Fractured [SHAWN MENDES]

~27~

"You'll never guess what I'm doing this afternoon," Taryn said as she lazily ran her fingers through Shawn's chest hair. They'd just had amazing morning sex and she didn't need to leave for another forty-five minutes, so they were enjoying a good snuggle.

"Taking a test? Writing a paper?"

"Those are very good guesses, but no. I'm coloring my mother's hair. She got her hair cut on Friday and it's really chic, so she's ditching the wig and dying it a vibrant color."

"She had enough hair to get it cut?" he asked, remembering his conversation with Patricia about how they both had really short hair.

"It's more accurate to say she had it trimmed and styled. It's spiky on top and really short at the nape of her neck and over her ears."

"Why didn't she have her stylist color it?"

"She asked how much it would cost and almost fell out of her chair. My mom is notoriously cheap about things like that. She did a bunch of research online and I guess has enough confidence in me to not mess it up," Taryn explained.

"I can't wait to see it."

"I guess you'll have to make a special trip to the bar during the day."

Shawn didn't mind that at all since Colin wouldn't be there. It bugged him that he had a thing for Taryn. They worked together all night, which gave him plenty of opportunities to charm her. The thought of being dumped for another person again was crushing; it would be even worse if she started fooling around with him on the side. He knew he shouldn't become too attached to the smart, beautiful, and kind woman in his arms, because that would only make it worse when she inevitably moved on.

"Have you thought about getting a haircut?" she asked, interrupting his dark thoughts.

"I shave it myself, but yeah, I've thought about doing that again."

"That's not what I meant. It's really grown out but I think it could use some styling. You look like your old self and I think that's a good thing." She reached up and ruffled his bangs.

Shawn rolled them both over so that he was hovering on top of her. "When I'm with you I feel like my old self."

******

Taryn carefully rinsed the bleach from her mom's short hair. "It looks cute like this. You are a hundred percent sure you want to go pink?" she asked. The color had to be stripped from her hair before adding the bright layer, and resulting pale blonde was quite attractive.

"Yup! It's high time I did something bold! I always wanted to have a cool color like pink or purple back when I was a teenager but my dad would have disowned me. This is the perfect chance since it's so short. If I hate it, I can chop it off as it grows out."

"You go dry your hair and I'll mix the dye."

An hour later they sat at the kitchen table drinking tea while Patricia kept lifting the hand mirror to admire her new look. "I look sassy!"

"Sassy hair for a sassy lady," Taryn teased.

"When you were little, your dad used to call you 'little miss sassy pants.' Do you remember that?"

"No." She paused before asking a question that had popped into her head many times over the years. "Do you ever wonder where he is or if he's dead?"