit down and wait. But you are so dead if you do anything to embarrass me!" Laura warned. Leah just smiled her cocky smile... and that just fed Laura's growing anxiousness.
Laura sat down at the reception desk. She was doodling with a pencil on the appointment book, trying to pass the time. All of a sudden she heard the door open. Two men walked in. Laura felt warm. Hot, actually. She couldn't believe who she saw. She looked at Leah and she nodded. Laura knew then what Leah had arranged. Someone needed a haircut and Leah was determined that Laura should be the one to do it!
The two men walked up to the desk. Laura couldn't believe her eyes. No, it can't be, she thought to herself, but then he spoke. "Hi, I'm 'Jim,'" he said, indicating by the way he said it that Jim was not his real name. "I believe I have an appointment with you for a haircut, oh, right about now," he laughed as he glanced at the clock. Laura stared at him, then looked over to Leah and Heather, who were on their way out the door. "Have fun!" Leah said as she and Heather walked out the door. Laura turned back to her mystery customer. "Yes, I believe so," she managed to choke out. "I'm Laura, but I guess you know that," she said with a nervous chuckle. The young man smiled warmly at her and said, "Hey, you gonna be able to do this? Leah said you'd be nervous, but I want to leave with all my limbs," he joked. That put Laura at ease. She smiled back at him and said jokingly, "Well, I think I can guarantee you'll leave here all in one piece!" He smiled again at her. Wow, he had a nice smile, she thought. "Ok then, come back this way with me and we'll shampoo first if you like." She started to walk back to the shampoo sinks and he said, "Sure, sounds great," as he followed her.
Laura was as composed as ever, much to her surprise. She relaxed very quickly as she asked him about how he wanted his hair cut, and he asked her about her homelife, because since he knew Leah, he knew they were cousins and that Laura was not from Florida originally. "Yeah, I'm from Wisconsin, Land of Cheese and Beer," Laura joked. He smiled at her and said "What brings you here? Just needed a change?"
"Yeah, something like that," she said as she looked down at him while washing his hair. Damn, the guy's got such gorgeous eyes... he really does, she thought. She felt herself get nervous again so she concentrated on just washing his hair as she answered his questions about Wisconsin and how she felt about living in Florida so far. Soon she was done. "Awww, did you have to stop?" he joked, "That was really feeling good." Laura melted at his smile. She couldn't believe what was happening. Again, she needed to regain her focus, and once she did, she said, "Well, I can't wash your hair all day," a big smile on her face. "But now we need to cut them locks! Follow me this way please." He did as she asked.
Once she had him in the chair, she verified how he wanted it cut, and went to work. She worked with the precision that she learned in school. It seemed as if all eyes in the salon were on her, just waiting for her to flub up. Surprisingly, she was pretty calm at that moment, for she was doing what she loved doing. Laura always thought that doing something you love to do was very rewarding, even if you don't make a lot of money doing it. Money didn't buy happiness, after all, and she knew that. It's not that she didn't make good money, but she at one time wanted to be a doctor of some sorts, probably an animal doctor, which would have been better pay. But she always found happiness in wanting to make other people feel good, and giving great cuts and styles was one of those things that made people happy. At this moment though, Laura was especially happy with her career choice! She realized how down to earth this young man really was just through their conversation, and thought that it was nice to see this "normal" side to him. She put her comb and shears down, handed him the hand mirror, and asked him what he thought. "Hmmmmmmm," he started. Laura got nervous, but again he smiled at her as if to tell her not to worry. Again she was at ease. "You know, I've had many people cut my hair, and I am very picky, and I know I must be a pain in the ass," he joked, "but I know a great cut when I see it and feel it. Now THIS is a good cut... no, a GREAT cut!"
Laura blushed. "You don't have to go that far," she joked, actually mentally patting herself on the back because she really knew he was being sincere.
"I'm being honest with you Laura," he said, which confirmed his sincerity. "The guys and I really need a good stylist on the road with us who can keep us up with our haircuts and do our makeup for concerts and photo shoots and the like," he said. "I really think I can convince them that you're the one we need... that is, if you are willing to do it, come on the road with us," he said.
Laura coudn't believe her ears. "Of course," he continued, "I don't expect you to answer me right here and now. I'll give you my phone number and one of our tour coordinator's numbers, and when you've made up your mind, you call me," he said, almost knowing that Laura would accept this offer. Who wouldn't?!? It was the opportunity of a lifetime, and Laura's goal in the cosmetology field. She just didn't think it would happen after only being out of school for a few short years. "Will you consider it?" he asked.
"Yes, I will think about it," Laura said confidently. She was about to pass out from all the excitement... it was all so overwhelming. He paid for his haircut, and he and the guy that came in with him started walking toward the door. "I'll be waiting for your call," he said, as he blew her a kiss and exited the salon.
Laura plopped down in the chair behind the reception desk. Jennifer, Janet, and some of her other coworkers came up and waited to see her reaction. For a few minutes she just sat there in shock. Then it hit her all of a sudden, as she said, "Holy shit! I just gave a Backstreet Boy a haircut!!! I gave Howie Dorough a haircut!!!!!!!!!"
First page...
Tell me to get a life.
