Griffin Goes Into A Salon He's Never Been To Before To Get A Haircut

Once upon a time, in a small town on the outskirts of the city, 13 year old Griffin made up his mind to change his regular look, hoping to catch the attention of his 11-year-old sweetheart, Hayley. This newfound adoration had lit in him a daring spirit. Griffin set out on an adventure to a little-known salon downtown, run by five Korean women of varying ages. As Griffin stepped into the salon, he was immediately greeted by five women, each unique in their own peculiar ways. The oldest was Lin-Ju, a 57-year-old woman of petite stature, second only to the smallest woman in the shop. She wore a mini skirt, pink blouse, and wedged sandals that accentuated her youthful energy. A pixie haircut framed her face, her brown eyes twinkling with sparks of wisdom and experience. Earrings danced in her ears, a beautiful bracelet adorned her left arm, the nails on her hand painted a deep red. Second, stood Jin-Hi, a woman of 55, who was the shortest amongst all. She wore a blue blouse paired with knee-length leggings and towering platform sandals. Her short brown locks cascaded in a waterfall down her shoulders, framing a face with enticing brown eyes, decorated with earrings and a shimmering necklace. She, too, exhibited her marital status with a ring on her left hand, the nails painted vividly red. Next was Lu-Jao, the 54-year-old, who stood a head taller than Lin-Ju. A red blouse and mini skirt draped her body, elongated further by the red platform sandals she wore. Her hair was cut in a Korean bob cut, and she wore earrings as well, a ring on her left hand serving as a testament to her marital status. Fourth in line was Ann-Ma, the tallest woman in the room at the age of 53. She wore a black blazer, a pair of knee-length red leggings, and a gray blouse, complimented by a pair of black high-heeled sandals. Her Korean bob cut embellished her features, the earrings, necklace, and bracelet on her right hand adding to her charm. Last but not least was Min-Ru, the youngest at 52. Dressed in a black tank top, short shorts, and leather wedges, she carried herself with youthful, vibrant energy. She wore short wavy brown hair, with brown eyes, earrings, and a necklace, proving that age was just a number. As Griffin entered, Min-Ru, with her charming accent, greeted him, "Oh hello there young man. Welcome to here. Haircut? You want haircut?" She made her way towards him, the thumping of her wedges echoing in the room. Griffin, in a facetious attempt to charm her, responded, "Uh yes please. Just need something real quick. I just got invited over to a girl's house and she said she likes me, so I wanna impress her." Min-Ru chuckled, replying, "Oh girl huh? Very handsome young boy. I give good haircut for you," as she motioned him towards a chair. After covering him with a barber's quilt, she walked towards the other women, speaking something in Korean hushed whispers. It was unlike anything Griffin had experienced before, as Min-Ru silently went about cutting his hair. Just as he began to relax, Min-Ru shut off the razor and started speaking to the other women in Korean again, subtly pointing towards Griffin. Each woman took a turn pointing, chuckling, laughing, with the laughter intensifying with each comment, leaving Griffin uneasy and confused. Min-Ru then pointed at Griffin and announced, "Come back in back of shop finish up." Jin-Hi strutted to the back of the store, with Griffin following her, utterly bewildered. Min-Ru, with a wide grin, declared, "You want a job here? First, you must be two things. Female and Korean. No worry, we swap body, so you get job here," leaving Griffin startled. He stammered, "What? Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! I just want a haircut and I wanna get out of here. I don't want a job!" Before Griffin could make sense of the situation, Min-Ru said something in Korean and Griffin felt a piercing pain shooting through his body. All went black. When he opened his eyes, he found himself seated where Jin-Hi was previously, looking at his own face staring back at him in utter shock. The cold taste of metallic fear infiltrated his mouth as he found himself garbed in Jin-Hi's outfit, her wedding ring adorning his fingers now painted a shiny red. Holding wobbly in the platform sandals, Griffin rushed towards the mirror, coming face to face with his new reflection. The earrings, the mature female face, the short wavy brown hair - they were all Jin-Hi's. The realization was bitter and frightening. Babbling incoherently, Griffin tried to articulate his situation, "Uh uh uh what 내가 왜 이 몸에 갇혀 있는 거지? 난 여자가 아니야" Shocked, he heard Jin-Ho's voice instead of his with Korean words flowing naturally from his lips instead of English. He tried again, "Uh uh uh no uh uh uh I uh uh uh young uh man", which was met with chuckles from Min-Ru. "Silly American," she teased, "You fell for trap. We all swap body with American boys soon. We no like get old. Want youth back. Have fun being old woman cause you're never getting body back," before breaking into a loud peal of laughter. With a swift push, Griffin was expelled onto the busy streets. He managed to pull himself together and get his footing right. Struggling with Jin-Hi's platform sandals, he hobbled down the road, catching frightened glimpses of his new face reflected in shop windows. Tears clouded his vision as he finally succumbed to his new reality, removing the platform sandals to walk barefoot. He spent the rest of the day teaching himself how to walk in Jin-Hi's platform sandals, hobbling around until it hurt. Night arrived and he managed to take refuge in a nearby alleyway. It was there, alone and scared, Griffin allowed himself the luxury of tears, whispering, "엄마보다 나이가 많으면 집에 가지 마" into the silence, his English gone, replaced completely by fluent Korean. Griffin crumbled into a heap, his gaze drifting down to Jin-Hi's maroon-painted toes, then moving upwards to the curves of her body and finally resting on the wedding ring that now decorated his left hand. Each piece screamed with a reality he was not ready to accept. But accept he must. As he drifted off to sleep in the cold alley, the cruel trick of fate lingering fresh in his thoughts, Griffin had no clue that he was now, permanently, Jin-Hi, and there was no going back. The end of his childhood had come in the most brutal fashion, and he woke up to a reality where he was now a mature woman, caught forever in the body of Jin-Hi. His last glimpse before sleep claimed him was that of the platform sandals he had learnt to walk in, the unpleasant reminder of his stolen youth, the uncomfortable reality that he will never be a boy again haunting his dreams.