All of Me

thirty three • the long haul

At the moment, it's tied in one long, fat braid. Liam pulls it over my shoulder to play with the end, curling the tail around his finger. It's full of split ends at the moment, in desperate need of a trim and a deep conditioning. I tend to just get Mom to do it, straying away from hairdressers who get a bit scissor-happy, snipping off way more than I ask them to.

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair," Liam murmurs, pretending to climb my hair. "I love your hair." He curls it up like a fruit roll-up and lets it go, so it falls over my chest.

"I love when you play with it," I say. I can't get enough of that gentle tugging sensation, like a scalp massage, when he fiddles with my hair. He couldn't braid at all a few weeks ago. Now he has mastered a basic plait, working his way towards a French braid.

"Well, in that case..."

"No, not now. It's a total mess." I pull it over the other shoulder. "I need a cut." I pick up the end and show him how damaged it is, comparing it to his hair, which is somehow in perfect condition. He's the only guy I know who actually conditions his hair. I was shocked to find out that Tad and Gray both use a two-in-one shampoo. Liam, however, has thick, smooth hair with perfectly blunt ends.

"Mom does mine," Liam says as he watches me examining his blonde locks. "I'm sure she'd give you a trim if you asked."

It is tempting. And it'd be an excuse to stay here longer.

The first drops of rain fall, forcing us inside to where Allie is lounging in the sunroom with a children's book in her hand, reading aloud. Daria's lying across her, her ear pressed to her stomach to be as close to the baby as she can get for the next few weeks. Allie greets us with a smile when she comes in, but she doesn't stop her flow. I could listen to her all day. I don't care if she's reading a kid's book or the weather forecast. I just love her soothing voice.

We sit and listen to her until she comes to the end of the book, struggling to a sitting position before Daria leaps back onto her lap, clinging to her mom and chatting away to her stomach.

"Hey there, lovebirds," Allie says with a chuckle. She finds herself hilarious, but it's not annoying. It's kind of sweet, really. She exudes confidence and happy-go-lucky spirit, her personality infectious in the best way. She heaves Daria off her lap and stands, straightening her spine and smoothing her shirt. "What're your plans?"

"I have to head back soon," I say, glancing at the clock behind Allie's head. It's already three o'clock. At this rate, I can't be home before six at the earliest.

"Anything I can say to persuade you to stay a little longer?"

That's how I end up sitting on the floor of the sunroom with a towel around my shoulders while she sits behind me with a comb in her hand, teasing through damp tangles as she trims the damaged ends of my hair. Liam's sitting cross-legged opposite me with Daria in his lap, reading another book. She's obsessed with stories. When I have kids, I want them to be like her. Adorable, feisty little wordsmiths.

I barely hear my phone chirp over the sound of the hairdryer but I see the screen light up with a text from Mom – and the time. Four o'clock already.

are you still coming home today honey? let me know your plans xxx mom

She always signs off like that, as though she doesn't believe that I have her saved as a contact. As I unlock my phone to reply, another message pops up.

i don't want to tear you away from your boyfriend but we miss you! if you want to bring liam back, he's more than welcome of course xxx mom

I turn the screen to Liam, whose eyes flash across the messages. He's a quick reader, taking in both messages in a second, after which his eyes light up. He looks up at me, eyebrows raised.