Travellers

Dream Or Reality?

Amber Valetta rolled her eyes and sighed as she ran the hair straightener through her client's blonde hair. Usually Amber loved her job. She loved being a hairdresser and she loved the salon she worked in. Curlz was a snazzy, upbeat salon that had a great atmosphere in it, and her boss was fantastic. But her last client of the day was really trying Amber's patience. She knew that she couldn't expect to get along great with every single client, but this last lady was really pushing it.

Amber narrowed her eyes at the pretty blonde in the mirror and tried not to grind her teeth. This client - Susan ... she had forgotten her last name - was the type to look down her nose at anyone she considered inferior to her, and apparently, a hairdresser fit nicely into that category.

Susan's blue eyes met Amber's dark brown ones in the mirror as Amber switched off the straightener and put it down.

"All finished," Amber said politely, pasting a fake smile onto her face. She spun Susan's chair around, grabbed a mirror and held it up so that her client could see the back of her hair in the mirror behind her. "I hope you like it."

Susan raised one perfectly shaped eyebrow as she examined Amber's work. "Its adequate, I suppose," she said haughtily. She stood up and walked over to the reception desk to pay, completely ignoring the hairdresser who had just spent a great deal of time styling her hair. Amber barely stifled the groan that badly wanted to escape from her lips as she began putting everything away.

"Breathe, Amber baby, breathe." Amber laughed as she felt an arm get slung over her shoulders and heard the words.

"I'm breathing, I'm breathing." She turned to face the comforting male face that was a few inches from her own. "I just wish I didn't have to have Susan as my last client." She spoke the words softly so that they wouldn't carry. As much as she disliked a person, she would never intentionally humiliate someone.

She felt the arm around her give a light squeeze before letting her go.

"Don't we all, baby."

Amber smiled as Greg grabbed hold of a broom and began sweeping up all of the hair. Just like every day, she was thankful that she had Greg as a friend. Most people assumed just by looking at Greg that he was gay. Working in a hairdressing salon definitely didn't help with the image, either. But Amber had met his wife a number of times and she couldn't remember ever meeting a happier couple.

She absently fiddled with a strand of her long, black hair as she turned and watched Susan walk out of the salon.

"You know what her problem is?" Greg asked, and Amber whirled back around to face him.

"What?"

"She can't handle how gorgeous you are."

"Greg!"

"No, I'm serious. Susan is - and I can't believe I'm about to say this - a very beautiful woman, but she knows it. She doesn't like to be reminded that there are other women out there that can rival her beauty."

She rolled my eyes at his reasoning and he put the broom down and grabbed Amber's shoulders, spinning her to face the mirror.

"Take a look at yourself, baby. Do you see what she sees?"

Amber sighed but did as she was instructed. She stared at herself critically and saw all of her faults surface straightaway.

"I see a twenty-one-year-old, average-looking, half-korean woman. Someone who's used to fading into the background. Nothing special."

The groan that Greg released made his chest rumble with annoyance. "You've never looked at yourself very clearly," he complained. "No, what everyone else sees when they look at you is a beautiful, exotic-looking woman who is happy, friendly and outgoing. A woman that any man would be proud to call his."