Plasma Cat

Ch. 11: Liberation Cell

Heidi pulled into the small strip mall at exactly eleven A.M. She was a punctual kind of person. It genuinely irked her that Ernesto wasn't as punctual. She had the same appointment, every month, at the same time, on the same day of the week. Every time. And yet she almost always had to wait. Never for very long, but there was always a wait.

Ernesto was a perfectionist, which was part of the reason Heidi kept coming back to him despite his constant lack of anything resembling a schedule. If it took him longer than scheduled to make sure a customer's haircut and styling was just right, he had no problem ignoring those who had appointments to make sure it was perfect. That was part of the charm, she supposed. Despite the constant waiting, there were always customers. He must be doing something right, she conceded.

Thus, she was shocked to her core when she entered the shop and there was no one waiting in the waiting area. And even more unusually, Ernesto wasn't there. Instead, a young woman was standing behind the counter.

"Hello, you must be Mrs. Unterland," the young woman greeted her. "You're right on time, just like he said you would be."

"I'm sorry," Heidi replied suspiciously, "but who are you? Where is Ernesto?"

The young woman seemed embarrassed. "I'm his daughter, ma'am," she explained. "He... he never mentions me, huh?"

Heidi took a moment to think. "No, actually, I think he did mention you. You're still in hairstyling school, yes?"

"Yup, that's me," she replied with a smile. "My dad's sick today, but you know him. He insisted that the shop remain open. But... no one wanted me to cut their hair. I guess I understand. I understand if you'd like to reschedule. I'm sorry for the inconvenience."

Heidi sized the young woman up. "How old are you?"

"Twenty-three, ma'am."

"How long have you been in school?"

"Four years," she replied. "I'm graduating in June."

Heidi nodded thoughtfully. "Your father must have told you how particular I am, yes?"

"Yes ma'am. He made it very clear that you're one of his most important customers."

Heidi chuckled. "And yet you're willing to cut my hair? You're not nervous?"

The young woman looked nervous. But her eyes did not waver.

"Yes ma'am."

Heidi nodded. "Alright then."

The young woman started slowly, as if she was sculpting with a chisel instead of scissors. But then she suddenly began to work much faster.

"Excuse me," Heidi interrupted, "but this is not the usual cut. Didn't your father tell you I get the same cut, every time?"

"Oh," the young woman exclaimed, jumping back as if a snake had leapt out of Heidi's hair, "oh yes, of course he did. But..."

After a few seconds of silence, Heidi said, "well, get on with it girl. What is it?"

"The customer is always right, of course," she began. "But... well, you have such lovely blond hair." She ran her fingers through it, as if to prove a point. "See how it glitters in the light?" she continued. "See how it shines? That's not the shampoo you use. That's natural."

The young woman flicked her own hair out of her eyes with a shake of her head. "I like my hair," she continued. "But black hair just doesn't shine like that. There's... there's this cut I learned in school. It's... a little unorthodox. But it's made for hair like yours. It's sort of jagged and non-symmetrical, but that allows it to catch the light at any angle. I... I just thought..."