Today is another bright day in Home. Outside the Post office, bees and butterflies dip and dive into the open arms of flowers full of fresh pollen. While this sight would have been wonderful for anyone else to see, Eddie Dear opted to watch the sight from inside rather than risk getting stung by the bees or feel that dreaded tingle of butterfly legs crawling across his skin; just the thought of it made his skin break out in goosebumps. The mail carrier was perfectly content to sit at his desk and add on to his ever growing stamp collection.
“At this rate, I’mma need a whole new book! Probably gonna have a whole shelf of these come Homewarming.”
With the last stamp in his tweezers, the mail man leaned close to the page, trying to steady his shaky hands.
“Just gotta get it on straight…. Nice and slow…” He murmured as he brought the stamp closer to the page.
Suddenly, the door connecting the post office to his home swung open with a bang.
“DAHHHHH!” he yelped, knee jerking up and shaking the dusk, causing pen cups to tip, papers to fly, and the stamp he was holding to stick to the corner of the desk. From behind him, Julie Joyful tittered.
“Whoops! Sorry Eddie! I didn’t mean to scare you!” Julie said as she picked up the pens from the floor.
“It’s alright, Miss Julie. Not too much harm done! Though-darn it, now that stamp’s stuck to the desk.”
“Well, I think you should just stick more on them! I’ve always wondered why you haven’t by now! If I was a mail man, my whole desk would be covered in all sorts of stamps! Flower stamps, country stamps, teddy bear stamps, star stamps! Ooooo, you name it, I’ll have it!”
“Well, Julie, if I did that, I wouldn’t have any stamps for ya’lls letters and what kinda letter don’t have a stamp? A real sad one.”
“Oh, then we can’t have that! All letters deserve to look and feel pretty so they can bring joy to their readers!”
“That they do. So what was it that ya wanted?”
“I wanted to know if you had a tiny tube of glitter lying around somewhere. Me and Jade are testing out a real humdinger of an idea!” the rainbow monster replied looking through the office craft shelf.
“Now, Julie, you not fitin’ ta teach Jadey how ta make them fairy water balloons or that unicorn mud are ya? It wasn’t easy scrapping that off the floor.”
“Oh, don’t worry, Eddie! The glitter is stayin’ in the bottle this time. I just need to find a small-” Julie murmured as she rummaged through the craft shelf.
“Sorry, Julie. I ran out just yesterday.”
Julie snapped her fingers.
“Drat! There goes the Glitter Dash plan.”
Then she straightened up with a jolt, similar to someone that was struck by lightning.
“Oh, right! I have some at home!” she yelled as she dashed out the post office and yelled back,
Before slamming the door behind her.
Eddie chuckled in disbelief.
“That Julie.” he mused as he got up and straightened up his disarrayed shelf.
When he was done, he turned towards the door that led to his living space.
“I should check an’ see what they’re up to.”
Eddie walked towards the door and opened it, seeing a sight that made him pause in awe. Jade was sitting on the floor in front of the couch amidst a plethora of cut up construction paper, markers, crayons, and other crafty knick knacks that dominated the coffee table and floor. But that mess paled in comparison to what Eddie saw in Jade’s hair.
The southern man couldn’t help but stare at the sheer Gregorian mess of colored pencils, buttons, pens, mini stamps, erasers, and stick on jewels that were tied and knotted into the teen’s hair
Silence passed between the two for a full fifteen seconds before Eddie let out a snicker which brought on an embarrassed pout.
“Before you say anything… Just know that Julie made it sound like a really good idea and that I fully trusted that she knew what she was doing.” she said, face turning red.
Eddie clapped a hand over his mouth, unable to hold back the peals of wheezing giggles.
“Hey, don’t laugh! She made a really good case?!”
Through his merriment, Eddie squeaked out, “So ya let ‘er put everything but the kitchen sink in there. Hehehehehe, oh, mercy! How’d she even do that?
Jade tapped her chin. “Knots, determination, and something she called an inch braid.”
“Of course she’d say something like that. But now ya got all this junk in there. How ya gonna brush it?”
The question seemed to cause a change in her expression; she looked down, fiddling with a bracelet on her wrist.
“I….I actually don't brush my hair. It hurts too much cause my hair is so thick and…. Keeps breaking.”
“Yeah….. And the brush.” she replied, cheeks flushing with embarrassment.
Eddie knelt down and offered a gentle smile.
“Darling, do you want me to help ya with yor hair?”
Jade eyes flash with uncertainty, holding her hair protectively.
“Course not, honey! If I’mma cut anything it’ll probably be some knots but I'll make sure that all yor hair will be nice and long like ya like it. I promise I won’t do anything yor not keen on.”
Jade pondered this for a few seconds.
“Alright then! I’ll get some stuff while you go to the kitchen and pull up a chair by the sink.” Eddie said as he went towards his bedroom and began to gather some grooming tools from his dresser.
“Nobody taught her how ta take care of her hair? That’s jus’ plain neglectful. Now, let’s see here…. Gonna need a lot of shampoo, some conditioner…. Maybe some gel an’.... Oh, gonna need a lot of hair ties.” he mused as he gathered all the supplies in his arms, trying to keep them from falling. When he returned to the kitchen Jade was waiting for him, sitting in her chair with her back towards the sink.
“Alright, now before we get washin’ let's get all that,” he waved his hand to her head. “Taken care of.”
He began the process of untangling the various odds and ends from the tight grip of Jade’s locks.
“Sorry. It’s all tied up in there. Oh, ok. Just gotta…ah… Separate the strands.” Eddie muttered as he pulled out the various crafts from Jade’s hair little by little.
With each item he pulled out he placed it on the counter though the colored pencils seemed to have a mind of their own as they rolled off and clattered on the linoleum floor. Next came buttons and stick-on jewels, followed by paper clips, a small stapler, and one small roll of stickers.
Eddie stared at it, casting a dumbfounded look towards the teen.
“You never know when you need a sticker.”
Eddie set down the roll on the counter.
“Jadey…. What in the great golden goose did Julie tell ya ta convince ya of this shenanigans?” he asked, stupefied.
“Julie said that rainbow monsters keep all sorts of handy tools in their hair and I wanted to see if I could do that.”
“Sweetheart, that’s why ya have pockets. We don’t use our hair to keep stuff in it….. Ok, that’s the last of it.” he said as he pulled out the last paper clip.
“That should do it now, tilt your head back,” he instructed.
The teen obeyed and the mail man turned on the faucet, clear water streamed out onto her hair and scalp. She let out a sigh as the smooth motions of the mailman’s fingers massaged her scalp, letting her head and neck relax against the edge.
Meanwhile, Eddie was surprised to see Jade’s hair curl slightly under the water in loose ringlets. He reached over for some shampoo and scrubbed it in. As the suds built up, Eddie took the brush and began to run it through the hair, marveling at the soft texture.
“You have really pretty hair, Jadey. Some women would kill for hair like this. Such a shame that ya don’t style it.
“It's not that I don't want to. I just haven't…. Figured out how.”
“Thata fact? I figured you would remember-not like in yor head.. memory but more in yor muscle memory. Figured yor mama probably taught you.”
Jade frowned; why didn’t she know how to do this? And why wasn’t this moment familiar to her? Shouldn’t there be some kind of memory or nostalgic feeling tied to this moment; one of gentle yet firm fingers running through her strands, tying and braiding them while warmly talking to her. A soft voice that should connect the girl to a motherly figure.
The feeling of gentle fingers on her head and a soothing voice that brought serene quiet to her soul brought to mind only Eddie.
His voice pulled her focus towards his face which looked sheepish.
“I…want you to know that I'm really sorry fa spyin’ on ya and Latter. I… just got really excited listening in and wanted ta see if… You an’ Latter were gonna get along.”
“I know, it just didn’t make it any less embarrassing to see you and Frank eavesdropping which I still don’t fully understand why! Did you really think I was going to mess up talking to another neighbor that badly?”
“What!? No, sweet face! I wasn’t thinkin’ that at all! Yor smart, funny, and wonderful to talk to! Anyone would be lucky ta have ya as a friend! It’s just that…well.” Eddie bit his cheek averting his gaze from her.
Jade lifted her head from the water to look at him, causing some to drip down her back.
Eddie turned her head forward to avoid the acid-like burn he felt from her eyes. Then he grabbed the towel and began twisting it around her hair to dry while cautiously planning his next words.
“Well, Ya just have a tendency ta come across as a little….. Intense.”
Even though he couldn’t see them, he knew her eyes were narrowed.
“Intense?” she asked, suspiciously.
“Yes. When ya meet people sometimes ya come off a little….. Rough.”
A flicker of annoyance flickered in the teen’s chest. She crossed her arms.
“Can you give me an example of a time when I was “intense”?” she replied, adding a surplus of disbelief in the last word.
“Well, there was that time when we were in Howdy’s store an’ he was askin’ if ya was interested in buyin’..... Darn, what was it?”
“Yes. Thank you, perfume. He was asking if ya wanted some new stuff that came in and ya were really cold with him.”
“Yeah, I was. Because when I told him no thank you, he kept gettin’ in my face trying to do his whole salesman schtick and wouldn't lay off!”
“But did ya half ta tell him ta go make like a fly an’ run into a windshield!?”
“He wouldn’t take a hint so I figured I needed to be a little more firm with my message. Plus it seemed like a reasonable response when he told me it would get rid of any rotten smells which I’m pretty sure was him telling me that I smell like death!”
Eddie sighed as he removed the towel and placed it on her shoulders
“Lemon drop, I’m just worried that yor startin’ to expect the worst anytime ya meet new people. Anytime fellars like Howdy get ta ya, yor mood gets real sour an’ it kinda carries on over when ya meet someone new. Like how ya almost kicked Latter out because he was Howdy’s brother. You already had it in yor mind that Latter would be jus’ as bad as Howdy and ya didn’t even say more than two words ta him.”
Jade held herself tighter, guilt and annoyance bubbling in her chest.
“So, I’m wrong again and you were waiting for Latter to leave so you could scold me like a child.” she snapped, bitterness coating each word.
Eddie’s eyes widened. “No, I wasn’t-”
“How come I have to be the one to hold my tongue while Howdy and Barnaby can get away with being absolute shitheads!? Barnaby constantly goes out of his way to make everyone uncomfortable with his jokes which half the time are just sneaky insults disguised as “jokes” and he doesn’t give a damn if you tell him to stop,”
“Howdy is pushy and constantly trying to get you to buy crap you don’t even need! He treats you and Latter like dirt when all you’ve done is be nice to him while flashing that stupid fake-ass smile of his!”
With each word it felt like the fire in her chest burned hotter and brighter.
“It’s just so frustrating that you can tell me off when I’m being an asshole and then clam up when they make fun of me and in the same breath take a hit at you! Why am I the one being oversensitive when Howdy says I stink or when Barnaby says I dress like a loonatic’s art project!? Why am I always the one that's always told off for taking things too far!? What am I doing so wrong that makes me….. the monster in this.”
Her voice shook at the end as her flames turned into a sudden flow of water that streamed down her face and left her desperately trying to wipe them away.
Eddie stood behind her in stunned silence, mind struggling to process what he’d just heard. A while ago, Frank had told him about the names and comments that Barnaby, Howdy, and even Sally made about their new neighbor. At first Eddie was upset but when Frank said that she didn’t mind and carried it like a badge of honor, he was impressed by how she snatched the power from them, turning those horrible nicknames into her own titles; though the mailman still wasn’t keen on how a majority of the neighborhood seemed to avoid saying her actual name like it was some kinda curse. But as he watched her wipe her eyes with her sleeve while biting her lip to keep it from quivering, he could see that there were some words you couldn’t just shake off; words that when repeated burrowed inside of you and made a home right near your heart, slowly eating at it bit by bit making it harder and harder to laugh at the insults. He thought back to those instances she spoke of;
Trust me when I tell ya this kid, you definitely need to spritz some of this on ya from time to time. Seems like soap can only do so much.
“That one didn’t seem too bad,” Eddie thought. “If anything, it’s lacking that usual brisk tone that Howdy usually-” His heart dropped. “What am I thinkin?! Am I really that used to their comments that it…. Doesn’t even register as an insult to me anymore.” Then his mind flashed to when they delivered a package to Barnaby’s house.
Ya know, kid. With clothes like that ya remind me of a piece of artwork I saw. Where was it again? Oh, yeah! It was something that one of the nutjobs in the insane asylum drew!
A pit grew in his stomach as he slowly came to a dreadful realization.
Both of those times, he didn’t say anything.
He figured that since Jade seemed to have no trouble standing up for herself, the mail carrier thought that he didn’t have to step in. But this proved how wrong he was. He wrapped his arms around her from behind, not bothered as her damp hair soaked his shirt.
“Jade, I…. owe you an apology.”
The teen’s wet eyes widened.
Eddie hugged her tighter.
“Yor right. I haven’t been fair ta ya. Expectin’ ya ta turn the other cheek when it comes ta people that….. Want ta blatantly disrespect ya and treat ya like yor less. It ain’t practical or healthy. I didn’t even clock what they were sayin’ ta be mean. Only because I….. I’ve had worse said ta me. But that ain’t an excuse. I should have been tellin’ them off and not focusin’ on makin’ you more palatable for them. I’m really sorry, sugar lump, for letting them hurt ya like this an’.... I promise I’m gonna stand by you more.”
He felt her turn her head, seemingly not wanting him to see her face.
They stayed like this for a while; Eddie’s shirt now bearing a huge damp spot on the front and every so often Jade sniffled but her breathing was even and slow.
“Ya know I envy ya sometimes.”
She looked up at him, eyes alight with confusion.
“I know Howdy doesn’t think fondly of me. And Barnaby….. Sometimes I wonder if he just likes messin’ with me. But even with all the stuff they do, I find it real difficult ta stand up to ‘em sometime. Crazy as it sounds….. I want them ta like me an’.... I just feel awful if it turns out they don’t. But you don’t seem ta care about that. Ya call ‘em out if they’re rude and heaven forbid if they’re rude ta me. Ya kinda remind me of Frank when ya do that,” he chuckled. “I admire that about both of ya and I wanna try and… do the same. Just hope that I’ve got the strength to.”
Jade felt a smile spread on her face, pride bubbling in her chest.
“But my original point still stands. I want ya ta have a better attitude when it come ta meetin’ new neighbors or friends. Unless they are straight up rude or nasty, I want ya ta try an’ be cordial. Ok?”
Jade quietly considered for a few seconds before responding.
Eddie smiled and grabbed a bottle of conditioner and a brush.
“Alright then! How’s about I show ya some hairstyles now? They’ll come in real handy for gettin’ ready fa the springtime celebration!”
“What springtime celebration?”
“Sugar, I told you about it when you came here. It's when we celebrate the end of winter and the return to warm sunlight and flowers. You arrived here right when the snow was meltin’ so it's only fitting to celebrate the return of spring and the arrival of you with everyone.” he said as he squirted some cream into his hand and began working it along her scalp.
A boulder sized ball of dread sank into her stomach,making her groan.
“Ah, Lemon square, don't be like that! Yor gonna love it! There's flower crown making, planting, and a picnic. And Julie will be there! She's practically the queen of the springtime! Ya might even meet her siblings! This'll be good for ya.”
She glanced up at him with a worried look.
“But it's going to be so awkward! Howdy probably gabs about our tiffs to everyone that comes in and they all probably hate me. Then it’ll be all weird at the celebration and-”
He put a hand on her shoulder.
“Jadey. Worrin’ about something that hasn't even happened yet ain't gonna help ya when it does happen. And not all the stuff that can happen is all bad,” He replied as he started brushing through her conditioned hair, each stroke gently running through her locks before curling into loose ringlets as the brush went through.
“Maybe…. For every bad thing ya think will happen, try ta think of a good thing that could happen.”
“...... Latter might come.”
“Yeah! He could! That's real likely since he's gonna be workin’ at the bodega! Now what kinda style do ya want? And tell me more about what could happen!”
“Ummm, I've always wanted to know what I look like with a French braid. And…. If Julie is in charge of the whole thing, I could stick with her.”
The mailman nodded and hummed in approval as he began his task.
As Jade listed off things that could happen at the neighborhood’s spring party, both good and bad, she found herself being comforted by the fact that the amount of good and bad events were pretty even. After a few minutes, Eddie took a hair tie and secured his handiwork.
Instinctively, Jade's finger went to her hair, shocked by its silky and moisturized texture. Eddie handed her a hand mirror.
“What do you think, sugar?”
Jade stares at her reflection, stunned by how good it turned out and by how cute she looked.
“I… I …I love it! I look so…. Pretty.”
Eddie chuckled and squeezed her shoulders
“Darlin’, you always look pretty.”
As Jade gazed at the familial reflection of her and Eddie, that feeling of concern at the lack of memories this should bring up faded to the back of her mind. Then the sound of the flat door closing shocks her out of the tender moment.
“I’m back with the glitter, my sensational snapdragon!” cried Julie as she burst into the kitchen. She gasps at the sight of Jade's new hairstyle.
“Oh! Jade, you look positively beau-tastic!”
The teen blushed, a warmth tickling at her chest.
“He did!? Wow! You really know your way around a braid, Eddie!” Julie gushed.
The mailman’s own cheeks flushed at the compliment.
“Gosh, there ain't nothing special to it.”
Julie glanced at the girl, seeing the way she ran her fingers along the mail carrier's handiwork; the glittering embers of joy glowing in her eyes. The sight made the rainbow monster’s heart swell with warmth.
“Looks pretty special to me.”
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