#96 - Writer's Choice: Hair
The Wonder of Hair
Segment Notes: Now this is just utter fluff and silliness and cuteness. I haven't had a lot of chances to explore things during more peaceful times, and I feel like that aspect of things needs to be captured as well. I don't know that I'd ever find a place for this in one of the main fics, so this collection seems the best home for it.
When things were calm and peaceful and there weren't madmen bent on destroying the world, Kalin and Radley enjoyed just spending time at the diner and at home. Generally they were with the Bunch all evening before returning for some quieter time prior to bed. They often settled on the couch for a while—sometimes resting on each other in the process.
Kalin was idly sitting up looking at the news on his phone one night while Radley was laying down with his head on the edge of Kalin's lap, looking at his phone as well. As Kalin lowered his hand, he accidentally brushed the tufts of hair sticking up on top of Radley's head. They bent back and then quickly snapped back into position. Kalin quirked an eyebrow, amused.
"What are those?" he commented. "Yusei has them too."
"You know, I have no idea," Radley remarked. "My mother called them cowlicks, but I don't think that's what a cowlick is. I always thought a cowlick was . . . this." He quickly typed something into his phone and held it up.
Kalin had to snark at the image of Sayer with his sweeping, curled pompadour.
"It looks just like a cow licked it and got it all out of place, doesn't it?" Radley smirked.
"Yeah, I guess you could think of it like that," Kalin said in amusement. "It's definitely not the image I get in my mind when I look at these things." He gently poked one of the pieces of hair.
"My mother wanted to cut them off, but my grandmother thought they were too cute and insisted they stay." Radley blushed a bit. "I could've cut them when I went out on my own, but . . . eh." He shrugged.
"You should keep them," Kalin said. "They're part of who you are."
"Yeah . . . plus, they might just grow back if I cut them anyway," Radley remarked.
Kalin lightly passed his hand back and forth over them several times, watching them flip back and forth and settle back into place. "They seem pretty resilient," he agreed.
"Hey, cut it out," Radley said, but he was laughing. "I can feel that, you know!"
"Really?" Kalin poked one again.
"Yes!" Radley knelt up on the couch and turned to face Kalin, still laughing.
"Doesn't Mrs. Rickshaw's cat ever do that to you?" Kalin asked.
"No, because I don't let her climb on my head!" Radley answered.
Kalin reached to poke it again with one finger.
"Stop it!" Radley lightly tapped Kalin's hand. "I mean it!" But he was still amused. He couldn't be angry, really, not when it was so rare to see Kalin's playful side. Still, he reached around Kalin and gathered the long blue hair in his hands. "Would you like it if I did this?"
"I wouldn't mind once," Kalin deadpanned. "Probably not repeatedly—although I might make an exception for you. In any case, you're more easygoing than I am."
"Oh, so it's okay to do it repeatedly to me," Radley said.
"Hair that defies gravity always fascinated me," Kalin said, still deadpanning.
"You're telling me, then, that you'd bounce Yusei's spikes like that?" Radley retorted. "Or that you already have?!"
Kalin gave him an innocent look. "Maybe once or twice."
Radley just shook his head. "Kalin, you are unbelievable." He let go of Kalin's hair. "Are you planning to keep growing that?"
"For a while," Kalin said. "I found I like it long."
"It suits you," Radley said.
"It suits the new me," Kalin agreed. "I'm not the same person I was before. In many ways, I rarely if ever am."
Radley settled back down with his head on Kalin's lap. ". . . How long has it been since you've felt like being playful like this?" he quietly asked.
"A long time," Kalin replied, just as quietly.
Radley sighed, then smiled up at him. "Go ahead and play with my hair then. It's alright."
They resumed looking up the news and other things on their phones. Radley was interested in the dyne stock prices. Every now and then he felt the hair tufts vibrate as they were poked. But he just smiled.
Kalin had changed so much since they had first met. In some ways he had opened up, but sometimes he was still quite reserved. For him to be this relaxed and happy, and this comfortable with him, Radley could put up with a small annoyance.
