Sterling #4
Porsha had removed the K-tips and I was grateful that I didn’t have a bunch of breakage.
She told me I needed to give the strands a break from the weight and so we forwent additional extensions.
My hair had a natural deep wave pattern to it that had been my mother’s point of pride about me since I wasn’t skinny.
That was probably why I had chopped it all off when I went to college.
Porsha added face-framing highlights and a layered cut that gave me more movement than before.
She’d told me the custom clip-ins would be delivered within five days and based on how I’d looked in the mirror I was more than happy to pay her bill.
Since she wouldn’t let me, I just gave her a huge tip.
I was grateful that she hadn’t dyed it blonde since I gave her free rein.
“How you know it’s all mine?”
Aldrich, who was standing there with a T-shirt and basketball shorts on and bare feet, had the funniest look on his face.
He took a swig of water before he responded.
“‘Cause girls who get extensions don’t act like they’ve had hair before.
You ain’t constantly touching it or being all weird with it.
You're not checking to see where it is or if your tracks are covered or whatever.”
“That’s such a weird observation.” I almost regretted the words as soon as I said them because I didn’t want him to think I thought he was a creep.
I was still relatively a stranger and I lived with him so of course he should be observant.
I guess it was more of what he was observing that threw me off.
“I've been around when the girls always checking to see if they have a hair out of place. They carry around that root spray shit and be scratching their heads with anything they can. You don’t do that. Your shit just be there.” He waved his hand toward my head again and I had to fold my lips together not to laugh.
“Are you always so observant?”
He stood still for a moment before he shook his head. I wondered what his hesitation was about but didn’t ask. “Not normally, but it’s a newly learned behavior.”
“Well, I can understand that because you don’t really know me like that so I get it. I’m not a weirdo.” I held my hands up and wished I could take back what I’d said. The shift in him was immediate but I couldn’t take it back.
“Nah you're not but that was never up for debate. She got you right and was highly recommended so I’m glad that she was worth the hype.”
“It’s crazy that she’s going to be married to the CEO of a record company and is still about her own business. Her place was so nice and so was her fiancé.”
“Fiancé?”
“Yeah, he stopped by and I promised I’d make sure she would eat so he paid for my service.”
“Oh, damn not me getting shown up by some man you don’t even know.”
I was so confused because Aldrich paying for my hair had never been on the table. Had it? He’d been annoyed when I just walked in the door saying I could’ve called him to come and pick me up but it was pointless for him to have to drive out and drive back.
“What do you mean?”
“I wouldn’t have had a problem paying for your hair, Sterling.
It could’ve been a perk of the job or something.
” Aldrich’s face looked troubled and I was trying to understand what his issue was.
I hadn’t even wanted Porsha’s fiancé to pay for the service insisting that she charge my card but she refused.
She said he would ask her if I let her pay and one thing she wasn’t about to do was lie to that man. Couldn’t blame her.
“But I can pay for my own.”
“I’m sure you can but you took his money and you wouldn’t take mine?” Again, there was an edge to his tone I couldn’t quite place.
“I mean…I don’t even know how to answer that. He gave his girlfriend the money and she refused to let me pay. Was I supposed to throw cash at her like she was sliding on a pole?”
His face cracked into a smile briefly and I was sure he was remembering a night where he’d done exactly that and paid for someone’s seamster at college.
“Yeah well I’ll have to reach out to her and put my card on file before you go out and let someone else cover an expense I have no issue paying for.” The offense in his voice stopped me again and I was really trying to find my footing in a situation that seemed to keep going over my damn head.
“I appreciate it but it’s unnecessary. You pay me more than enough. Have you heard from the hospital yet?” I needed to change the subject and redirecting to the important subject we needed to talk on seemed to be the safest topic to jump to.
“They said she’d been eating better and the feeding tube is out. Not much longer and she will be ready to be released.”
Something shifted and the friendly look on his face turned to panic after the realization of his words seemed to sink in.
“Well, I’ll start getting the things I purchased ready for her to come home.”
He gave me a nod of acknowledgement but didn’t move to help me with the rest of the bags.
He’d fussed me out for not calling for him to pick me up from the salon especially when he saw the number of bags that I had to bring in.
Most of them had been taken to the room he’d designated at hers so there were only a few I needed to take back.
But the way he was standing there zoned out, I took the bags and left him there in the kitchen to his thoughts.