Friend’s Sister

“Oh! Hi”, my friend greeted me at the door. I was not in a mood to greet, I was expecting an apology, and he was late. He continued, “Sorry, it just I am coming just some minutes, just get my haircut and bathe and then am ready”

I said in furious tone and sarcasm, “yeah now is the perfect time for haircut, yeah it can’t wait” as I entered their home.

He replied, “Look sorry, it was not in my schedule, but what can I do? It just my sister is getting the chop today and I was dragged into it. You want to go to garden? That’s where barber is sitting, or we can wait here, I am not the next after dad”

I started walking to garden, “so who’s next? Your 17 year old sister?”

He smiled, “yeah, and she is 18 now”

I knew he was joking, but then I thought she always sports a boyish cut, she may get it done by barber.

We reached the garden, his father was getting haircut sitting on a stool. Beside the stool a girl was standing wearing tee and skirt. Her hair was in pony and reached till her breasts.

I sat at a garden rock, as my friend went beside the lady. The girl looked at me and smiled, then only I recognized her. I asked my friend, “When did you sister grow her hair?”

He replied with an unsurprising tone, “Well Seema have long hair for last couple of years. It just you will saw her with short hair”

I was too amazed. I said, “Well I know her from my birth”

He replied, “Look she went to hostel 5 years ago, after that you always see her in summer holidays only. She started growing it during her first year in hostel”

I asked back, “really?”

He explained, “Well she have it cutoff on first day of vacation, well I think, she liked it short here as always”

My friend’s dad was done, he was uncapped. He smiled at me and straightway went inside. Seema started getting ready as she took off the rubber band holding her hair in pony.

Seema was really going to get her hair done by barber.

Seema gently sat on the stool, holding her hair with right hand above the head. The barber quickly took a cloth cape and put on her and then knocked at her finger which were holding her hair.

She let it loose and it fell like waterfall on the back. The barber took a sprayer and started spraying water on her hair and then combing it with finger. Her hair reached almost to her middle of back, little above, it was black, and now shining in sunlight.

The barber then started combing it with scissor and asked, “Usual?”

Seema giggled as she nodded in affirmation.

The barber continued to comb her hair, then he gently bend her head forward. Keeping the comb aside, he collected all the hair in a single pony with his fist. He then took the scissor and placed it at her neck, with her hair in between.

Seema shivered a little as the blades touched her neck and then kaachchchch….chch…chch, the scissor started working. I saw the thick hair getting separated.

Kaachchchch…chchch…chch he continued cutting, and her pony came loose with each snip. I could see her face, she had closed her eyes and with every snip, tightening it further.

Chchch…chchch. It ended. The barber moved the chopped pony away from her back and moved it to her. She giggled. The barber was waving the pony, but I didn’t heeded any attention to it. I just kept seeing her choppy ends. The hair which reached upto her back, is now just up to her neck.

The barber dropped the pony in a plastic bag and then again took comb. Combing her hair in four sections, he took the back section. As before bent her head forward and took scissor. He collected some hair with comb and then kaachchchch…chch….chch. A small lock of her hair fell to grass. He sprayed more water and continued doing the same scissor over comb technique repeatedly.

He then moved to her left, tilting her head on other direction. He separated the hair at her partition, and combed away all the hair right of partition with hands. He the sprayed water and then combed hair left of partition to her ears with comb. Then keeping the scissor at her ear level, he started snipping.

Locks of hair fell to cape, some got collected in her lap, other slide to ground. He then used same scissor over comb technique to snip more hair. Then shifting to right, he switched to thinning scissors. He hacked non-stop, inserting the scissor in between her hair, but only few strands of hair fell to scissor. He continued doing that till he was satisfied. I bet if he had used normal scissor, she would be bald by now. He then switched back to normal scissor to size up the hair in right.

Finally he moved to front. Bringing forward all the hair in front, he snipped above her eye length. Her hair was almost complete.

The barber then moved to back, with scissor, with tip touching her back, he started making a marking on her hair, the hairline. It was one inch above her natural hairline. Then taking the sprayer, he sprayed large amount of water.

I know what was coming. The barber took out new blade from his box and inserted it in the straight razor. Seema automatically bend her head forward. The barber rested his left hand on her head, and touched the blade at her hair line. Seema quivered as the blade did their work.

Seema seemed to enjoy it. The barber completed the nape and haircut was complete. Her nape was now bright and shiny.

Barber gently dusted her with a brush, the nape area, then took a comb, and combed her hair properly. He then took out two mirror, one he gave to Seema, and other her took and went back to held at back.

Seema seemed satisfied with look in front, he touched her hair in front, and nodded in appreciation as barber showed her back. She reached to touch the back, the nape.

She held hair at back with finger and said, “Please shorten it further”

The barber nodded in affirmation and asked, “in sides too?”

She replied, “Yeah, except front, all”

The barber combed her hair once again, and took out a manual clipper. He didn’t wait or hesitated, but touched the clipper at her back, and ran it all through the top.

The hair was so short now, her scalp can be seen, making it greyish appearance. He continued doing so In back. Huge amount of hair was now getting collected in the ground. Then he moved to sides and did the same. After that he again picked the razor, and shaved off the little amount of hair in the sideburns, and then showed the mirror again.

Seema didn’t touched her hair this time, she just nodded in affirmation. The barber gently opened the knot on the cape, and spread a little. He again took the razor and ran it in her neck, covered with cape. He took off the cape, and then dusted her face with a brush, and signaled her to get up.

She got up, checked her hair and went inside, smiling to me.

I couldn’t believe, a girl was having hair upto her midback, few moments ago.

My friend got next to barber chair, when she returned again. She said, “Forgot the packet”, as she picked the plastic which contain her pony hair.

I excused myself saying, “It’s too hot here, I am going inside” and left the friend with barber alone. As I went inside, I saw she was standing in front of mirror in living room and admiring her hair. She failed to notice me.

I was going to ask her, “Why she chopped of her hair?” but didn’t as I saw a packet placed near her hair-plastic. I couldn’t read it completely, but I could make out the letters D…O…N…A…

I could read the rest, but I knew me and my sister has really something to talk about.