Wild Girl ✔️

chapter 22: change

Sebastian

"Hold still," Rose said through gritted teeth. One of her hands was planted on my shoulder, holding me in place, the other running through my hair.

"I don't want to do this," I whined.

"Too bad." I heard the snip of the scissor and looked down to see a chunk of my hair fall to the floor, landing on the wooden porch steps.

"Not too short," I said, staring ahead of me at the tree line as Rose gave me a hair cut, promising that this wasn't her first time doing so, which I was finding harder to believe as she fumbled around my head.

"Shut up." Another piece of my hair fell to the ground. "You could barely see, Sebastian. When was the last time you even cut your hair? Before you moved here?"

I pressed my lips into a thin line, not wanting to admit that she was right. The last time I cut my hair was when Violet was going through chemo. She was losing her hair, and her confidence along with it, so I had shaved my head too, to show her that she wasn't alone.

It almost felt like a betrayal to let Rose cut my hair, but Violet was gone, I reminded myself, and it was time I learned to move forward without her.

"You know," Rose began, "maybe I should start a hair studio out of my cabin, huh? Give out hair cuts to —" Her words abruptly stopped as she shrieked.

"What?" I asked, reaching up and patting my hands around my head. "Fuck, Rose. What did you do? Am I bald?" I turned around to face her. Her eyes were locked far away, skin paled and mouth slightly open, at whatever she was staring at. I followed her gaze and saw Merelda walking out of her cabin and heading towards us, luggage in tow.

Right, I thought, remembering that today her stay in the Purple Woods Inn was ending. No one would miss her, that's for sure.

"She's leaving?" Rose asked, gaping at the sight. I turned away from Merelda and watched Rose, her long hair falling down to her waist, wide green eyes that saw everything. I couldn't seem to stop thinking about our kiss in the clearing three days ago and how badly I wanted to kiss her again. "Sebastian?"

My gaze left her mouth and reached her eyes, which were watching me amusingly. I slowly nodded, remembering what we were talking about. "Yeah," I said. "Shes leaving. After today, you'll never have to see her again." At that, Rose smiled.

"I don't understand how she seems to know everything. About you, me... and even Violet," she whispered her name, like saying it would cause me to dive off the deep end. "Definitely not going to miss her."

I chuckled as I turned around and Rose's hand ran through my hair again, more black chunks falling to the ground as she snipped. "She knew about Violet," I said quietly. "That she was dead and I could see her. Somehow she could see her, too." The thought made me shiver.

"Maybe she's psychic?" Rose added.

"Or maybe she's just crazy," I mumbled. Like me, was what I didn't say.

"Whatever she is, she's leaving so it doesn't matter anymore. Now sit still if you want this to look good," Rose said.

"I thought you said I always look good?"

She scoffed. "I said you're rocking the whole sexy-lumberjack vibe. But, now with the hair cut, I'm not sure you've got that going for you anymore."

"Sexy inn owner?" I countered.

Rose laughed and I was overwhelmed with a familiar warmth that spread through me. "There's nothing sexy about owning an inn, Sebastian," she said as another piece of my hair fell to the ground.