Oxenfree

Chapter Two

In the morning, Jake didn't feel any different. His body felt weak, and his head was cloudy. The blankets entangling him made his entire body feel clammy. He rolled over the side of the bed and switched off his alarm clock before it could make a sound. It was only seven o'clock in the morning. Luckily, his parents should be away at work right now.

A few minutes later, Jake finally mustered up enough energy to haul himself off the floor. While brushing his extremely tangled hair he scanned his closet for something to wear. Several flowery soft shirts later, he found a black tank top and a worn pair of skinny jeans. Good enough, he thought.

He remembered what Jon said as he strolled into the hallway. When Jake peeked into his brother's room, he realized it was empty. Among the various articles of clothing hastily strewn across the floor, laid a crumpled mauve hoodie halfway falling off Jon's bed. Jake cringed, when's the last time Jon picked up his clothes? He had never seen Jon wear the hoodie before, and it was clean, so Jake decided to put it on. Even though the hoodie made Jake look puny, it made him feel substantially more masculine. That is, until he looked at his face in the mirror. His hair was exceedingly long. It made him feel even smaller in that hoodie. Maybe, Jake studied himself in the mirror, it's time to get this hair cut.

Jake's lungs burned as he hurtled himself down several streets to the Égalité Salon, as Jon had called it over the phone. He could hear muffled laughter and a hushed conversation. Jake tried to focus in on the babel, but Jon had put a hand over his end of the call. Although he could barely make out a single word, Jake could have sworn he heard someone call his brother Jonny. Jon has only been referred to as Jonny by his past girlfriends. That's when the thought struck him- Jon was joking about having a boyfriend, right?

After several blocks of aching legs and burning lungs, the salon was finally in sight. The building stood out against the modern, urban looking main street. The mauve exterior looked sleek and polished- almost plastic. Everyone passing saw it as an eyesore, but Jake admired the modern design. As he passed through the glass automatic doors, he almost didn't realize the building is the same color as the hoodie he is wearing... Almost.

Jake winced as he suddenly heard an exaggerated high pitched scream turn into a deep, warm laughter from the back of the salon. Yep, that's my brother. Jon was nearly tackling him in an instant, choking him with a signature bear hug. Thankfully, Jake was released from the python-like grip as Jon stepped back to eye him up. He snorted, though Jake wasn't sure why. He could feel his face heating up as one of the employees did the same, simultaneously leading him to one of the salon chairs without a word. Jon and the strange man mumbled to each other as they poked, prodded, and pulled at Jake's hair. The men finally stopped talking as the stranger leaned over and made eye contact with Jake in the mirror.

"So," He breathed, "What are we thinking about these curls?"Jake tried not to roll his eyes as the man continued to mess with his hair.

"I just want it to be short. Not like a pixie cut, I want it like your hair." He pointed back at the man, almost jabbing him in the face. His wavy brown hair was slicked back from his face and tied into a small bun in the back.

"Listen, Jakey, how about we try something like this." He made some vague gestures and flipped Jake's hair over that looked somewhat like bangs. He wasn't sure what that really meant, but Jake nodded and muttered a nervous agreement. It didn't really matter as long as his hair was short. Jon looked at their reflections and snorted. He sure hoped this man new what he was doing, Jon sure seemed to trust him. Actually, Jon seemed to know this man very well, as he -rather intently- watched him quickly strut to the front of the store to sign in a customer.

"I don't want to be invasive but... Who is that? And why do you both keep laughing at me?" Jake spun in the chair to face his brother.

"That's Luca," he winked, "My boyfriend." He glanced back at Luca and slowly eyed him up. Jake pretended to gag,

"Get a room, boys!" he teased. Jake spun back around to face himself in the mirror and took off his glasses. Jon skipped over to one of the salon chairs, lazily twirling in it while looking at his phone. Luca finally waltzed back to his station and combed through Jake's hair.

"Alright, Jakey, let's get started." Luca put Jake's hair in a ponytail and picked up a pair of scissors. Snip.

After thirty minutes of pulling, cutting, and Luca annoyingly wetting Jake's hair with a spray bottle, it was finally over. The chair creaked as Jake turned around. Once Luca handed him his glasses, the whole room seemed a little brighter as Jake gazed at himself in the mirror. There was a dramatic gasp from across the room as Jon scrambled to get a look at his brother. "Oh my fucking God... I found Waldo!" Jon clutched to the chair to stop himself from falling to the floor, his other arm around Luca's shoulder. Ignoring Jon's comment, Jake played with his hair. It was nearly shaved on the sides, and faded into his fluffy curls, which fell on the left side of his forehead.

Jon finally managed to stand straight. He wheezed, "You- You looking like a fucking q-tip!" This time, he actually fell to his knees, and Jake covered his mouth to stop himself from laughing.

"Well boys, I think my work here is done." Luca pulled Jon off the floor and led them to the front desk. Jake pulled out a ten dollar bill and threw it on the marble surface. "No no no," Luca refused, "You get half off. A family discount." He took the ten and gave Jake five dollars back.

Luca really was a stunning man, he had dark skin and caramel hair. His hazel eyes were always gleaming, especially when he looked at Jon. And a hint of some foreign accent, this man fit the bill for beautiful. As Jake and his brother left the salon, he elbowed Jon and said "What the hell does he see in you."

"What's that supposed to mean. Am I not drop-dead-gorgeous?" Jon made a 'convincingly' seductive pose. When they finally reached home, they both crashed on to the couch in front of the TV. "Man, I sure hope Luca was alright with you wearing his hoodie." He finally understood why they were laughing. Jake looked down at the purple fabric and started to blush. He wondered why that hoodie was on Jon's bed. His face felt even warmer as he sprinted to his room to change.