Distracted

Though this situation might look hopeless for me, thanks to Mariya, we might have a chance at getting out of it. Thanks to her forcing me to change for my date with Zane yesterday, she was in possession of the clothes I initially wore. And with a wig and mask, which is easy for her to get her hands on, she can imitate me. We're all hoping that is enough to distract attention long enough for me to make my escape. As long as I can get to the meetup point Mariya and I agreed upon, we're golden.

"Hmm, still a bit soggy," I frowned as I put on my clothes.

"There is a dryer here," Zane began.

"No, too risky. We made the right call hunkering down here."

"Want to try using the hair dryer?"

I doubt it would do much, but it's not like I could just head out now. Thus, I pulled up a chair and allowed Zane to blow dry me with the hair dryer. Needless to say, it wasn't very effective, but I smiled all the way.

"Kyaah! My head!" I giggled as I felt the hot air against my scalp.

Zane began smiling too as he continued with the hair dryer for a few more minutes before stopping. "So, that do the trick?"

"Mm, good enough. Now, why don't we have just a little more fun before I head out," I smirked as I slid my feet into my sneakers.

"What do you want to do?"

I smiled as I crossed my arms and legs. "Lather me up and shave me smooth, darling."

Zane began to blush, but went to fetch the shaving cream and razor without hesitation.

"My, at my beck and call already. Your queen is pleased," I haughtily chuckled as Zane began lathering my head with shaving cream.

"You've sure fallen in love with the bald quickly, "your highness"," Zane played along as he encased my face in shaving cream as well.

"Thanks to a certain SOMEONE, who'd better take responsibility. I require a full shave and massage, not to mention a kiss and compliment on my beauty once daily at minimum," I proclaimed, still in haughty mode.

"Now that's a queen worth marrying," Zane laughed as he began shaving.

I slowly closed my eyes and smiled as the razor glided over my smooth skin. So relaxing, so calming, so blissful. And no, it's not just the shave, it's the feeling of Zane's rough hands gently holding my scalp as he carefully shaves me. I've never felt like this before, but I love every second of it.

Before I knew it, the shaving was done, but per my demands, Zane was to give me a massage... He'll need practice, but it wasn't a bad experience, especially since it ended with a nice kiss on the lips.

"Well, I'm off. Thank you for the best night of my life," I smiled as I put on a mask and sunglasses before heading out the door.

The bliss period over, my mood shifted dramatically as all the anxiety I had put on hold came rushing back at me. Why did I stay longer than I should have? Could Mariya have been exposed already? Is the paparazzi already stationed-

Ping!

A message came in from Mariya, bringing me back to earth. "Already made headlines. En route to meetup point. Try not to get caught."

She really is an invaluable friend.

Making my way to the lobby, I kept my wits about me as with Ruma Mill's camera destroyed, there's no telling if they'd send an agent to install a new one and/or camp out for me. I'd like to hope Kasuga is still out of commission, but knowing how much glee it gives her to make my life miserable, I could see her rolling around in a wheelchair after me.

Not seeing any suspicious persons, I darted out as fast as I could. Today was sunny, and lots of people were out and about. Bad luck. All eyes will gravitate towards me thanks to my shining scalp.

I darted back into the hotel and headed for the bathroom. Once I was in a stall, I pulled out my makeup kit. With the limited material I had, I doubt I'd be able to give myself a convincing disguise. Foundation was all I had plenty of, but what I needed was mascara or lipstick, possibly even eyeshadow or blush, but I doubt the latter two would be as effective at giving me "hair" as the former.

What was I thinking? I should have thought about doing this back in the room, but I got carried away playing with Zane. If I get caught, it's over. Not just for me, but Zane too.

Desperate, I dumped out all the mascara I had onto my head, smearing it evenly as best I could. Just as I feared, I didn't have enough to cover my whole head. Thus, I made sure to use the last of it to give myself "eyebrows" before taking out my lipstick and smearing it all over the areas I wasn't able to cover with the mascara.

Looking at myself now... I might have just made myself stand out even more. I have no choice on the matter though, as at least people won't be able to tell I'm bald, hopefully.

Making my way out into the wild, I darted and weaved through the crowds as I made my way to where Mariya had designated as the meetup spot. I could see eyes turning towards me, accompanied by confused expressions, though not a phone was raised at least within my field of vision.

Eventually, I made it to the meetup spot, the country club golf course. There, I spotted Mariya, garbed in my clothes and a wig along with a mask and sunglasses. We flashed a secret hand sign, confirming our identities, before Mariya began rushing me in to the locker room. There, she checked to make sure the coast was clear before yanking off her mask.

"Fuck... You look like a hot mess... You didn't even have a marker!?"

"I uh... ran out of the room before I thought of that," I nervously laughed.

"Not like it was a guarantee there'd be one anyway, but still, THIS is the best you could do!?"

"Red and black not mesh well?"

"Normally, sure, but this? Shower, now."

Not giving me a chance to undress, Mariya dragged me towards the shower and shoved my head down, before turning on the water and beginning to scrub my head with shampoo. Compared to how soothing my beauty routine with Zane had been, this was miserable. I was bending down, Mariya was scrubbing violently, and the water was ice cold. And worse, My face was soon included in the shampooing, making me groan in discomfort.

Once the water finally turned off, I slowly rose my head, shivering and on the verge of tears. "D- Did you need to be so rough?"

Mariya scowled and threw a towel into my face. "Considering that could have stained to your head? Yes. That and I'm mad. You really went and shaved all your hair. Eyebrows and eyelashes too. And people say I'm crazy."

"Sorry..."

"Well, I'd say this is the kind of thing you'd need to shave your head in repentance for as a cost for my help, but you're already bald. Airhead."

We didn't say another word until both of us had finished swapping clothes.

"Iyuck, all damp. Well, I'm gonna need to get wet anyway," Mariya grumbled as she charged into the shower after changing, wetting her hair down as flat as it would go.

She then returned to me and pulled out a bald cap, instructing me to help her put it on.

"Not going to shave your head for real?" I teased as I began fitting the bald cap to her head.

Mariya let out an annoyed sigh. "Look, I'm known for pushing the sanity of my hair follicles to the brink, but I'm not just gonna go full bald n' browless like you did. That's lunacy."

"Oh ho? Are you saying I've surpassed you in crazy?"

"Chika, I'm egotistical and flirty. You're such an airhead, you... You... Ugh, I just don't want the production to suffer. I was the one that goaded you into that date, so this kind of is my fault..."

"Shave your head in repentance," I pouted.

Want me to yank that wig off and slap your head?"

I shook my head, "No".

"Then shut up, and start smearing me with foundation. thanks to you, we need to make my "baldness" look believable."