My Little Stargazer(Adopted by Remington Leith)

(6) - Haircut

After Cherry was bathed and dressed again Mom got ready and we left. We went to Target. I put her in the cart and pushed it around while we dropped stuff in it. I found a couple more chewy toys for her and let her choose a bunch of coloring books and got her a car seat and a toothbrush. After that we spent an hour and a half in the clothes department. We left with a lot more stuff than I intended, but I didn't care.  When we finally got back to the car I texted Sebastian to see if it was okay for us to come over. It was so we headed over.

———

Larisa lived in a beautifully decorated apartment on the opposite side of the city. Sebastian practically lived there. When we were in LA he spent 90% of his time there.(Not that Emerson or I cared.) I found out on the way up to Larisa's apartment that Cherry hated the elevator. Yeah. Longest elevator ride of my life. She panicked and wrapped her arms around my neck so tight I was having trouble breathing. She whimpered the entire time too. The second I stepped out of the elevator she relaxed and loosened her hold on my neck. Mom knocked and a few seconds later Larisa opened the door. She smiled wide and wrapped Mom in a hug.
"Hi, Stephanie! Hi, Remington!" She let go of Mom and hugged me.
"Hey."
"She's so cute! Come in, sorry. Seb, Remington and your mom are here."
"Coming." Was the faint reply. "Hi, Mom." Sebastian said, coming into the living room.
"Hi, honey." They dove into a conversation about tour and the last couple months of his life.
"So. How short do you want her hair?" Larisa asked me.
"Uh. I don't know. She's got a lot of knots and I don't really know how to take care of long hair so. . ." She nodded.
"Alright. I'll see what I can do. Let me go grab my stuff from the bathroom. Seb?"
"Hmm?"
"Stack some books on one of the dining chairs for me?" She batted her eyelashes at him and grinned. He rolled his eyes, but smiled.
"Sure."
"Thank you." She called as she walked down the hall. Sebastian busied himself with the books and I took Cherry's hair out of its hastily done bun. I sat her on the books. She stuck her fingers in her mouth and looked around. Sebastian stepped in front of her. Her eyes got wide and her fingers fell out of her mouth.
"Hi." Sebastian said. Her eyes filled with tears and her lip quivered. She was going to cry. I put my hand on Sebastian's shoulder and pushed him back. He stumbled back and said something, but I ignored him and focused on Cherry.
"It's okay. Nobody's gonna hurt you." She wrapped her arms around my neck.
"Pomithe?" She whispered.
"I promise."
"I'm back!" I unhooked Cherry's arms from around my neck. Larisa was standing behind me with a comb between her teeth, a spray bottle in one hand and a pair of scissors in the other. Cherry saw the scissors, shrieked and toppled off the chair. She burst into tears and crawled behind the couch. Mom, Sebastian, and Larisa were staring at me in shock. I sighed and knelt next to the couch.
"Come here. Please?" I opened my arms and she came crawling toward me. She curled up in my lap. "Do you wanna sit in my lap while Larisa cuts your hair? No one here is gonna hurt you. I promise." She nodded against my chest. I stood and she wrapped herself around me like a koala. I took a seat in the dining chair and she loosened her grip on me.
"We're gonna do it this way." I said.
"That's fine."

———

It was a slow process of me getting sprayed in the face and Cherry on the verge of a panic attack. I tried as much as possible to keep her attention on me. I talked to her, asked her questions and let her play with my padlock and my rings. Then she took an interest in my tattoos.
"How's Emerson?" Mom asked after a few minutes of silence.
"I haven't seen him since last night." I told her.
"I've been here since we got back." Sebastian added. Mom rolled her eyes.
"You three are ridiculous."
"What do you mean?" Sebastian asked.
"The minute you get back from tour you stop speaking to each other."
"He's alive. I know that much. Besides it's not my fault he holes up in his room and avoids us for days at a time. The only reason we talk on tour is because there's nowhere for him to hide in the tour bus." I inform her.
"Well. I have to take you home so I'll see him then."
"Annnnnnd. . ." Larisa stepped back. "Done." I pulled Cherry away from my chest and looked at her hair. It was significantly shorter and she had bangs now.
"I can't get over how cute she is." Mom said.
"I know." Larisa agreed.
"Thanks." I said.
"No problem." I stood and put Cherry down so I could brush the hair off my shirt and pants. Cherry wraps one of her arms around one of my legs. We stuck around for another half hour before I decided I needed to get home so I could get ready for dinner.