Hair Loss

Before her mom's cancer, Stiles and her mother used to have waist-length hair. Stiles had always tried to be just like her mother by wearing similar clothes, helping her in the kitchen and refusing to cut her hair. It had always been a struggle to get her to the hairdressers and sitting still. Until the day she found out her mother had been diagnosed with cancer.

Even at seven, she knew that cancer was bad, then she found out that the treatments could cause her mother to lose her hair, and even though it seemed like such a small thing, it was the last straw.

Two months later, when her mother started wearing a scarf to cover her hair loss, Stiles walked over to the McCall household, her piggy bank in hand, and asked Mrs McCall to take her to the hairdressers, with tears in her eyes.

"Why do you want to go to the hairdressers, Sweetie?" Mrs McCall kneeled in front of her to ask the question, "You never want to go there."

"Please, Mrs McCall, it's important, I want to surprise Mom so she doesn't feel so sad any more." She looked pleadingly at her best friend's mother.

"Okay, I'll get the keys, you can wait by the car, okay?" she said tiredly, before turning back into the house, "Scott! Get your jacket, we're taking Stiles to the hairdressers."

"Cool! I'm coming." He yelled back, as the sound of running footsteps echoed through the house.

When they reached the hairdressers it took Stiles a minute to work up the courage to leave the car, she loved her hair, and a part of her wanted to go home and forget she'd ever had the idea, but then she remembered the look on her mother's face when her hair had fallen out while she was brushing it, and her mind was made up.

"Well hello, Miss. Stilinski, I don't believe I have an appointment for you today, and where are your parents?" Mr Philips said with a kind smile, unused to seeing the girl without her parents dragging her though the door, "I don't think you have an appointment today, are you here to book one?"

"Not really, Mr Philips, do you have time to cut my hair today?"

Both adults raised their eyebrows in disbelief at Stiles asking to have her hair cut, it was highly unusual.

"I have some time now, if you want to hop up on the chair," he said, fastening the cape around her neck, "Now do you want me to do your normal cut?"

"No," She said, taking a deep breath, "Could you please shave it all off?"

"Your joking right?' Scott said nervously, looking at his beat friend, "You love your hair!"

Melissa just stared at Stiles in shock, she had thought maybe Stiles would get it cut short to make Claudia feel better about losing her own, but she hadn't expected her to go this far.

"You know you don't have to do this, your Mom doesn't expect you to," She looked at Stiles sitting on the stool, chin up, and looking stubbornly at Mr Philips.

"I know, but it's not fair that she has to lose her hair and I get to keep mine, so, I'm making it fair, this way, we'll still look the same, and when she gets better we can grow it out together."

Mr Philips nodded thoughtfully and pulled out the razor and plugged it in, "Last chance to back out," he said to the girl in front of him already knowing what her answer would be.

She breathed out slowly, meeting his eyes in the mirror, before speaking determinedly, "Do it."

Watching all that long beautiful hair fall to the ground was one of the most heart breaking things all those in the salon had seen. When they were done, she looked so much younger, and strangely fragile, her eyes impossibly big and teary for a moment before she pushed the tears away and forced a smile onto her face.

"Well," She said brightly, "At least it won't take half an hour to do my hair any more," Before turning to face Mr Philips, "How much do I owe you?"

"Absolutely nothing," he said firmly, "I refuse to accept a cent from you Stiles, you could have quiet easily had that haircut done at home for nothing, I won't take your money," he spoke over her objections.

Melissa smiled softly at her, "It was a hard thing you did for your mother, Stiles, now say thank you to Mr Philips, and I'll take you home."

"Thank you, Mr Philips," Stiles smiled sweetly as she placed money in the old man's tip jar.

"You're a good girl Stiles, now get on with you," He said, smiling fondly as they left the salon.