Okay, maybe that was being a little harsh. It was nice hair. Very silky. Very dark. It probably felt nice to the touch...uh, not that Julie ever daydreamed of running her hands through it. Never, not even once.
But really, what was so bad about getting it cut? Was Mike one of those superstitious weirdoes that believed all of his talent originated in his hair, and that even the smallest trim acted as his kryptonite?
Of course his hair problem wasn't nearly as bad as Chuck's. She couldn't even see his eyes through all that shaggy blonde hair. More often than not, she wondered how he could even see anything.
But for some reason, Mike's hair irritated her more. In fact, it wasn't specifically his hair that bothered her, but his bangs. Unlike Chuck, Mike's bangs weren't long enough to cover his eyes. Just his eyebrows.
Oh, yeah. There she went again. The only reason she really hated Mike's bangs were because they were his eyebrows' hiding place. Yes, that sounded weird-as Claire had told her several times before-, but, really, you didn't see Mike Chilton as often as Julie did, nor do you know him as well.
It's not like he was ugly when his eyebrows weren't showing. He was still very easy on the eyes. Broad shoulders, mischievous brown eyes, toned arms and legs, and a six pack he only showed on the particularly hot days(which were very common, much to Julie's delight).
His eyebrows, though...they just seemed to change his whole structure. His eyes alone always held such a calmness in them, such a confidence. But when his eyebrows were visible, his true emotions were shown. Most of the time, they were curled downward in a determined glare. Other times, when his team mates were in danger, they were high and practically shot off his forehead. Then there were moments where he was confused, whether it was by Chuck's techno babble or one of Texas' hare brained schemes. One eyebrow was tilted downward, the other upward, and Julie had to resist the urge to coo at how innocent and childish he looked. Imagine, the brave and reckless leader of the Burners being compared to a harmless child.
The best part, though, was when he was relaxed. His eyes were half lidded, and his eyebrows were loose and resting on his head like a pair of black feathers. She only got to see him like this when he had to wipe the sweat out of his brow after changing Mutt's overheating motor. Just as Motorcity had a common heat wave, Mutt got wrecked and battered a lot, so Julie always had an opportunity to drool over his abs and eyebrows whenever she pleased.
...Wow, that did sound weird. But it couldn't be helped. Julie had a big crush. While it wasn't as obvious as, say, Chuck's crush on Claire, she often did wonder if she was doing a good job of hiding it. Hiding things were her specialty. The fact that she'd been with the Burners for months without them questioning her relation to Kane proved that. Or maybe she was really a terrible liar and her boys were just thicker than she gave them credit for. Either way, if she had a secret, it was kept between herself and Claire.
There were plenty of times where she nearly gave her crush away. She loved all of the Burners dearly, but the actions she performed with Mike made it obvious who her favorite was. A warm hug here, a sly wink there, and the occassional peck on the cheek before missions. He never lit up like a christmas tree like Chuck being kissed by Claire, nor did he freeze into a blissful coma like Dutch being kissed by Tennie. He just smiled and saluted to her, then rushed into Mutt and slammed the door.
Because he's friggin Mike Chilton. And Mike Chilton can't get embarrassed.
Which again lead her back to the eyebrow problem. If his bangs weren't showing, his mask of tranquility would be lifted, and she could truly see how he felt about her little kisses and hugs.
She wondered if they would shoot up in shock, crease downward in anger, quirk in confusion, or even relax with contentment. Either way, she'd be getting one hell of an adorable expression.
Claire, big surprise, thought her attraction to Mike and his eyebrows was weird, and that were plenty of other fish in the sea. Preferably in the cleaner, not as smelly sea. Because, really, what chance did Julie have of hooking up with the brave leader? He was the Batman of Motorcity; a romantic relationship would only slow him down, right?
Of course Julie already knew that. And she appreciated Mike's concern for Motorcity, along with Claire's concern for her thumping heart. But that didn't mean Julie couldn't admire him. Being friends with Mike Chilton was better than not knowing him at all.
And there Mike was now, sitting on the edge of Jacob's organic food counter, like he usually would when he had to think things through. The other Burners would leave him alone, figuring that their strong leader could handle any mental problem himself. But Julie knew better. If something was bothering him, she was the one he could rant to.
"Hey, Cowboy. Got some room?" She leaned upside down before his face, using his shoulders to tilt herself. Her long red hair brushed his legs.
Mike smiled. "Do you even have to ask?" Julie lifted her head back up, sitting next to him now. She studied his face, looking for any sign of trouble or unrest in his eyes, or any twitch in his flat line of a mouth that indicated a frown.
Nothing. Big surprise. Goddamn bangs...
"Say, Mike, ya mind if I ask you a weird question?" Julie's voice gained an awkward edge to it, alerting Mike to her uncomfortable expression.
"Sure, what is it?" He asked, hoping his calm tone was contagious. Thankfully, it was.
"Well, I was just wondering...why do you wear your bangs like that?"
Mike blinked in confusion. Alright, that hadn't been what he was expecting. Really he figured it'd be something more along the lines of "What's wrong?". Did Claire's sense of picky fashion rub off on her after all this time?
"Um...no reason, really. I just didn't find it necessary to cut." He subconsciously put his hand through it, staring at Julie when she gasped.
"See that? I mean, wait, no you wouldn't. Um, basically...Ugh, could you please just show me your eyebrows?" She glared at the car, Mutt, that happened to be sitting near the duo, like it was the cause of all her problems.
Mike was too confused to even blink this time. First the bangs, and now she wanted to see his eyebrows? Was she just really bored? But that's what driving was for!
Still, it wasn't like she asked him drive at the two digit mark. Nothing wrong with showing some extra hair.
"Okay..." Mike ran a hand through his brunette hair again, this time keeping his bangs back.
"There. So why did you-?"
She pecked him on the cheek.
To say the least, Mike Chilton's eyebrows were the very soul of his emotions. Julie watched as they first crinkled downward, like he was trying to comprehend what had just happened. Then they shot off his forehead like Mutt off the doom jump until his eyes were as wide as the tires on Jacob's truck. They sort of stuck up there for a while, Mike's hand apparently frozen to his bangless forehead. Finally, after a few more seconds, the eyebrows slackened deliciously downward until they rested near his eyelids. His eyes were still pretty wide, but they eventually followed suit and relaxed until they were half lidded with contentment. Julie nervously waved a hand in front of his face. He didn't even blink.
Well, now Julie knew why Mike was so hasty to climb into Mutt after all those other times she kissed him.
"So, uh...you have nice eyebrows?" What else was she supposed to say? She couldn't apologize, she wasn't sorry she kissed him.
"Hm...?" Mike responded dazedly.
Oh, great, she broke him like Dutch...well, she thought with a little smile, at least he wasn't immune to her charms after all. Maybe Claire was wrong about not having a chance.
"Jacob! Do you have any smelling salts?!"
Mike slept very fitfully that night, his dreams filled with a beautiful redhead stroking his hair and kissing his eyebrows.
XXX
Fluff attack! This pairing is so underrated. Really, I wish there were more Jukebox fans out there.
But, um, yeah, Mike's hot. Especially those eyebrows are showing...heh, I'm such a dork.