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“I’m thankful because, without you, I would have never given up on Walker. I would have let him keep coming back and taking every ounce of love, and forgiveness I had left. I emptied my heart and soul for him, and he was a vampire. I was his willing victim. I gave and gave, and he took and took.”
“I just wanted to tell you to stay safe. I heard he’s moving here and he’s sober, trying to get his life back together. He got his GED.” She winces a little as she drops the news on me.
"What! Here? Why?”
“I don’t know but that’s another reason why I had to see you, to warn you. I know he was abusive to you. I didn’t get a chance for it to get that far but I heard about it. If it were me, I would want to know.”
“Thank you.”
“Now, on to better things… What do you want to do with this hair? It’s so long and beautiful. Is it virgin hair?”
“Girl, it’s the only virgin thing left on me.”
We laugh hard for a while, and it feels good. I never hated her, I just hated that he made me feel like she somehow deserved him, like she was better than me. Maybe she was. Maybe that’s why he never hurt her in the ways he hurt me. He hurt her in other ways, though. Trauma is trauma, hers isn’t any less painful than mine just because it wasn’t physical.
“Surprise me.”
Her eyes go wide. “You shouldn’t have said that, sugar. I’m gonna make you brand-spankin’ new.”
“I’m counting on it.”
* * *
The rest of the evening is spent getting pampered. We feel like royalty. Cora got her nails done simply, a white and nude ombre with some accent rhinestones- short and ballerina shaped. My nails are extra-long stiletto shape, and they are sharp enough to stab someone in the eyes. They are glossy black, and I got one nail blinged out with Swarovski stones. They are perfect.
My hair couldn’t have been more of a shock. Crystal is so talented, she added some blonde to my hair. I thought it was like highlights but she said it was a balayage and isn’t as much maintenance. She took the color of my roots and smudged it down to blend my natural color into the blonde. It gives it more dimension and is not so drastic of a change because it all blends together beautifully. The biggest bonus is that my hair is still long and feels so soft and buttery. She didn’t fry my hair like I have always been afraid of. Saying I’m happy with it is an understatement. I can’t stop staring at myself in the mirror as I wait for Cora to be done.
Cora got a toner that turned her natural hair and made it an icy blonde color, almost platinum, then they curled the ends of it after giving her a little trim.
I walk around, taking in the atmosphere of the shop. They are so trendy, there is a floral wall on one side and lavender hanging from the ceilings. As I pass through more of the modern building, I see they have several themed walls, Instagram-ready. There’s a wall covered in all different kinds of cool mirrors and another that has a huge neon sign that saysyou are only as beautiful as you treat people.I love it in here. I hadn’t been in since I found out Crystal worked here and I don’t know why. I regret all the time wasted, we could have been friends. She is actually so fucking awesome.
Making my way back to Cora, I take a detour to Crystal’s station where she is cleaning. “Hey, Crys.”
“Hey, sweetness. Is something wrong?”
“No, no, I absolutely love my hair. I just wanted to come and ask for your number. There’s a party tomorrow off campus and I’d love for you to come with us.”
“Really? Oh, my goodness, yes! Girl, I have wanted to be your friend since I first met you.”
We exchange numbers and I make my way back to my best friend, smiling. I duck down to whisper in her ear. “Thank you for this, Bubbles.” I use my childhood nickname for her. Making eye contact in the mirror, I blow her a kiss and she smiles big.
“Don’t worry, I won’t rub it in.”
“Damn right, you won’t.”
We finish our pampering with pedicures, getting massages from the huge comfy chairs, and gossiping with Crystal and her coworker about college life. This was exactly what I needed to get my mind off of Kohen. Butterflies launch into flutters inside my belly. I can’t wait for tomorrow.
15
KOHEN
This past week has been hectic. I've been killing myself at the gym. Training for the Olympics is no joke but my coach thinks I have what it takes to make it to the next level.
Gymnastics is my passion and it has saved my life. It has been a place to come and take out all my anger and aggression, so here I am on a weekend putting in work. It takes up most of my social time but that's fine. My specialty is the parallel bars and I’m good at it. My parents started me at the gym when I was only eight years old. Granted there were kids younger than me already on a strict regimen, but I feel like I didn’t have a childhood. I see a sports psychologist regularly, but no one knows about that besides my family.
The sport grew on me and when the coaches and trainers saw the raw, natural talent and strength I possessed, they all poured into me. They started me on the Olympic track young.
I chalk up my hands and rub the bars above me so I can start training. I mount the apparatus and lift my body up and around several times, losing myself in the dizzying movements. My senses are overloaded and adrenaline rushes through me, the smell of chalk and sweat running past my eyebrow. I’m not worried about it- I could do all this with my eyes closed, and sometimes I do. It’s a rush.
