Glued

Glued!

Kaylee opened the back door gingerly.  She hoped she would be able to sneak through the house to her bedroom without being seen.

“Show me what happened.” Mum was waiting by the kitchen sink.

“Nothing.” Kaylee whined. Tears filled her eyes as she denied her disgrace.

“Don’t talk to me like that.” Mum ordered, then softened her voice. “I know, Honey. The school rang.”

With a pout and a sigh, Kaylee slipped the hood of her sweatshirt back. The tears choked her as she spoke. “I wasn’t being weird, Mum. I was just minding my own business. They cornered me. They planned this.”

She had heard the other girls laughing as they held her down.  They were saying things like, “Oh, lets add the eggs now.” “Here’s the glue.” “She’ll look real pretty with some yellow paint, too.”

“Honey. It’s been put a stop to. Those girls got caught this time. Your headmaster is dealing with them right now.”

Kaylee was glad to hear that news. Not that it made the crime any less shameful. “I can’t go out anywhere like this.”

“I’ve booked you an appointment with MaryAnne. She’ll be able to sort out something for you.”

“Thanks Mum,” murmured Kaylee as she finally headed to her bedroom to hide out. MaryAnne was a great stylist. Whether even she could do anything to a mess this bad was unlikely.

“Oh, no,” tiny voices whispered from around the bedroom.

Kaylee sniffed and went across to her dressing table. There, she peered at her reflection in the mirror. Tears welled up again. Her hair, jet black and long enough to sit on, was loose. It had been in a single plait before she left for school.

She reached up and touched the strands. The mess the bully girls put into it was already set. Long spikes of hard, yellow-painted hair pointed in all directions. Only now did she see that there were other colours, beyond yellow, added to the mix.

The tiny voices kept whispering. “Don’t be sad.” “That green is kind of pretty against the black.” “Like the blue too.”

“Shut up!” Kaylee cried. “If I was normal, this would never have happened.”

Another voice, as tiny as the rest but deeper, replied. “No. You are being selfish, Kaylee. Some other girl would have been the victim and you know it. Those girls were out to hurt someone. They didn’t care who.”

“Teddy Bear,” Kaylee whirled around to look at the stuffed toy on her bed. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

“They are jealous of your magic,” Sophie, the rag doll suggested.

“Right.” Kaylee sighed. “Talking to dolls is just dumb. It’s what little kids do. I’m a teenager.”

“Having us reply, that’s where the magic is. You know that.” A little giggle accompanied this comment from Herbert, the Wizard doll.

Kaylee felt a smile tug at her lips in response. “I thought it was you lot who were magic. That’s what Grandma told me.”

“Oh, of course, we are, but being able to hear us, well that’s special magic.”

Kaylee turned and looked back at her reflection. “I really hope MaryAnne can do something. I don’t think this is going to wash out.”

She tried to imagine having short, short hair and failed. More tears blurred her vision and she was glad.

An hour after her conversation with the dolls, Kaylee sat in the chair at MaryAnne’s tiny salon. The hairdresser only worked part-time, from a room at the back of her house.

Kaylee listened with amazement as MaryAnne sent her mother away.

“We’ll be fine. Truly. There’s no room for an extra in here. We’re going to have some fun, then you are going to take Kaylee home and give her a yummy, unhealthy dinner. Away you go. Buy some chocolate and a big bag of potato chips. I’ll give you a call when we’re finished.”

“Why did you do that?” Kaylee asked as soon as the door closed. Mum had stayed on previous occasions. The salon was easily big enough for the three of them.

“Because she will fuss and make comments about how sad it is that you got picked on. She will want to say nasty things about the girls who did this, and, she will upset you.”

“Thank you.” Everything MaryAnne said was true.

“Okay, let’s start with seeing how much can wash out.”

At the basin, Kaylee tipped her head back. From that angle, she spied a doll on a high shelf. She wore a cute, blue, school gym frock, had a proper, little, school bag and wore tinted glasses. Kaylee would not have paid attention to her but for the doll’s long, black braids.

“Who’s that?” The question slipped out before she could stop it. She did not want MaryAnne to think she was weird.

“Oh, oops. That’s Bridget. Hmm, she has a hair issue a bit like yours.”

“What do you mean?”

“Let me wash your hair first, then I’ll get her down. Now, brace yourself. I’m doing a cold wash. That’s our best hope.”

The chill of the water was startling but, really, no different than ducking her head in the swimming pool. After the initial shock Kaylee barely noticed it. She was too busy looking up at Bridget. She was certain the doll was smiling at her.

The wash was a partial success. “At least, we got the egg out.”

“You are still going to have to cut most of it off, though, aren’t you?” Kaylee felt tears welling up yet again, and tried to blink them away.

“The paint will come out with repeated washing, Kaylee, but the glue is a different matter. Give me a moment to think about it.”

Kaylee took the opportunity to ask, “Can you please show me the doll?” She felt silly but she wanted to meet Bridget properly.

“Oh, right. I forgot.” MaryAnne needed the stepladder to bring the doll down.

Bridget was as big as a three-month-old child. Whoever had dressed her, made the clothing, socks, blouse, and gym frock, themselves. They had done a really great job.  Her bag and shoes were bought products, from a really good quality supplier. Kaylee’s fascination with dolls had led her into the world of doll accessories.

Although the accessories were excellent, Bridget’s hair was what Kaylee found interesting. It was almost exactly the same black as Kaylee’s and done in two plaits like a primary school child. Kaylee changed to wearing hers in a single braid when she started at the High School.

Bridget’s hair issue was easy enough to spot.

“What caused that?” Kaylee pointed to a large patch of dried glue across Bridget’s parting.

“As I said, she’s got a hair issue similar to yours.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Good question. Unlike yours, her hair won’t grow back.”

“A wig?” Kaylee could see the hair was actually threaded into the doll’s skull.

“I haven’t quite worked out what will work best, yet.”

Bridget was still giving her secret smile so Kaylee smiled back. She thought the doll wanted to talk but both understood that MaryAnne must not find out about the magic.

Another kind of magic happened. The front doorbell rang. MaryAnne froze. “Oh, that’s probably the courier.”

Kaylee nodded and tried not to smile. “Then you had better get it. I’m fine.”

MaryAnne even closed the door on the way out.

Bridget giggled. “Yay. Hello.”

“Hi Bridget. We won’t be able to talk for long.”

“I know. MaryAnne is nice but she won’t understand.”

“Yeah. What happened to your hair?”

“Kaylee, what happened has happened. Let’s talk about what I want done to fix it.” The doll was almost stern in the way she spoke.

“Oh, wow. Yes, yes, please. What do you want?” Kaylee knew the doll’s solution was going to change how they dealt with hers.

“I want ribbons and bows. Even lots of colours. Since I saw yours, I want green.” Bridget chuckled.

“Of course!” Kaylee exclaimed loudly.

“Of course, what?” MaryAnne was standing at the doorway. She was grinning.

Kaylee giggled and told the truth as if it was a silly joke. “Bridget wants bows in her hair, to cover the glue. She thinks a green one would be especially pretty. I think she should have blue to match her dress.”

“Oh, Kaylee. What a wonderful idea. That will be fun to do.” MaryAnne was almost squealing. “Yes, definitely an ‘Of course.’”

Kaylee grinned at the hairdresser. MaryAnne’s excitement was over the top for just a doll. She was not even looking at Bridget. Possibilities for Kaylee’s mess were now filling her mind.

“What can you do?”

“It will be far more complicated than Bridget’s. Washing it will also be a nightmare. You’ll have to let me do it at least once a week. But, Kaylee, a rags and ribbons style will look gorgeous. Especially with your black hair. Those girls will be so jealous.”

A gulp of fear had Kaylee ask, “Do you know what to do. I’ve only ever seen photos.”

Kaylee was not even certain that the pictures were the same style as MaryAnne was talking about.

MaryAnne laughed. “Most people only want ordinary haircuts. The big salons in town are the kind of place for this. For models and actors. I can show you though, the one I did for my exams.”

Kaylee nodded. “I trust you.”

“I had better ring your mother. We are going to be a couple of hours longer that I said originally. Now, I’m going to have to raid my craft room. Can I leave you again, for a sec?”

“Sure.” Kaylee could hardly wait.

“No one will believe it’s me,” she whispered to Bridget.

“Good thing you know how to listen to us dolls,” Bridget replied with a chortle.

Bridget’s bows only took ten minutes. MaryAnne and Kaylee opted for the blue bows and ribbons to match her uniform.

Kaylee’s transformation took a lot longer. Proper hair dye, green, blue and yellow, created highlights against her black hair. Ribbons of velvet and satin got woven in. Fine golden chains were wrapped around the glued chunks and pinned in place. They shimmered in the light.

Some lengths of hair did hit the floor but that happened to enhance the style, not to admit defeat. Kaylee kept staring in the mirror, seeing a change from an unhappy teenager into a wild, fey creature. The look was crazy, fun and stunning. No one at school would have dared try something this unique. The school board would normally have banned such a look but because Kaylee had been attacked at school, they would have to accept it.

MaryAnne had performed a miracle.

“You can’t go yet,” MaryAnne said as she finally allowed Kaylee out of the chair. “I want photos. Hundreds of photos. You and Bridget together. Both of you now have award winning cuts.”

When Kaylee’s mother came to collect her, her slow entrance showed she was afraid of the result. What she could not expect was to hear was laughter from the salon.

Even though they both knew she was outside the door, MaryAnne did not allow Kaylee to go.

“Hold on. I just want a couple more shots.”

“Oh. Wow.” Kaylee’s mother was almost speechless when she peered into the little salon.

Kaylee turned to MaryAnne, “Thank you so much.”

She put the doll on the seat of the chair and whispered. “Thank you, Bridget.”