Karma Side of the Roses

◇ Karma Side of Hair ◇

"They say people tend to find ways to escape their pain, but what if the cure lies in the pain itself?"

Rose Capaldi woke up to a throbbing headache. Technically her vision was blurry. Putting on her glasses, she tried to look at the clock. It was one in the afternoon. Drenched in her sweat, she instantly felt parched.

She entered the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of chilled water and put it to her chapped lips. The water instantly cooled her insides, soothing her aching head a bit.

The silence in the house was consuming. She always admired silence but not today. Today it felt disturbing or maybe it was just her headache.

Then she heard loud snapping of scissors and thudding of something on mud, probably a spade.

Her steps took her to the rose garden, where she saw Gramma Ivory bent over a rose bush clipping the leaves to shape it neat.

Rose stood quietly in the sliding door parting the garden and the TV lounge. She admired Gramma Ivory's white hair. It was thick and shiny despite her old age. The hair was braided neatly into a bun.

Gramma Ivory who was eyeing the scarlett roses appeared to be lost deep in thought. Scissors in one gloved hand, while the other wiped the sweat trickling off her forehead.

Then she turned around. Her eyes lingered at Rose for a while, her usual smile returning after a few seconds.

"Suits you." She smiled and turned around again.

Suits what? She thought confused. Waking up late? Smiling? Breathing?

She shrugged, her head throbbing with pangs. She hugged Gramma Ivory from behind resting her head on her shoulder. Gramma Ivory gave a light chuckle, now watering the bush with the sprinkler.

"Gramma, my head is hurting a lot. Any idea where are the headache pills?" she inquired politely.

Gramma Ivory's hand paused, then she replied,"Check the kitchen drawer."

"Ohkayy," said Rose pecking her cheek before leaving.

She went to the kitchen, opened the drawer and grabbed the bottle of pills. She popped two in her mouth and drank from the bottle she held in her hand,eyeing the schedule taped to the fridge.

Good thing its Spring holidays. There's still a week left. She thought climbing the stairs to her room. Rose and Kevin had their rooms upstairs, both the rooms faced eachother. While Gramma Ivory had a room downstairs alongwith the kitchen, the Tv lounge and the library.

She giggled to herself recalling what happened yesterday at HoneyCowell's. Oh that boy, she thought ,glancing at Kevin's door. Then she entered her bathroom, preparing herself for a nice cold shower. Maybe that would soothe her aching head.

She turned on the shower. Picking up her toothbrush she looked at the mirror.

"What the-" She exclaimed, looking at herself in the mirror.

On the upper left side of her head, a lock of her hair had tured white, snaking down to her collarbone.

White, She blinked. White?! She rubbed her eyes again. It was still white, infact it appeared more white now.

She rubbed it with a wet towel, hoping for it to come off, maybe it was some lame joke of Kevin's. But it didn't come off. She grabbed the shampoo bottle from the cabinet, putting a large amount directly to her scalp. She massaged her scalp harshly, rubbing that specific white lock. Then she closed her eyes and stepped into the shower. As she washed all the shampoo out, she opened one eye to look at the mirror hoping that the white was gone. It wasn't.