Our first stop for the day is Francis' Salon, a small hair salon which Sophia recommends. The owner, Francis Francis, is a man on his late-30s who clearly stands out in the crowd. Well, his buck teeth are one strong reason, but mostly because of his choice of wardrobe. The skinny man is wearing a bright orange floral shirt and a pair of tight leather pants. His dark hair is slicked back with a lot of hair gel on.

"So, what do we have here?" Francis says with a slightly campy voice. He gives a smile at my reflection on the mirror and I force myself to give a polite smile, trying to hide my nervousness.

"Let's see..." He undoes my ponytail, revealing my thick, long hair.

To be honest? I'm starting to freak out. Here I am, sitting in a hair salon, not knowing what I will look like when I step out of the place. What if Dylan is right and Sophia intentionally makes me look ugly?

"Okay," Sophia nods, placing her fingers under her chin, "I need something bold, something edgy, something... a lot less her."

My brows are drawn together as my lips form a pout. With a sure smile, Francis replies, "Pixie then."

"No!" I scream in horror, my loud voice makes everyone jolt back.

Dylan – who is sitting on a chair near me – snorts loudly as he holds back his laughter. Through the reflection on the mirror, I can see the old lady who is having her hair curled a couple of seats next to me is looking at me with confused eyes.

I purse my lips together and flash an apologetic smile. Lowering my voice, I continue, "I mean, please don't cut my hair that short."

"But darling," Francis replies, placing his hand on my shoulder and observing my reflection in the mirror, "You'll look absolutely gorgeous with it."

"Well... It's just that... I don't think I'll be ready for that big of a change."

"Hmm..." he mutters, narrowing his eyes and placing his fingers right under his mouth. Then, he slowly circles me, his eyes are observing me from head to toe while trying to find the right hair cut for me.

My heart begins to pound louder and louder. I am simply terrified. I can't help but feel like a guinea pig for them.

He takes a strand of my hair and folds it, placing his fingers about three inches below my shoulder. "This long, then?"

Hmm. That's actually not bad. With a small smile, I nod. "Okay."

He replies with a contented smile. "And how about some hair dye?" Francis asks.

Hair dye? I guess I can work with that. After all, I've always wanted to color my hair, I was just too busy to have the time to do it before.

"Sure." I give a few small nods.

Francis and Sophia turn to look at each other, seemingly surprised at my agreement, before they give an amused nod. In the meantime, the receptionist lady brings me a complimentary tea. After thanking her, I take a few sips on the warm chamomile tea.

"Okay, then!" Francis claps his hand before throwing them on the air. "How about rainbow?"

Some of the tea is spat out of my mouth and my eyes almost pop out in an instant. Once again, Dylan tries to stifle his laughter, but this time, a few loud chuckles escape his mouth.

"I'm guessing that's a no?" Francis asks, his expressions turn empathetic.

I inhale before shaking my head. "A big one."

"How about... bubblegum pink?"

"I... was thinking something a little bit more natural?"

"Hmm..." He narrows his eyes, tilting his head to the side a little before he nods to himself. "I think I have just the right style for you."

"What do you have in mind?" Sophia asks.

"I was thinking, some Californian highlights. What do you think?" he answers.

Californian highlights? What does that even mean?

But the term seems to be familiar to Sophia, whose playful smirk now returns to her face. "What do you think, Mac?"

What do I think? I don't even know what it means!

She raises one brow ever so slightly, as if challenging me of some sorts, testing me if I'm ready to be the girl I said I want to be.

Then, out of pure impulse, I answer, "Why not?"

With that, her smirk grows into a grin.

I take a long deep breath, still unsure if I'm ready for the big change.

But I have to.

After getting my hair washed, Francis starts working his magic on my hair. All the while, I keep praying so he doesn't turn me into one of those attention-seeking celebrity with weird, outrageous hair. God knows what I'll do if my hair turn into one of those absolute horrors.

It takes him a while to cut my hair and by the time he finishes, his work leaves me in awe. Sophia wasn't lying when she said Francis is the best hairdresser in town.

My hair looks much more stylish now. The ends of my hair are tapered off with layers, giving my hair a more chic vibe. It is completed with a sleek flip at the ends and subtle side bangs.

"What do you think?" Francis asks.

"I love it!" I reply excitedly with a smile.

"Wait 'til you see what's next," he concludes with a wink.

Next? Oh, no. I forgot about the hair dye!

But by the time I try to stop the process, it's already too late. The staffs already start bleaching my hair. In the meantime, Dylan has fallen asleep on the couch while Sophia is getting her fingers manicured and her hair done.

Francis continues to hand-paint different kinds of products to my hair, which I have absolutely no clue what they are. All along, cold sweats continue to drip from my temple and hands won't stop trembling. My heart beats so loud I'm afraid it would fall off my chest.

It takes approximately 3 and a half hours – that feels like forever – for them to finish dyeing my hair. But, the end result is absolutely mesmerizing. I'm left in awe at my own reflection.

My previously dull, brown hair is now turned into blonde. He painted the shades of blonde from pale to golden, giving it much more depth that somehow looks stylish and slightly seductive. The front and top layers are given the lightest strand, making my hair looks natural, yet gorgeous. My hair now drapes down from the center, drawing attention to my face.

"Do you like it?" Francis asks.

"Like it?" I squeal. "I love it!"

I turn to look at Sophia, who now stands behind me with a proud smile on her face.

"Thank you," I mouth as I get up from my chair.

In the meantime, Dylan is still fast asleep on the couch with his drool all over his shirt. Right before I have the chance to wake him up, Sophia precedes me by giving him a light slap on the head.

"Wake up, dumbass," Sophia says.

"Please don't kill me!" Dylan wakes up with a jolt, his loud voice grabbing the attention of everyone in the salon. I snort as I try to stifle my laughter while Sophia doesn't hold hers back.

"Shit..." he curses while his face turns into a tomato. He gulps, his eyes search around the room until they finally land on me.

That's when his eyes slowly widen and his jaw drops to the ground. "Mac? Is that you?"

Pursing my lips together and smile, I wave awkwardly at him. He blinks several times, still having a hard time believing that I've changed so much with a single trip to the hair salon.

"Stop drooling, you idiot!" Sophia slaps the back of his head once more, bringing him back to reality.

Dylan closes his mouth in an instant and turns to look at Sophia. "I'm not–" he pauses, realizing she's right. "Oh, crap." He quickly wipes his drool away from his mouth before he stands up.

Shaking my head lightly, I turn around and go to the cashier. When I see the receipt, my eyes almost pop out.

"500 dollars?!" I turn to look at Sophia, my eyes silently asking if she knows about this.

"What?" she asks. "You don't really think being beautiful is cheap, right?"

"Of course not... But–" I pause and let out a long sigh.

Well, she's right. If I'm going to do this, I'll have to do this right.

There goes my savings. I take out my debit card and pay the price.

"So, where to next?" I ask as we step out of the salon.

Sophia turns to observe me from head to toe. Then, her eyes fall to my flat chest.

Her lips form a straight line as she tilts her head to the side. "First things first, we need to do something about that." She points at my chest.

My lips curve down a little. What is she going to do with me?

"You're not suggesting she should get a boob job, right?" Dylan chimes in, his head pops beside mine.

"D!" I slap his thick bicep and he laughs rather shyly instead.

Then, for the first time since I've met her, Sophia laughs a genuine, carefree laugh, unlike her usually calculated smile.

"No, no, don't worry," she assures me. "Just a little bit of tweak would do."

"Okay," I shrug. "So, what do we do?"

Once again, her playful smirk finds its way back to her plump lips. "I know just the place to go."

Author's Note:
Woot~! Mac's makeover has finally started! What do you think?

Well, Mac's new hair is much shorter than in the gif, but you get the idea xD

In case you're wondering, I got the inspiration of Mac's new hair from Jennifer Anniston's hair color. I've always thought Jen's hairstyle is simple but really stylish, which is perfect for Mac's personality :) Aaaand here she is xD

Well, hope you like it and if you do, don't forget to tap that little star button and make my day :)

Thanks for reading!