The Cherry Trees

Chapter Four: 2015

I stared at the glaring reflection in the mirror in front of me. The person I saw was barely recognizable, and I couldn't help but think, poor her. As I stared at the pale girl with bright blue eyes and now short bobbed blond hair, a feeling of dread overcame me.

"I'm so sorry," my hairdresser said once more. I stared at her purple streaks that stood out in her dark hair. Then my eyes moved to the piercings that lined her ears and lip.

"It's... okay, I guess," I said, only to reassure her. Maybe it would look better in more flattering light, I thought.

"Well, it will eventually grow out," Mom solaced. Alice laughed hysterically, though I'm pretty sure she didn't understand what was going on.

After my mom had managed to drag me to the hair salon, Ruth, my hairdresser was snipping away at my long blond hair, when I sneezed. My head jerked backwards at the same time she was cutting and she had taken a big chunk out of my hair, leaving me no option but to even the rest of it out.

I plodded out of the salon, not able to keep my hands away from my hair, unfamiliar to my touch. I stared at my reflection in anything that would offer it to me, hoping that if I kept staring that eventually it would change. It didn't.

When we got back home I ran up to my room and washed it, trying to make it longer than it actually was, hoping the water would stretch it out. Just as I had pulled on a sweatshirt and jumped on the couch to watch T.V., the doorbell rang. I got up to answer it, and on the other side of the door was a smiling Luke, who's eyes widened when he saw me.

I turned around and flipped up the hood on my sweatshirt, and then reluctantly opened the door.

"Hi."

"Hey," I replied. "What's up?"

"I was just wondering what you were doing today," Luke said, trying to avoid looking at my hair. I could tell he was struggling to not give away any emotions.

"Um, nothing really. Just watching T.V."

"Oh... that's cool."

I sighed. "Okay, just say it."

"Say what?"

"How bad it looks," I said, lowering my hood.

Luke broke into a smile. "I like it short. You can see your face better."

I laughed. "So I have a nice face?"

"Yes, you have a very nice face," he said, smiling.

-

 "So what the heck are you going to tell me anything?" Lexi asked me randomly, sounding a little outraged.

I looked at her, confused. What could she possibly be talking about? "Um, I tell you pretty much everything."

"Key words- pretty much," she said, jumping up on her bed.

"What am I not telling you that you know so much about?"

"Ahem. Your boyfriend?"

"I have a boyfriend?"

"Oh please. Abbi told me that Kasey told her that you were so obviously thinking about some guy at gymnastics the other day."

It took me a few minutes to process what she had just explained to me, but when I got it, I said, "Abbi knows Kasey?"

"Yes. Stop avoiding the question."

"Wait. How do they know each other? I don't even know Abbi and she lived in my house for eight months."

"I don't know how they know each other, why don't you ask her. Please, Anne, tell me what is going on."

I stared at Lexi for a few minutes, running my hand over her soft turquoise blanket that perfectly matched the rest of her room. I wondered what I should tell her. Luke was not my boyfriend, though it was obvious that we had an attraction. It was probably just another fifth grade crush, something that seemed to happen so often at this age. Lexi was my best friend though. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion, wondering why I hadn't told her about this earlier.

"I don't have any boyfriend. But me and Luke have been hanging out a lot lately," I explained.

"Luke and I."

"What?"

"You just used incorrect grammar. It's Luke and I."

"Whatever, that isn't the point," I said, smiling at Lexi's inability to resist correcting me.

"So what is the point?"

"You make no sense, I just answered your question."

"What was my question? I kind of got distracted."

"Never mind," I said, turning away and picking up her stuffed dolphin.

"C'mon, Anne, I was joking around. I just wanted to make you feel awkward," she said with a smile.

"As if I don't already feel awkward enough." I motioned to my hair and Lexi lowered her eyes.

"Okay, it isn't that bad! Let me do something with it," she said, her eyes pleading me.

I reluctantly agreed, and she got to work on my hair- or what was left of it. I felt her fingers take a section of it, and then she began to weave over and under. She pulled, twisted, braided, and yanked for what seemed like hours, and when she was finally done, I couldn't help but smile. It was actually very pretty, to my surprise. She had twisted the front on the left side of my part and braided the right side. They met in the back where she had rubber banded it, and she had slid a flower clip onto the braided side, completing the look.

I reached up to touch it and she slapped my hand.

"Now that you don't feel so awkward, do you want to meet Abbi or what? You guys could actually become friends."

I looked at her, thinking that maybe she was right.

"Okay. Now?"

"Sure. But I have to leave in..." she checked her digital clock with glowing green numbers, "eight minutes to go to my dad's house. So you guys can get some one on one time," she said, with a smirk.

"Lexi, what are you trying to do?"

She looked at me innocently. "Why nothing, Anne, I'm simply trying to make my best friend and another friend who lived in her room get along."

My eyes drooped with suspicion. "Fine. I'll try. But if it doesn't go right, don't blame me."

"Perfect!" She grabbed her bag and flicked off her fan on her way out of the room. "Have fun!"

She left me sitting on her bed, wondering where the heck to find Abbi.

Well, there goes that idea. I got up to leave, but on my way down the stairs I met a smiling girl with shiny black hair that fell straight as a pin to just below her shoulders. Her eyes were a deep brown and her skin was tanned to a very dark shade. I did a double take when I realized it was the girl that was in my tree house, Abbi.

"Hi, I'm Abbi. You must be Anne. Lexi told me about you..." she trailed off awkwardly.

"Yeah."

"She wanted us to meet. I think she kind of feels awkward about us not knowing each other and being friends with both of us, you know?"

In my mind, I told her to shut up and then pushed her down the stairs.

"Uh, yeah. So, nice meeting you," I said, much more polite than my thoughts.

"Well, come on then, let's do something!"

"Like what?"

"Well, I just got a new dream catcher set."

"What is that?"

"It's something my Grandpa taught me how to do when I was little. He used to do it with all of his brothers. It's basically a kit of things you need to make a dream catcher. That way when you sleep, you don't have any nightmares, and you only think of good things."

I nodded. "Okay, let's do it," I said, cracking a smile.

Maybe Abbi wasn't so bad after all.