a ghost.
When he went back downstairs his mom nearly yelped. She said, “Men don’t shave their entire bodies Michael. You’d better hope it grows back in the next few weeks or your classmates will think you’re the weird kid.” Then she said more soberly, “Did it really itch so much you felt the need to shave everything off?”
“I didn’t shave anything. It all fell out in the shower.”
“Did Bill put Nair in the shampoo?” Bill was Mike’s friend and a bit of a prankster.
Mike wanted to defend his friend but now that he thought about it, that was a possibility.
He said, “I’m heading over to Bill’s later. I’ll find out if he had anything to do with it. ”
“Wear a hat, and get some sun for God’s sake. You look like one of those hairless cats.”
“Thanks for the pep talk mom. I can always count on you to lift my spirits. You’re the wind beneath my wings,” he said sarcastically.
Melanie
Bill texted him saying to meet him at Pizza Hut. Apparently some of their ex-classmates were meeting there. Mike wasn’t going to miss most of those douche bags when he left for college but he’d show up anyway just so he didn’t seem like a putz.
Bill pulled up in his rusty pick-up just as he pulled into the parking lot and he just started laughing his fat ass off. “What the fuck happened to you?”
“It’s a long story. You didn’t happen to accidentally put Nair in my shampoo, did you?”
“I wish I did now. How the hell are you going to pick up college chicks looking like that?”
“Maybe there’s a girl out there that loves a guy with baby soft skin.”
Bill just shook his head.
Mike thought he was already self conscious about his new skin but he had just been propelled to new heights of embarrassment. He considered turning around and heading down by the lake but he was really hungry. He should have eaten that meatloaf.
Luckily he wasn’t popular enough for his ex-classmates to razz him about his skin. He was a bit of a loner and everyone was decent enough to treat him like one. He desperately wanted a pepperoni pizza but the image of all that gooey cheese and meat turned his stomach. That wasn’t normal. He felt like a sissy when he just got the all-you-can-eat salad bar. He avoided eye contact with everyone as Bill made the rounds, talking and joking with their old classmates.
Melanie Smith sidled up to him at the salad bar and whispered, “I hate salad but I’m eating it like it’s chocolate these days.”
Mike looked at her and his breath caught in his throat. She was wearing a ball cap and she had a turtle neck on but it didn’t hide the fact that she was hairless too. She could paint on brows but not lashes. And her face was so white that it was almost translucent, despite the fact that her dad was a black man.
Mike said, “What happened to you? It happened to me too.”
“I don’t know,” she said, her pale eyes welling with tears. “I have this home wax kit I use on my legs and it felt so good that I used it on my whole body. And trust me; waxing isn’t supposed to feel good. My hair came out when I brushed it and my eyebrows fell out in the shower. That was a few days ago and none of the hair has started to grow back.”
Mike said, “I think the roots came out when my hair fell out. Maybe the hair will never return.” Mike knew he was awkward in social situations and it always hit home when he accidentally said something insensitive and someone started to cry, like right now.
Melanie wiped the tears away with her sleeve and said, “Give me your number. I need someone to talk to about this.”
He took her phone and plugged his number into it. He’d given girls his number before and he’d even been laid a few times, but each time he gave out his number felt surreal, like it could be a defining moment for the rest of his life. He knew that was a silly notion, but his mind always went to strange places when awkward moments presented themselves.
She
When he went back downstairs his mom nearly yelped. She said, “Men don’t shave their entire bodies Michael. You’d better hope it grows back in the next few weeks or your classmates will think you’re the weird kid.” Then she said more soberly, “Did it really itch so much you felt the need to shave everything off?”
“I didn’t shave anything. It all fell out in the shower.”
“Did Bill put Nair in the shampoo?” Bill was Mike’s friend and a bit of a prankster.
Mike wanted to defend his friend but now that he thought about it, that was a possibility.
He said, “I’m heading over to Bill’s later. I’ll find out if he had anything to do with it. ”
“Wear a hat, and get some sun for God’s sake. You look like one of those hairless cats.”
“Thanks for the pep talk mom. I can always count on you to lift my spirits. You’re the wind beneath my wings,” he said sarcastically.
Melanie
Bill texted him saying to meet him at Pizza Hut. Apparently some of their ex-classmates were meeting there. Mike wasn’t going to miss most of those douche bags when he left for college but he’d show up anyway just so he didn’t seem like a putz.
Bill pulled up in his rusty pick-up just as he pulled into the parking lot and he just started laughing his fat ass off. “What the fuck happened to you?”
“It’s a long story. You didn’t happen to accidentally put Nair in my shampoo, did you?”
“I wish I did now. How the hell are you going to pick up college chicks looking like that?”
“Maybe there’s a girl out there that loves a guy with baby soft skin.”
Bill just shook his head.
Mike thought he was already self conscious about his new skin but he had just been propelled to new heights of embarrassment. He considered turning around and heading down by the lake but he was really hungry. He should have eaten that meatloaf.
Luckily he wasn’t popular enough for his ex-classmates to razz him about his skin. He was a bit of a loner and everyone was decent enough to treat him like one. He desperately wanted a pepperoni pizza but the image of all that gooey cheese and meat turned his stomach. That wasn’t normal. He felt like a sissy when he just got the all-you-can-eat salad bar. He avoided eye contact with everyone as Bill made the rounds, talking and joking with their old classmates.
Melanie Smith sidled up to him at the salad bar and whispered, “I hate salad but I’m eating it like it’s chocolate these days.”
Mike looked at her and his breath caught in his throat. She was wearing a ball cap and she had a turtle neck on but it didn’t hide the fact that she was hairless too. She could paint on brows but not lashes. And her face was so white that it was almost translucent, despite the fact that her dad was a black man.
Mike said, “What happened to you? It happened to me too.”
“I don’t know,” she said, her pale eyes welling with tears. “I have this home wax kit I use on my legs and it felt so good that I used it on my whole body. And trust me; waxing isn’t supposed to feel good. My hair came out when I brushed it and my eyebrows fell out in the shower. That was a few days ago and none of the hair has started to grow back.”
Mike said, “I think the roots came out when my hair fell out. Maybe the hair will never return.” Mike knew he was awkward in social situations and it always hit home when he accidentally said something insensitive and someone started to cry, like right now.
Melanie wiped the tears away with her sleeve and said, “Give me your number. I need someone to talk to about this.”
He took her phone and plugged his number into it. He’d given girls his number before and he’d even been laid a few times, but each time he gave out his number felt surreal, like it could be a defining moment for the rest of his life. He knew that was a silly notion, but his mind always went to strange places when awkward moments presented themselves.
She
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