Solitude

Chapter Seventeen- Hair Salon

Short-ish chapter but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless!!! Home girl Veronica above😍— She and Oswyn and Virunas actually are going to have their own story called Crowns of Fire and Fern. It does involve another S.C.A.R. facility and it's sort of a prequel to Solitude. You don't need to read it, but if you like Nick and Ossie as much as I do....😉

For the next half an hour, using dispensable hand soap and unlimited paper towels, I washed his hair in the sink and wiped away blood from his skin. The lights stopped flickering and I turned off all the faucets that turned on by themselves, still mystified by their strange malfunctioning. Carver gave me my first and best kiss, I didn't even think about the setting or circumstances. As long as it was me and him, I was overjoyed and, frankly, bewitched. How I got so lucky to have Carver be my best friend was beyond my understanding.

"There," I said triumphantly, trying to pat his hair dry, "all clean." It was too thick for water to be soaked up this quick, he'd have to travel with damp hair. My gaze strayed to our blood stained clothes. "Not much we can do with these." Washing them would only make us freezing, no way to get the blood out without a washer and drier. Without the scarlet staining his face and matting down his hair, Carver gave me a cheeky smile and spun me around.

"You look like you dyed your hair red. It's my turn to clean you." Carver muttered it sensually, but missed the locking of my joints. I'd have to stick my head face first into the sink in order for the spout to clean the nape of my neck and hairline, then Carver would have to make sure my hair wouldn't block the drain and fill the bowl and drown me. Again.

"I'm not as bad off as you were. I think I'll wait until we get to camp. They have showers there, right?" His expression hardened with concern, remembering my death. Despite the looks he gave to my hair, he softened and nodded his head and offered a different approach.

"Can I at least clean your neck and face, there's a lot of blood back there." Now that I could let him do. He wet several paper towels, pumped soap on them and told me to hold my hair up. Though the texture of the towels were rough and abrasive against my skin, Carver used small strokes to gently wipe away blood crust pockets. Warm water dripped down my back, turning cold when it absorbed into my tank top. Enjoying this moment made me miss the door opening and someone come in. With Carver so close to me, pressing against my body and whispering sweet things into my ear when he got close enough, I didn't worry too much.

"Ma'm, may I make an appointment to get my hair did real nice?" Volney broke his serious tone by belting out a laugh, mocking Carver who was trying to soak the dried blood clumped into the baby hairs on my neck with a towel, pulling gently. It was working, and even with that small portion out of my hair, I felt a hundred times better.

Volney was missing out, he was covered in black blood as well though most of it was on his skin and not at all in his hair.

"Ha, ha." Carver said sarcastically, finishing up by wiping around my jaw and face one last time. "Do your own hair, Cowboy. Not like you need it though." Back to grumbling Carver. But as he stepped away I rushed to hug Volney, relieved he was his usual joking self.

Though the blood masked most of his smell, I could still make out the remnants of cologne and deodorant. His breathing hitched and he hesitated before embracing me tightly, curling his head over mine. We didn't let go for several short minutes.

He'd been the one who hadn't had physical contact in quite a few weeks. While Carver and I shared his cell, huddling together for warmth, Volney had been forced into near complete isolation.

"Nice to see you moving, little lady." Volney choked then cleared his throat, reluctant to step back. "Nick said you might need these." From a bag he dropped near his feet, he tossed Carver a purple hair brush and two chocolate chip granola bars. Snatching an energy bar, I craved to taste food of my own choice and ripped open the foil package before tearing into it. Packaged food never tasted better.