Akane's Hair Cut (tentative title)
a short story by Dot
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	The newspaper spread over the floor crinkles as Kasumi steps on it.

	"Last chance to change your mind," she says.

	I almost laugh.  It's not like I'm getting a tattoo or something.  "Go ahead."

	Kasumi gently grabs a strand of hair.

	Snip.  

	I've always hated haircuts.  At first, it was because I was afraid of those gleaming scissors.  The ripping sound they made when they closed through my hair convinced me that it would hurt.  Kasumi sometimes had to hold me down during visits to the barber, and I would wail and scream that he'd cut off my ears until the 'ordeal' was over.

  Snip.  Another chunk of hair falls down onto the paper.  A few stray strands drift onto the poncho, and Kasumi brushes it off.

	I hadn't heard Ryouga's bandanna coming until it was too late.  A dull 'whoosh' sounded, a rush of air passed my back, and a half year's worth of hair was gone, just like that.  In the split second that it happened, I'm pretty sure that I didn't even have the time to blink.

	Snip.  Time crawls by at an agonizingly slow pace.  Why couldn't Kasumi go any faster?

	At Dr. Tofu's office, I cried and cried, feeling both silly and ashamed that I was upset over such a little thing.  But it wasn't really just for my hair that I wept.  I think it was then that I finally let myself realize the truth, that I never had a chance with Dr. Tofu at all.

	"Just a bit more trimming, and I'll be done," Kasumi tells me in her ever cheerful voice.  I don't think I've ever seen her angry, upset, or frightened.  It really creeps me out sometimes how calmly she handles everything.

	Snip.  The cold steel presses close to my ears, and I can't help but wince a bit.  Old habits die hard.

	"There.  Done!" Kasumi lifts the poncho off me as I stand up.  The customary heaviness that I used to feel is completely gone.

	If only Ryouga and Ranma hadn't started fighting...if only I hadn't barged into the fight like an idiot...if I hadn't lost my temper...it's all to late to think that now.  My hair's already in a big pile on the floor.  Besides, I could always grow it back if I wanted to.  

	Kasumi hands me a mirror.

	I almost don't recognize myself.  With my hair now barely cropping my ears, I look a lot younger, more energetic.  Cute, even.

	I suddenly wonder what Ranma would think of my new hairstyle.  I give Kasumi a thank you hug and head out the door.
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Another "in-between scenes" 'fic, so short that it's bordering on spamfic status.  I don't even really have anything to say about it, either.  (For once. ^^;)
---
-"Dot"
Dot-Chan on #fanfic at bachman.newberry.edu (FFIRC Chatroom)
Proud member of CAPOW

http://www.fortunecity.com/westwood/italian/70
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--Writer of Unnecessarily Long Author's Notes and Bad Spamfics. ^^;
--Bane of the FFML since 1998. ^_^
--Coming soon to your local inbox: Dragon Ball stories 
with -gasp- plot! ^_^



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