Brian started calling us "Itchy and Scratchy". I asked him which one of us was Itchy and which was Scratchy. He said, "Well you're Itchy because you're littler than Nick and you always seem to be able to get the last word." I ignored the "littler" part of that. It did brighten my day to hear him say that and then it sparkled seeing the face Nick made when he overheard Brian say it.
Cookie and Zeke were on the tour too. Which was good because I think Nick would have driven me to violence if it were just me and the Boys. One day Zeke got sick leaving Cookie and I alone to tend to the Boys and some of the dancers, while some of the others did their own makeup. Zeke was going to cut Nick's hair for him since it had started to grow out and was growing into his eyes.
"Where is Zeke?" Nick asked Cookie.
"He's sick. What do you need?" she said.
"He's sick? Man! He was going to cut my hair for me," Nick said chewing his bottom lip. I played like I was invisible.
"Well I don't know what to tell you, Nick. He's sick in bed, ate something that didn't agree with him. It's just me and Alexis today," she said casting a glance in my direction.
"Could you cut it for me?" he asked.
"No I don't do hair... just makeup. Alexis does hair, I'm sure she could cut it for you," Cookie said. Nick looked at me for a minute. I refused to look at him as I continued to set the new makeup I bought on the counter.
"No, I'll just wait for Zeke to get better," he said.
"God!" I exclaimed slamming some blush on the counter. "Would you just sit down and let me cut your hair?"
"No I'm fine. I can just comb it back."
"No you don't want to do that."
"Why not? Whadduya mean by that?"
"Combing your hair back would accentuate that forehead of yours."
"What's wrong with my forehead?"
"Nothing," I said. Then muttered, "It's just a little large is all."
"My forehead is not large!" Nick exclaimed getting angrier.
"No, of course it's not but, just imagine what it could look like out there on the jumbo screen," I said.
"Whatever! You're not coming near me with a pair of scissors," he warned. Just then AJ walked in with Brian on his heels.
"Ah man you two going at it again?" AJ asked.
"They fight, they fight, they fight and fight and fight," Brian started to sing the "Itchy and Scratchy" theme song.
"Your buddy here needs his hair cut. But he would rather just let it grow till it's covering that heartthrob face than to let me, a licensed stylists, handle it," I said.
"I don't trust her. . . especially with a pair of scissors," Nick replied. Brian and AJ looked from one of us to the other. AJ shook his head.
"You two are like eight year olds," Brian said with a laugh.
"Nick let her cut your hair, you'll be fine. I've let her shape me up and I'm still alive," AJ said rubbing his chin. Nick looked mutinous but after a little more convincing from Brian and AJ he agreed. The whole time he sat in the chair looking like he was going to bolt at any second. All he needed was a little trim anyway. So it didn't take that long.
"There," I said when I was done. "Satisfied?" Nick looked at himself in the mirror.
"Not bad makeup girl," he said. I gave him a nasty look but otherwise ignored him.
I hate, hate, hate when he calls me 'makeup girl' and he damn well knew that. Him, especially because of the way he said it. I can't explain it exactly but he definitely said it different from the way any of the other Boys, or anyone for that matter, would have said it. He would put emphasis on it, like he was rubbing it in or something. Sometimes that's all he would call me as if it were my name or something. Then when he saw how it got to me he'd smirk. Some of you may know it as his 'sexy smirk' but, when he calls you something you don't like and smirks see how sexy that smirk is then.
It had been a month and a half since the tour started, Nick and I both started getting more creative with our arguments and ways to annoy the other.
"I don't think I like the new makeup girl," Nick said to Kevin. He was sitting in my chair talking to Kevin like I wasn't even in the room. This is the point where Nick had reconciled whatever problem he had with me being his stylists. In doing that though, he had decided to say things that would either shock or annoy me in an attempt to goad me into an argument. Of course I'd do the same thing at times. 'What goes around comes around,' I always say.
"What are you talkin' about Nick?" Kevin, who was sitting in Cookie's chair, asked. AJ was in Zeke's chair.
"I don't like her," Nick said making eye contact with me as I applied some concealer to a blemish. I wanted to smack him. We were getting them ready for a meet and greet.
"You know what Nick," Kevin began thoughtfully. "I think it's the exact opposite of that. I think you do like her.... alot."
"Wh-wh-what?" Nick sputtered. I had to stop what I was doing after that comment. Nick and I looked at each other then looked at Kevin.
"What did you just say?" I asked.
"I said I think Nick likes you and actually... I think you like him too," he replied coolly.
"I have to agree with Kev," AJ said. "I mean come on... you two have been at each other's throats ever since you met. It's like you're in grade school. You know you pick on the girls you liked."
"Yeah, I remember there was this girl in my third grade class that I used to mess with," Kevin mused. "She always had her hair in these two long pigtails and I used to pull them. . . whenever I got a chance."
"What happened with her?" AJ asked.
"Well after we both matured, we dated a little bit in high school," Kevin said.
No one in the room said anything. You could hear a mouse sneeze right then, it was so quiet. It was unnerving but there was nothing either Nick or I could say. I thought AJ and Kevin had lost their minds, I'm sure Nick thought the same. We were both regarding them as if they had just grown an extra head or something. Suddenly, AJ erupted in a fit of laughter.
"Aaawww man! I'm sorry Kev but the look on their faces was just too much! I couldn't hold it together any longer," he said. Kevin was laughing a little to himself as well.
"Sorry guys... this was all AJ's idea. The looks on your faces were priceless, though," Kevin said. Nick and I just blinked at them.
"Priceless? It was more than priceless. That was a Kodak moment... too bad I don't have a camera on me right now," AJ said still laughing.
"Fuck both of you," Nick said.
"If this is what you Boys do for fun... you need help," I said leaving the room to get something. I was just outside the door when I heard Nick say,
"I still don't like her."
Later that night, Cookie and I were on the bus talking. Apparently the conversation continued farther while I was outside the room.
"Ok I heard that part," I said to her.
"Well listen to this... after you left and after Nick said that. Kevin said that he was kind of serious about you two liking each other. Nick said Kevin was "becoming a sentimental old fool" ever since he got married," Cookie told me.
"Nick used the word 'sentimental'? Wow that's four whole syllables. Will wonders never cease?" I asked.
"Do you want to hear the rest of this or not?" she asked. Cookie was a cool person but she had little patience at times.
"Alright, alright I'm sorry. Please do continue."
"So anyway, Kevin said something like 'oh yeah, about 5'7, long dark brown hair, smooth chocolatey skin, big light brown eyes just isn't for you is it?'"
"He described me in that much detail? And I'm not 5'7 thank you very much. I'm 5'8."
"Yeah, so? Oh yeah you got a thing for him. I almost forgot."
"Yeah! You don't?"
"Not really. He's attractive but he's a little too "pretty boy" for me." I just looked at her like she was nuts. I was willing to ignore the comment to get more information though.
"Ok well go on what else did they say?"
"Nick didn't say anything really after that. He just said something like 'Gee Kev observant much?' AJ laughed and said that it's not like it's hard to miss an attractive girl like you."
"Are you serious? AJ too? Wow if only I had come along a little sooner," I laughed. Cookie just looked at me. "Anything else?"
"Nick said that he didn't say that you weren't attractive but you're still annoying as hell."
"Whoa I wasn't execpting that one! He thinks I'm attractive?" Cookie just sat staring at me. "What?"
"Does it matter to you that he finds you attractive?" she asked.
"What do you mean by that? What kind of question is that? Why would it matter to me?" I asked standing.
"Why can't you answer the question?" Cookie asked looking me in the eye.
"I can answer the question. No it doesn't matter to me. I just find it interesting," I said.
"Uh huh took you long enough. You like him.... and he probably likes you," she said.
"What? Has everyone lost their minds? I do not like Nicky Boy," I said.
"Let's look at the facts here. You talk about him incessantly. You talk about what he said to annoy you and how it affected you, what you said to annoy him and how it affected him. You talk about what you'll say to him tomorrow to annoy him and how that will probably affect him. You even try to think of ways that he will probably get you so you can be ready for him. You like him, Lexie, just admit it. The sooner you do, you and him can fuck and then all this sexual tension will be out of the way." Did I mention how blunt Cookie could be?
