The latest and most obnoxious of all the girls he dated. She swore the sun rose and fell based on what she liked. Breyonna said she’s as close to a mean girl as our high school allowed. We had too many circles of people to have one group dominate anything. Everyone hung with who they liked and kept to themselves.
“You seem to be enjoying the takeovers a bit more. The response from the audience has been great and sales increased more than twenty percent.” Aunt Tanya said as she paused to place her fob in her purse.
I nodded. “Un hun.”
Ms. ‘I Want to Be Her’ turned and did some weird shimmy, then flung her hair over her shoulder. Someone else made a weird shape around their head. Then his girlfriend twirled around, looked me in the eye, and laughed. She laughed so hard I heard her snort. Two of her other friends laughed as well. A girl on the team with me, I’d known since kindergarten, avoided eye contact and sighed.
They all gathered around the wanna be mean girl for an usie. I felt disgust fill every inch of me. “So you didn’t worry that Uncle Corey might break up with you?”
Aunt Tanya cleared her throat. “Your Uncle Corey and I weren’t married yet. We weren’t even discussing marriage. I wanted locs, had always wanted locs, so I locked my hair. Never crossed my mind to care if he’d like my locs.”
“What if he didn’t like it?” My disgust waned as the girls walked into the mall entrance. Aunt Tanya and I entered the food court.
Aunt Tanya laughed. “I’d be married to a smarter, finer man.”
“What?” I turned to look at Aunt Tanya. “You’d date someone else?”
She laughed again. “I dated plenty of someones before I committed to him. That is how I knew he was special. My hair is my business. I’d never be with a guy who only wanted to date me if I wore my hair a certain way.”
“This guy I’ve had a crush on since middle school only dates girls with long straight hair.” JeShaun sighed.
Aunt Tanya’s eyes lit up. “Honey, I wouldn’t change my hair for anyone. One of the perks of being a stylist is being able to do whatever I want to my hair for work. You remember what happened to my client, Maya Hatton?”
I nodded.
“I don’t let anyone dictate how I wear my hair. Especially not some silly, fickle boy. I didn’t do it in high school and never as an adult. To be honest, I didn’t give Corey a second thought when I started my locs.” Aunt Tanya rolled her eyes.
My curiosity crushed any embarrassment. “What happened in high school?”
“Boys thought they knew how to tell how good your hair texture is from your baby hair. So girls wore their baby hair out, plastered to their forehead. Nevermind, some good gel, and a toothbrush. I think I bought my first set of rims from the money I made doing girls’ baby hair in the bathroom at lunch and after gym.”
I ignored the rumbling from my stomach. “You’re kidding, right?”
“I wish I were kidding. Don’t let anyone tell you how to wear your hair. As long as you like it and it’s healthy, you’ll attract the right guy. The kind who likes you for you. Every generation has trends that come and go. But being you never goes out of style. Don’t fall for your generation’s baby hair bull.”
6
I gave my outline for the talking points for my last takeover a final look before emailing it to Aunt Tanya for approval. Doing a simulcast livestream to YouTube, Instagram, and Ask Tanya B website made the most sense. Once Aunt Tanya explained how it all worked, I was impressed. All this time I just thought she liked hearing herself talk. She’s smart and has been helping people all over the world love their hair. Uncle Corey, Keylisa, Brielle, and Breyonna are even gonna join in the fun.
Keylisa strolled into the room. She wore the most popular hairstyle from Aunt Tanya’s most recent hair tutorial bundle with accessories by a local mompreneur Aunt Tanya posted about all the time. A mother and daughter duo who created barrettes, headbands, ribbon sets, beaded and jeweled comb sets that matched jewelry for real special occasions, and hair scarves.
“I’m so excited about being in the last takeover with you. Once you and Aunt Tanya make up, we can get back to being models… Before you leave me.” Keylisa gave me a small smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I’m going to miss you when you go to college.”
My heart stopped in my chest. All this time I thought Keylisa enjoyed the attention from Aunt Tanya during our hair modeling sessions. My mind played back all the jokes, tickling, and hugs we share each and every time we do the photoshoots. I’d been an idiot.
Mom told me to look out for Keylisa. She said I’d be stronger and have to teach her how to be careful with her big open heart. Tears welled up in my eyes as I thought through the last few months before Mom died. Her ability to make every thing we did special. I wished Keylisa knew our Mom better. I wished I’d been better at making our time together special on purpose, instead of her loving me because of her big open heart. Keylisa deserved better.
“Aunt Tanya has to approve the topics I talk about ahead of schedule. If she didn’t, I’d ask you to do today’s take over with me, too.” I opened my arms with a smile.
The biggest smile I’d seen in weeks covered Keylisa’s face. She ran into my arms. Her small hands clasped around my waist. I felt
