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151 » see through her without looking
[ The funny thing about it all is that Aether never set out to become a cosmetologist. But there wasn't really enough money in the household to sponsor college educations for both him and Lumine, and of course she'd taken the position that if he didn't go then she didn't want to either, and he knew that as they were both finishing high school, and he also knew that it would all just be easier for everyone in their family if he just found something else to do and pretended that he liked it.
It wasn't particularly hard. It was especially easy in the sense that there wasn't anything else that he wanted to do. It's not as though Aether is unintelligent, or that he didn't like being in school — he did, and he always earned reasonably good grades — but the he never really found anything that ignited brilliant passion in his heart, and Lumine had ambition that Aether didn't.
So he started picking up shifts at a local hair salon just to earn some extra pocket change, doing things like sweeping hair clippings and picking up lunch for the ever-busy hairdressers. Easy stuff that any kid could have done, really. It helped that he was good-looking enough to catch the eyes of customers in the store whether they liked pretty boys like him or not. The owner felt he had potential, offered to sponsor his classes if he promised to work there afterward; that turned into a real license and a good few years of experience.
Then he'd run into Barbara one day, fixed up her hair and her dress when she'd been having a bad day and spilled something all over herself, didn't ask anything in return because he just didn't want a pretty girl to look so sad — and he hadn't known at the time that she was this up-and-coming pop star, the type that was being promoted on reality TV shows but already had big contracts in the works. She'd caught fire on the charts shortly afterward, and she liked him a lot for the simple reason that she felt safe with him, and young women in the entertainment industry rarely have experiences so sweet.
Aether has his own studio now, but he sees all sorts of clients. Not all of them are as famous as Barbara. Most of them know him through word-of-mouth — because he has a social media page but isn't good at keeping up with all of the new platforms or producing content often enough that he'd go viral anywhere — and they tend to be reasonably well-to-do types who often need to be presentable at functions, but not all of them are. Aether has a reputation for cutting his prices whenever someone really needs it, mostly because he's already making more money than he ever really wanted or needed, and sometimes he just does someone's hair because he wants to listen to their story.
Kaveh's that type of client. The kind with interesting stories, and the kind that's allowed to pay for Aether's services in ways that don't necessarily involve Mora. ]
You're a little late, Kaveh.
[ In anybody else's mouth, that'd sound more like damning chastisement. But Aether only holds his hands out to take Kaveh's bag and coat, patient and nonjudgmental. He looks as effortlessly pretty as ever, a quality that is only impactful in the way that it seems as though he should be able to make you look just as beautiful. There's something very relaxing about walking into the subtly woodsy scents in his studio and knowing that you'll be in his hands for the next few hours. ]
It's okay, though. You're my only appointment today, so I'm not in any rush.
It wasn't particularly hard. It was especially easy in the sense that there wasn't anything else that he wanted to do. It's not as though Aether is unintelligent, or that he didn't like being in school — he did, and he always earned reasonably good grades — but the he never really found anything that ignited brilliant passion in his heart, and Lumine had ambition that Aether didn't.
So he started picking up shifts at a local hair salon just to earn some extra pocket change, doing things like sweeping hair clippings and picking up lunch for the ever-busy hairdressers. Easy stuff that any kid could have done, really. It helped that he was good-looking enough to catch the eyes of customers in the store whether they liked pretty boys like him or not. The owner felt he had potential, offered to sponsor his classes if he promised to work there afterward; that turned into a real license and a good few years of experience.
Then he'd run into Barbara one day, fixed up her hair and her dress when she'd been having a bad day and spilled something all over herself, didn't ask anything in return because he just didn't want a pretty girl to look so sad — and he hadn't known at the time that she was this up-and-coming pop star, the type that was being promoted on reality TV shows but already had big contracts in the works. She'd caught fire on the charts shortly afterward, and she liked him a lot for the simple reason that she felt safe with him, and young women in the entertainment industry rarely have experiences so sweet.
Aether has his own studio now, but he sees all sorts of clients. Not all of them are as famous as Barbara. Most of them know him through word-of-mouth — because he has a social media page but isn't good at keeping up with all of the new platforms or producing content often enough that he'd go viral anywhere — and they tend to be reasonably well-to-do types who often need to be presentable at functions, but not all of them are. Aether has a reputation for cutting his prices whenever someone really needs it, mostly because he's already making more money than he ever really wanted or needed, and sometimes he just does someone's hair because he wants to listen to their story.
Kaveh's that type of client. The kind with interesting stories, and the kind that's allowed to pay for Aether's services in ways that don't necessarily involve Mora. ]
You're a little late, Kaveh.
[ In anybody else's mouth, that'd sound more like damning chastisement. But Aether only holds his hands out to take Kaveh's bag and coat, patient and nonjudgmental. He looks as effortlessly pretty as ever, a quality that is only impactful in the way that it seems as though he should be able to make you look just as beautiful. There's something very relaxing about walking into the subtly woodsy scents in his studio and knowing that you'll be in his hands for the next few hours. ]
It's okay, though. You're my only appointment today, so I'm not in any rush.