BXBX NOVEL Chapter 49: Parasite
Kyle wondered but the result of his hairstyle changed his mind the moment he caught a glimpse of it in the mirror.
"...And all done," The bald barber said and Kyle couldn\'t believe what he was looking at.
He looked handsome as fuck, his lifeless face hidden by the strands of hair that often dangled were nowhere to be seen, bringing his full face into view.
It was an undercut, the sides of his hair were shaven, giving him a clean look as it amplified his green eyes.
"Goddamn! I look gorgeous!" Kyle exclaimed, his reaction brought a smile to the barber\'s face.
An appreciation for his craft was something that he would always appreciate.
"What\'s your name, big fella?" Kyle asked, he no longer was intimidated by his appearance and as this man had just created something divine on his head.
"My name? I\'m called Big Bob," Bob introduced himself but paused momentarily because he didn\'t know why Kyle wanted his name.
"And just so you know, I don\'t swing that way," Bob informed Kyle as politely as he could.
"Oh! Hahaha!" Kyle laughed out loud upon realizing how he must have come off for Bob to have this impression.
"It is a pity, I\'m sure you would have been a catch but I\'m not interested in men either," Kyle pointed out to clear up any misunderstanding.
"Are you interested in being my barber? I\'m not a fan of having the service of multiple people when it comes to things like this," Kyle requested. There was no way that Bob would say no to an opportunity to make more money.
"Sure thing man," Bob said, handing Kyle his contact information. Bob was a lot friendlier than he had anticipated.
Kyle left the salon and felt like a new man, he could feel every fibre of his being bustling with energy.
He was never an ugly individual, if anything, he was on the attractive side but his unkempt look was the deterring factor.
But he got all the right attention now, people were looking at him in awe as they found him attractive.
Kyle smiled inwardly, his life was beginning to take shape slowly and the nightmare he had slowly faded from his immediate train of thought.
-
Jane was closing from work, she had carried out her shift and it was time to head back home.
Kyle made her the star of the day, everyone was grateful to her because she was the reason they all got new phones but this was a clever way to make everyone like Jane if they didn\'t already.
This would put her on good them but also make them supportive of her relationship with him.
The whispers were powerful and what better whispers to fill her ears than people telling her how lucky she was to have him? Jane still couldn\'t believe he had come to see her.
"Hey…" A voice called out behind her, Jane turned to see Mike standing behind the door she just exited.
"Hey Mike, are you headed out too?" Jane asked, that couldn\'t be the case as Mike worked longer hours.
"No, I just wanted to help you hail down a cab," Mike said.
"... Just like old times," He made sure to add, Mike was the kind of guy who acted like a parasite, hanging around and hoping that a rejection would turn to acceptance after a series of heartbreaks from the lady he fancied. She would see all men are bad and come running to him.
The long game, that was what Mike was playing.
"I don\'t think there is any need for that, thank you, Mike," Jane declined with a smile but this was the first time she was doing this.
Mike gritted his teeth, he knew it was because of that man.
That had to be the reason for this sudden change in character but he wasn\'t going to back down.
"C\'mon, I insist," Mike said, proceeding to exit the building and stand by the side of the road.
This was harmless so Jane conceded, she didn\'t mind him doing this for her but she knew it would be unfair for her to keep expecting certain things from him even after rejecting him.
Jane walked up to the roadside to meet him, there were rarely any empty taxis by this time of the day as someone was already in them.
"I appreciate this Mike," Jane was quick to express her gratitude.
"It is fine!" Mike downplayed it but that was the end of the conversation, Jane didn\'t attempt to strike up any small talk leaving Mike to do the honour.
"So…" Mike began, capturing Jane\'s attention.
"That guy… I haven\'t seen him before, is he your boyfriend?" Mike tried to hide his jealousy as best as he could and it worked, he managed to present this as a normal question.
Jane\'s face flushed red the moment she heard the word boyfriend, she never knew what Kyle was to her but she knew that she liked him.
They hadn\'t done anything about labels and she didn\'t want to spook him either but the thought of Kyle being hers turned her brain to mush.
"H-He is not! At least I don\'t think he is," Jane responded but Mike hated this.
He hated that another man brought out this side of her and not him.
"You don\'t think? I would think people know when they\'re dating," Mike responded, masking the question behind a series of fake laughter.
Jane already disconnected from the conversation, stuck in her head because she was thinking about how Kyle would look being her boyfriend.
But Mike got his answer, they weren\'t dating yet and that meant that it was fair game.
"I still have a chance!" Mike thought to himself.