His Phoenix

■Stranded with Romance■

"Please tilt your head up a bit." I requested. The oung lady I was working on complied. I run the powder brush i was holding over her chin then across her cheeks.

My lips were pursed in concentration as I worked. With a final stroke, I set the brush down and grabbed a nude colored lip stick. The young lady pouted. I painted her lower lip a light nude.

"Press your lips together." I instructed. She did as I said and pouted again. I made the colour a bit deeper.

Standing, I grabbed the setting spray and spritzed it all over her face.

"There. I'm done." I said with a smile as I turned her around to face the mirror. She grinned at her reflection as she cocked her head to the side.

"Thank you so much." She pressed a small bundle of money into my hand and grabbed her purse.

Kukua walked up to me as the young lady strutted out of the salon with a calm confidence. I wiped my hands on my apron as I fixed a curious gaze on Kukua.

"Get ready. We have a house call." She stated briefly as she brushed past me to grab her makeup kit.

"Huh?" I responded dumbly.

Although her back was turned to me, I could feel her rolling her eyes.

"We have a a house call. Get ready and let's go. We're supposed to be there in twenty minutes." She deigned to venture more information.

I decided it was wiser not to argue. With a slight nod, I quickly washed my hands and took off my apron. After folding it neatly and placing it in my allocated drawer, I grabbed my kit and joined Kukua outside. It was almost midday and the sun's harsh glare made everything look brighter.

I took a big whiff of fresh air as Kukua stopped a taxi and started bargaining with the driver. A few seconds later, she motioned for me to sit.

I settled into the backseat and she took the seat next to the driver.

"So...where are we going?" I asked.

"East Legon." She replied curtly. I waited for her to add more information. She didn't. I rolled my eyes and tried again.

"Who are we going to work on?" I asked.

Kukua sighed in exasperation. Beside her, the driver gave her a quick glance. "It's a birthday party. We're supposed to make sure the birthday girl and her friends look perfect."

I nodded and leaned back into my seat. A birthday huh. It'd been a while since I'd been part of any kind of party. Bea's kid's birthday didn't count. Everything had been designed for childlike fun and there had been nothing for the adults to enjoy....except the cake. Even that was limited since the children hogged everything. Nine year old were ferocious when it came to cake.

"Okay." I said briefly, matching her curt tone.

Kukua shook her head and muttered something under her breath. I rolled my eyes again. It was beginning to seem like our mutual respect and civil relationship was all in my head.

We spent the rest of the ride in silence. I kept my eyes glued to the sceneries that flashed past as the car zoomed towards our destination. There were so many trees on the sides of the road. Almost as many trees as there were people. Hawkers wove through the cars with expert ease and from the sides of the roads, aromas from little food stalls and kiosks wafted into the car through the open windows. I loved Accra in the afternoon. Everything was just so festive.

Our car soon stopped as we joined the midday traffic. Kissing his teeth in frustration, our driver grudgingly turned on the radio and a popular Afrobeats song began to play. Drumming my fingers on the seat, I hummed along as I bobbed my head to the music.