Chapter Text
Karen McCarey was having a bad hair day. Her supervisor had commented on her hair, not a complaint mind you but a subtle hint to get it to get it cut regulation length and style. Not that she minded, it was easier to take care of that way; shampoo and dry she was ready for whatever the world threw her away.
Being a sheriff’s deputy, that could be a lot. All of which she explained why she was standing in line at the barbershop. It was not the way she to spend her day off.
The spring weather had been nice enough for Karen to pick a rose colored sundress that matched her hair and mood now.
“Hi, Cecil.” She called out, spotting friend and mechanic coming slowly up the street. Maybe she should amend that to ex – friend after what she had pulled last Christmas. She had done the most alarming thing; breaking the trust between friends was very serious.
“Hi, Karen,” Cecil said.
“This isn’t the place to talk about this,” Cecil told her.
“We’ll talk about this over the weekend,” Cecil told her.
“Okay. Unless you want to talk about it over lunch,’ she said.
He thought about it once the previous customer paid Joseph Miller, the barber.
“You’re next, Karen,” Joseph said.
“We can talk about it over lunch,” Karen said.
“Okay,” Cecil said, adding, “how about we eat outside of Diary Queen at twelve?”
“I’ll be there,” she told him.
She figured Cecil wanted to talk about this trust in private. It did not take Joseph very long to cut her hair. Once he finished her hair, she paid Joseph and said good – bye to both men.
“I can tell you’re angry at her, Cecil. What did happen at Christmas last year?” Joseph asked once Cecil sat down for Joseph to cut his hair.
“Okay, Joseph, I’ll tell you, but I’ll pretend at lunch Deputy McCarey won’t know I told you.”
Before Cecil started his story, he gave an itch on his left arm.
“Here’s what happened, Joseph. I got word from Jesus that Jeremy would be living longer than we thought he would with the depression he is going through. That was God’s gift for Jeremy and the family. I told Karen one day not to tell anyone because it would ruin the gift for the family.
“Then Karen spread word about it and the gift was written in the paper. I’m not sure if I can trust her again,” Cecil said when he finished the story, “and I did unfriend her from facebook the minute the Christmas gift was ruined.”
“Wow. No wonder you are this mad at her. If I were you, I’d give her a second chance on her and your being friends again,” Joseph suggested.
“We’ll see, Joseph. I still need to think about it for now,” Cecil replied.
Just then, Cecil was ready to pay Joseph.
“Thanks, Joseph. I’ll keep you posted on what Deputy McCarey and I will talk about at lunch,” he said.
“Okay, Cecil. Come again,” Joseph said and watched the young mechanic leave.
Lunchtime arrived within an hour and a half later. Karen was the first one at Diary Queen. She sat by a window table and waited for Cecil to show up. She was not so sure if he would give her another chance or not, but right now she was having negative thoughts on what he was going to say.
Cecil arrived a couple minutes later. That is when he found Karen seated by a window booth.
“Are we ready to order?” he asked her.
“Yes. I haven’t ordered yet,” Karen answered.
They both went to the cash register and ordered their food and drinks. It was now time for both of them to talk.
“Do you want to give me a second chance? I really do apologize,” Karen told him.
“We’ll talk, but I haven’t given it much thought yet. When I make up my mind, I will let you know. For now, I do not trust you. If I give you another chance, I will have a condition. Let me give it more time," Cecil said.
“Okay,” she answered.
After they finished, both left without him saying good – bye.