Back in middle school, Zoey and Topanga were walking through the school halls together. As the years went by and they began making their way past childhood and into their teen years, the girls found themselves closer than ever. In fact, it was this very friendship that helped them through what they'd faced so far in the early stages of their teen hood.
The two could talk to each other about things Cory and Shawn would never even being to understand. They didn't need to explain to each other, they just understood. In fact, sometimes they didn't even need to talk at all to know what was going on.
"So..." Topanga sang with a smile. "How are you and Shawn?"
Zoey smiled at the mention of her boyfriend. "It's Great! It's like Spring. Everything's blooming. Your chest feels like it's going to explode, you're so happy to see or even hear from the other person. They're the person with whom you most look forward to speaking. I love him so much, Topanga."
Topanga chuckled as the two made their way over to their boyfriends.
"Yes. Fine. You're perfect." Cory complained as Shawn continued to fix his hair in his locker mirror. "Now, can we get out of the hallway where everyone can see me?"
"Hang on." Shawn said, brushing him off. "Just need to get a little more hair in my eyes. Gotta make sure I look good for my Zo."
"You know I hate that." Cory grumbled and spun Shawn around and started frantically running his hands through Shawn's hair to mess it up.
Shawn pushed himself off and turned back to his mirror. "Also good."
"Also good. Also good." Cory repeated darkly as he scratched his hair in disdain. "Move!"
"Whoa, whoa. Cory, come on." Shawn said, pulling Cory's hands away worriedly. "You're gonna cut your fingers."
"You're right." Cory exhaled deeply, seeming to finally calm down. "I'm overreacting. It's just that between you and Eric, I feel like I'm surrounded by people with perfect hair."
"Hi, Cory." Topanga greeted as she and Zoey finally joined them.
"No need to explain these relationships, is there?" Cory asked with a frown as he motioned to the two beautiful girls.
"What are you guys talking about?" Zoey wondered.
Cory shook his head. "Nothing. I'm just a little insecure today, but I'm sure it'll pass."
Dylan Banks suddenly joined them with a charming smile. "Hey, Topanga."
"Hey, Dylan." Topanga greeted politely.
"So, you wanna go out this weekend?" Dylan asked her casually.
"Of course not." Topanga replied heatedly as she glared at him. "I'm going out with Cory."
Dylan's his eyes in disbelief. "Oh, you're still with him? I figured you'd have dumped him over the summer." He then noticed Zoey and smiled at her. "Zoey, I didn't notice you over there."
"Good. Now leave." Shawn demanded firmly, standing up in front of Dylan.
"I'm with Shawn, Dylan." Zoey reminded.
"Well, if you decide to dump them, here's my card." Dylan said, handing the girls a card before he walked away without a care.
"Locker number 168." Cory read off the card. "Huh. That's a nice locker.
Shawn looked down at Zoey. "So, how often does that happen?"
"How many times does it happen to you?" Zoey questioned.
Shawn shrugged. "At least four times on a bad day."
Zoey smirked coyly. "Try double that on a bad day."
"No way!" Shawn exclaimed in disbelief. "There is no way you get asked out nine times on a bad day?"
"Eight." Zoey corrected.
"Look, Cory, it's just some guy asking me out. It's no big deal." Topanga reassured her boyfriend.
Cory rolled his eyes. "Well, it's no big deal to you because you're the askee. And why are you the askee? You're always the askee because you are gorgeous."
"Well, thank you very much, but give me some credit. I know guys go out with girls because of how they look." Topanga said as she grabbed his hand and smiled warmly. "But you go out with me because of who I am inside. The only reason you think I'm good looking is because you care about me. It wouldn't matte what I looked like. You'd still think I was pretty."
"Yeah, but, Topanga, I mean, this is easy for you to say." Cory said with a frowned and pointed to his face. "You don't have a nose that takes up half your face, and hair like a Brillo pad."
"Come here." Topanga insisted as she held her hand out to him.
"What? You saw suds?" Cory asked gloomily.
"First of all, I love your face, and I love your hair, but most of all, I love you because of who you are. And I hope you love me because of who I am and not because of my face and hair." Topanga told him.
Cory sighed. "Topanga, if I looked in the mirror every morning and saw what you see, I'd feel real good about myself, too."
"Oh, so you think that's it? You think what gives me all my confidence is my face and hair." Topanga said.
"And the fact that they're perfect." Cory added. "Yeah, I think that puts a little spring in your step."
"Oh, yeah? Well, here's what I think." Topanga said as she pulled out a pair of scissors from her school bag.
Cory's eyes widened as she held it up to his face. "Words, Topanga. Use your words."
Topanga rolled her eyes before she grabbed a handful of her hair, chopped it off, and handed it Cory. "Well? Are we any different now?"
Zoey stared at her in shock, her jaw dropped. Sure, she always admired Topanga's carefree attitude but she had a feeling her eccentric friend would soon come to regret this.
"Well, somewhere less predictable." Cory answered slowly as he looked down at the hair in his hands, still not sure what was happening. "But, no, you're right. I'd love you no mater what you looked like."
"Good. Glad you learned something." Zoey managed to say, her eyes never leaving Topanga's.
Cory paused and turned to her. "You agree with Topanga?"
"Yeah." Zoey replied.
"So, then you would do the same thing?" Cory questioned.
Zoey nodded. "Yeah."
Zoey then kneeled down, grabbing the scissors before messily chopped off a section of her own hair. She handed her handful of hair to Shawn before she started cutting at another section.
Both Topanga and Zoey were on their way to class, only to stopped when they saw their reflection in the mirror in Shawn's locker. Zoey's jaw dropped as she finally got a look at herself in the mirror.
"They're gonna scream now." Shawn informed.
Just like he said, Topanga and Zoey let out a shrill scream.
"It's okay. It's okay." Topanga said, grabbing Zoey's hand as they couldn't take their eyes away from the mirror, staring at the uneven chunks of their hair. "It's just a little hair. It has nothing to do with who we are."
Zoey nodded slowly and let out a shaky breath. "Mhmm. Yeah. I mean, I'm still Zoey Francis."
Topanga nodded with a weak smile. "And I'm still Topanga Lawrence. And nobody who cares about us will even noticed, right?"
"Mr. Matthews. Mr. Hunter." Mr. Feeny greeted as he walked past the four teenagers. He froze and stared at the girls in shock. "Ooh. What the heck happened to you two?"
"Mr. Feeny, Zoey and I cut our hair in an attempt to show Cory that physical appearance is secondary to inner beauty." Topanga explained strongly.
Mr. Feeny nodded slowly. "Aha. Well, in that case, Miss Lawrence, Miss Francis, I applaud your attempt at teaching a very valuable lesson during these extremely vulnerable teenage years."
Topanga and Zoey stared at him for a moment before their faces fell.
"You think we're ugly!" Zoey wailed before the two ran off.
"Nice going, Feeny." Shawn huffed.
••••
Zoey rushed into the girls bathroom and stared at herself in the mirror. She stared at the uneven chunks of her hair and frowned, her long hair used to reach above her waist and now it was uneven and ugly.
Shawn walked into the bathroom and immediately noticed the couch beside the wall. "Hey, how come you guys get a couch?"
"Sometimes we need to lie down." Zoey replied as she couldn't tear her eyes away from the mirror.
"You see, that's where guys are different. We're in, we're out. We don't like to linger." Shawn said, clicking his fingers.
Zoey sighed and turned to him. "Look, Shawnie, I'm having some problems right now, and I'd really like to be alone."
"Well, I'll... be alone with you." Shawn insisted, sitting down on the couch. Zoey strolled over and sat beside him. "Look, you don't have any problems. I mean, look at yourself in the mirror. You're still beautiful."
Zoey frowned. "I can't look in the mirror."
"Zoey, It doesn't matter to me what you look like. It only matters to me who you are." Shawn said genuinely, wrapping an around her shoulders.
"See, that's my problem, Shawn. I thought I was someone who thought that appearance didn't matter, but that was only because I was comfortable with my appearance all this time. But now I'm not." Zoey told her boyfriend before shaking her head. "How shallow can I be?"
"You are not shallow." Shawn told her, pressing a soft kiss against her temple. "You're deep. You're the deepest, most thoughtful, profound person I've ever known."
Zoey looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. "How's my hair look?"
"Well, that's not one of your strong points anymore." Shawn admitted as he held the handful of hair. "Look, how long did it take you to grow your hair that long?"
"Five or six years." Zoey answered.
Shawn smiled. "That's perfect because in five or six years, you'll grow your hair back, I'll still have my hair. Don't you see? It'll make us even closer as a couple because now we are in perfect sync."
Zoey smiled and pressed a soft kiss against his lips. "Today after school, I'll go down to the beauty parlour and get his all evened out."
••••
Cory was out of his mind with nerves as he and Shawn waited for their girlfriends at the salon. It seemed like the place was taunting him, everywhere he turned there was a mirror waiting for him. He was now wringing out his hands anxiously as he tried to look as innocent as possible.
"I don't know, man. They've been in there an awful long time." Shawn said as he paced worriedly.
Cory furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you getting so crazy about? They're just getting a haircut."
"No, Cory. We've known Topanga all her life, okay? She doesn't wear make-up. She's never been to a beauty parlour. She's completely natural. And Zoey's sending boys to their knees with just a smirk." Shawn explained.
"what's the big deal?" Cory asked.
"The big deal is that they were beautiful before without anybody's help. Now they've got professional help. They're gonna be mega beautiful. We're not even gonna be able to look at them directly without burning our retinas." Shawn dramatically explained with wide eyes.
"Come on. This isn't Beverly Hills. I mean, it's a neighbourhood beauty salon next to old lady Schneider's doughnut shop. I mean, they don't exactly do miracles here." Cory responded.
A pretty woman turned around in one of the chairs.
Shawn's eyes widen. "Old lady Schneider."
"It's a miracle!" Cory exclaimed in shock. He then began to pace worriedly. "Oh no. The girls are gonna come out looking ten times better than they did when they went in."
Shawn placed a hand on Cory's shoulder. "Okay, the first thing they're gonna do is Topanga will dump you, Zoey and I will still be together. Then, they're gonna start hanging out with other unbelievably good-looking people."
"How do you know that?" Cory asked.
"It's what we do." Shawn answered with a shrug.
"Well, I think that's interesting, but, oh, so wrong." Cory told his best friend.
"And why's that?" Shawn questioned.
"Because if anybody knows hair, it's me. When I get a haircut, it looks terrible for, like... the first six weeks. Then all of a sudden, it looks terrific for, like... a day. Then it's time for another haircut. It's what I like to call the haircut cycle of shame." Cory explained.
"Okay, and that's what you think gonna happen to Topanga?" Shawn asked.
"Yes, I do, because the universe knows that Topanga and I are supposed to be together, so the universe has seen fit to put Topanga in that chair and make her hideous so we can get through our teenager years awkward hand in awkward hand." Cory said.
Shawn smirked. "You know she's gonna come out great looking, don't you?"
"Yes!" Cory wailed and slumped against his best friend shoulder.
Then Topanga and Zoey walked into the main hall of the beauty parlour with beautifully blown-out- shoulder-length hair. Shawn and Cory stared at the girls in stunned silence.
"This universe blows!" Cory exclaimed.
"Well, isn't somebody going to say something?" Zoey asked.
Shawn stared at his girlfriend in amazement. He felt his mouth go dry and his palms got clammy as he took in her new look. He was biting his lips to keep from saying something insane but he couldn't hold back for much longer.
"Oh, to heck with it!" Shawn burst out, finally finding himself able to talk. "Marry me, Zoey! I live in a trailer park and I have no education, but my hair does this!"
Zoey chuckled as she watched Shawn run his hand through his hair frantically to show off and hopefully convince her to say yes.
"You think I look good?" Zoey asked slowly as she stared at him.
"I think you look freaking amazing!" Shawn corrected her earnestly.
"Shawn, you gotta snap out of it." Cory told his best friend.
"Shut up, man! I'm going for it." Shawn said as he turned back to Zoey. "I want to have your children!" Cory grabbed a spray bottle and sprayed water in his best friend's face. Shawn took a deep breath. "Thanks, thank. I'm back."
"All right, Topanga, I want the name of the guy who did this to you." Cory demanded.
"You don't like it?" Topanga asked.
"No, not, it's not that I don't like it, it's just that my best friend and this girl I'm in love with was never interested in what they looked like before and now I see makeup on your faces and polish on your nails, and...." Cory explained before he glanced at Shawn. "Stop looking at her lips!"
"But they sparkle." Shawn said, his gaze fixed on Zoey's face.
"I want the name of the guy who did this to you." Cory demanded once more.
"Our stylist's name is Mr. Cellini. Cory, it's just a haircut. It's just some makeup." Topanga reassured him.
"Yeah." Zoey agreed, nodding her head. "It's not like it's going to change us."
Topanga looked down at her watch and nudged the brunette. "Ooh, we gotta go."
"Where are you going?" Cory asked.
"This outfit with this hair? Hello, bye-bye. I am so at the mall." Topanga said.
"Well, you can't leave a girl to shop for herself." Zoey added as the two girls walked out of salon.
••••
The next day at school was very different for Zoey. She received more attention and compliments than usual on her appearance and she wasn't sure if she liked it or not.
In Mr. Turner's class, some of the interest had died down which Zoey was grateful for, though a few boys still crowded around her seat and Topanga's.
"Alright, everybody, take your seats. Take your seats." Mr. Turner called as he walked into the classroom. "What is so interesting that you all have to crowd around here?" When the boys all sat down, he was started slightly when he saw the new haircuts. "Oh, boy. Look at you two."
Topanga smiled brightly. "Yeah, Zoey and I got a haircut. Do you like it?"
"Hey, hey! Focus, Mr. Turner. Some are here to learn." Cory said pointedly.
"Okay, today, we're going to be talking about John Merrick, immortalized in the play The Elephant Man." Mr. Turner announced to the class. "Now, even though he was tragically disfigured, he still won the hearts of London society with his wonderful inner spirit."
Cory turned in seat and faced Shawn. "Yeah, you know what? I come from a great looking family, and I'm just going through my awkward teenage phase, but that doesn't mean I can't win the heart of high school society with my wonderful inner spirit."
"Now, see, what's really interesting about John Merrick is that he came from a wonderful-looking family, yet was so hideous himself, he was forced to wear a burlap sack over his head and perform as a sideshow freak until the day that his oversized head rolled back and he died." Mr. Turner informed.
"And when did he grow out of this.... death?" Cory wondered.
"Attention, please." Mr. Feeny called as he walked into the classroom. "Excuse the interruption, Mr. Turner. A reminder that this Friday is picture day, so please, dress nicely and try to look your best."
"Shawn?" Cory asked.
"Yeah?" Shawn questioned.
"I just want to die." Cory complained as he leaned his head on Shawn's desk. "Please don't lift my oversized head."
••••
Zoey made her way into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror, messing with her hair. She was stilling getting used to how pin-straight it was and was having quite a bit of fun running her fingers through the shiny brunette locks.
The bathroom stalled open to reveal Shawn leaning against the wall. "So here's how I see it."
"You know, you guys really can't make it a habit to be in here." Zoey told her boyfriend.
"I grew up with this girl, and uh... I guess she's my favourite person in the world." Shawn began.
Zoey smirked. "Anybody I know?"
Shawn walked over to stand behind her and wrapped his arms around her body. "You know, in elementary school.. you don't really notice things like how someone looks. It was your personality that I saw first. I liked how you stood up for your friends and how you stuck to what you believed in even if it wasn't the popular opinion. You were more outgoing than any of the other girls in class and a lot of the other kids were intimidated by that, but that didn't stop you from being who you were. You wouldn't change for anybody and that caught my attention. In all the time that I've known you, Zo, I can't remember you ever looking the mirror. You had this confidence, in yourself, and I really liked that about you and that's what made me fall in love with you."
Zoey sighed. "Come on, Shawn, everybody in high school has a mirror in their locker, and checks each other out and only cares about how they look."
"But up until a couple days ago, you never did. Your world got completely rocked when you hacked your hair off and saw that for two seconds you can actually look a little less than perfect." Shawn told her.
Zoey stared at her reflection. "This isn't me, is it, Shawn?"
"Well, it's not the Zoey I know. But obviously we're all at that age where we're going through changes." Shawn said, tightening his grip around her waist.
"You're right." Zoey agreed.
Reluctantly pulling away from him, Zoey bent over the sink and turned on the tap, soaking her hair in the water. After turning it off, she turned around to Shawn and teasingly flipped her wet hair in his face, hoping to listen the mood.
Shawn chuckled in amusement. "Yeah, thanks."
Zoey dropped her now wet hair and lifted her head slightly to look at her boyfriend directly. "Thank you, Shawnie."
"I love you so much," he said quietly, and she smiled at him with a hundred words behind her diamond eyes.
Just as quickly as her hands laced with his, he kissed her. She responded with such enthusiasm, and the world around them was meaningless.
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PUBLISHED: May 14, 2018
WORDS: 3398