The beginning of the #chadandbeckyunnamedsaga

​The #chadandbecky unnamed story. How it all begin.
 
In case you fine folks missed it, it started with this post....

"
I’m on Southwest… you know the airline that boards you in groups and you pick your own seat, as opposed to being assigned one? I boldly found an aisle seat next to a couple and rolled the dice. They seemed like sweet people. Five minutes later cue dreams of being squished in a middle aisle seat between a screaming child and annoyed parent.
Conversation between a newish couple in their 30’s:
Girl: It’s important for me to make clear that I don’t need your help with things. You don’t have to come to my rescue.
Guy: I wasn’t trying to come to your rescue. I wasn’t trying to insinuate that you needed help with your bag and couldn’t do it yourself. 
Girl: I know other girls that would love someone carrying their luggage for them but I’m not the sort of person that needs that help.
Guy: I wasn’t saying that. The way I was raised, I’ve always helped my mom with her luggage and my sister with her luggage. It’s just something I’m used to doing.
Girl: You know my personality and should respect that I don’t need your help. This is me telling you about my personality.
Guy: I’m just trying to explain to you where I’m coming from when I went to lift your suitcase for you. 
Girl: Well, that makes sense but I’m just trying to be clear to you when you do something that annoys me or that I don’t like. Doing things like that will annoy me.
***kiss for two minutes.
Girl: Uggggh. I wish I brought my IPAD. 
Guy: Look who anticipated that happening and brought his IPAD just in case! (Whips out his IPAD happily to give to girl).
Girl: I don’t want to use your IPAD. It doesn’t have my books on it.
Guy: Just download the amazon app and then delete it after.
Girl: No, I don’t want to read on your IPAD. I prefer to read it on my computer or on my own IPAD because the screen is better. I guess I’ll just have to get out my computer to read. What a nuisance. It’s so heavy.
ME: KILL ME.
 
​"
***Which then led to the following posts:
 
The guy just attempted to order champagne (which they didn't have) and I wanted to correct him and say, "you mean a double jack on the rocks?"
 
***
 
The guy has just put on his headphones and is laughing to himself. I'd like to believe it's because he's listening to something funny but part of me is betting that he's laughing on the outside to keep from weeping on the inside. The girl is cuddled up in a ball facing the window.
I'm people watching because that's what you do on an airplane.
 
***
 
He's sighing loudly. I can hear his music through his headphones because he's one of those people.
It's slow, romantic jams. This is totally the guy who calls Karen Sharp during KOST love songs hour and dedicates a song. 100%.
 
***
 
There's a group of children, presumably from a camp (they're in the back of the plane), singing a song together in unison. The girl is not pleased. She can't send emails with this noise.
 
***
 
So the guy has spotted the poodle service dog under the seat to the right of us. He keeps cocking his head sideways and is attempting to get the dog's attention by making "tuc tuc tuc" sounds like if you were trying to get a squirrel's attention.
 
***
 
I THEN DECIDED TO GIVE THEM NAMES:
 
I'm going to name the guy "Chad" and the girl "Becky."
Becky has woken up. She is sniffling a bit.
Chad: *touching her arm: "Are you ok?"
Becky: Yes, I'm fine.
Chad: You sound sniffly.
Becky: *rolls eyes. "Well yeah, airplane air sucks."
Chad goes back to his headphones and rests his head back in defeat. Becky opens a google calendar that has approximately 2,171 tasks on it for this month.
 
***
 
Becky is still on her computer. Chad looked over in her direction, at her computer.
Becky: Can I help you? What are you doing?
Chad: I was just looking.
Chad turns his head, rolls his eyes in exasperation.
Guys, I don't think Becky and Chad are going to make it.
 
***
 
Becky has just gone to the bathroom. Should I tell Chad to run?
 
***
 
Chad and Becky just kissed.
He keeps leaning into her, kind of like a puppy.
Becky is questioning why he has two cases to protect his IPAD. It's weird. Chad said it's because it's one case for his bag and one case for the IPAD.
Becky has decided to let him live for now.
 
***
 
You've asked for a visual.
Becky is a slender gal. She's wearing all black. Black like her soul. She's got long, dark brunette hair. She has perfectly applied black eyeliner and she types with a purpose. Her body posture suggests she wants nothing to do with Chad, who keeps attempting to rub her arm.
Chad is wearing faded beach type shirt with light blue jeans. He has sandy blonde hair that is running away from the top of his forehead. His eyes are large, sad, and inquisitive. He's jumpy and has to be constantly moving.
 
***
 
GUYS. We land in 15 minutes. I don't feel like I've had enough time with Becky and Chad.
 
***
 
Chad: I wonder how long this flight was.
Becky: Think. Just think about it. You said earlier how long it was.
Chad: Oh, when I said three hours? I was just estimating. Wait, is it three and a half hours?
Becky: Yes, thats the length of the flight.
Chad: Well that's precise.
Becky: Yes, that's because flight times are precise.
We've landed.
Becky: are you excited?
My money is on vacation. A vacation one of them does not survive.
 
***
 
Chad just unbuckled his seatbelt and said in the highest, childlike voice: yippeeee.
Becky: What?
Chad: Yippppeee, *little hand wave
Becky is embarrassed.
 
***
 
Chad just made a joke!
He said to Becky: I'll make sure to pull your suitcase down down for you, but you can walk ahead of me.
 
***
 
We are off the flight everyone. Don't worry, Becky is wheeling her own luggage.
Maybe those crazy kids will make it after all!
I feel like I've been on a rollercoaster. I already miss Becky and Chad.
 
***
 
WELP, I missed Chad and Becky, sooooo…..
 
***
 
As I sit and sip my iced Americano, I've been thinking about our good friends Becky and Chad. I imagine they decided to go to Catalina today.
Becky put her hair up in a tight bun, not wanting the wind from the boat ride over to mess it up. Chad wore a baseball cap that kept flying off until eventually he missed catching it and it found a new home in the ocean. Becky rolled her eyes. She told him this would happen.
Chad wanted to visit the little cafes on the Island but Becky isn't the type to sit still. She booked them on a kayaking tour, followed by bike riding. She demanded to be in the lead for both activities. Chad made sure to bring the sunblock. When he tried to put lotion on her back, Becky snapped that she didn't need his help.
Then they kissed for two minutes.
After their activities, Becky pulled out her cellphone and answered 432 emails at a ferocious speed. Chad sat there staring but trying not to stare. "Sweetheart, can't those wait?"
Becky looked up sharply, "Can you not with the cutesy nicknames? I'm not that sort of girl."
Chad sighed and pretended to be interested in the birds on the dock. Deep down, his heart was restless. Selena Gomez's lyrics played in his head. "The heart wants what the heart wants."
 
***
 
Chad and Becky have gotten back to the bed and breakfast they’re staying at. Chad picked this quaint lodging feeling it would set a romantic tone for their California getaway. Plus he read online that they offer warm chocolate chips cookies every evening and Chad’s favorite cookies are chocolate chip. Becky prefers more modern lines and decor and doesn’t understand what “bear claw” tub means. She’s spent the last five minutes attempting to refresh her google calendar while Chad asks her if she’s going to eat her cookie. Becky rolls her eyes. “You’re so childish sometimes.” Chad is just happy to have two chocolate chip cookies.
 
***
 
THEN I PRESENTED VISUALS:

 

It's Friday night so naturally we're all asking each other what's for dinner. Not Becky and Chad. Becky had her assistant make reservations at three different restaurants so that they could pick and choose which one they wanted after surveying the environment.
Chad would have preferred to be a bit more spontaneous but Becky told him he needs to be more practical.
 
***
 
Chad and Becky are back from dinner. Chad had visions of them walking hand in hand under the stars and warm California air still lingering after an unusually hot day.
Becky had other plans, indicating to Chad that she needed to put on her avocado face mask for at least 20 minutes before bedtime and a walk this late would certainly keep her up longer than desired.
Chad picked a flower up for Becky on their walk back to their hotel as he was trailing slightly behind her quick pace, but thought better of giving it to her, recalling her distaste for anything she considered too "cutesy."
No, he thought to himself. It's best this flower be left for someone else.
 
***
 
Before heading to Venice Boardwalk, Chad felt himself getting restless. Something needed to change. He was always trying to please other people. It was hard growing up without a father and he made a promise to himself to be the man his father wasn't. He made sure to look after his mom and sister. He puts his dreams of sailing on hold. He was even dating someone he thought his mother would approve of. Becky was after all, the daughter of a dear family friend.
But, this trip was becoming a disaster. He thought it would bring them closer, that they'd find a spark. Instead he found that he was dreading each planned activity, each sharp response. He found himself anticipating each rebuff with a now measured apathy.
He got up early and wandered down the block from the hotel, checking out the sights, stretching his legs, and clearing his head. That's when he stumbled across a small barber shop. CHANGE YOUR LOOK TODAY plastered on the storefront window. Why not, he thought to himself. I've had the same haircut for years. Maybe a change will be a fresh new start.
 
***
 
When Chad sat down in the well loved chair in that small and unassuming barber shop, he wasn't sure what to expect. Amanda, the only hairdresser in the place had been arranging her potted succulents near the front left window, where a beam of sunshine just grazed the shelving hung at window level, when Chad opened the door. The door jingled and she looked surprised to see anyone.
Amanda, you see, wasn't really a seasoned hairdresser. She had taken over the lease of her recently deceased grandma's salon with the thought of transforming it into an art studio of sorts. But art doesn't pay the bills so Amanda put to work her haircutting skills from years of watching her grandma carefully styles the tresses of her loyal clients. While rough around the edges, Amanda did have a knack for the hair industry but her edgier cuts didn't suit her grandma's older clientele and slowly but surely, they drifted elsewhere for their coifs and traditional bobs.
When Chad walked in, Amanda took one look at his boring, predictable haircut and decided she would transform him. Chad sat anxiously as she asked him to trust her. It's just hair, right? It'll grow back if he didn't like it. He took a deep breath and told her he trusted her.
When he saw the final product in the mirror, he didn't know what to think. He was speechless.
 
***
 
THEN CHAD GOT A MAKEOVER OF EPIC PROPORTIONS.
 
***
 

To say Amanda was pleased with her latest hairstyling effort was an understatement. She'd heard, of course, that a hairstyle can completely change a person, but it's as though her customer Chad had walked in as one person, and walked out a completely different person!
She wondered if she'd see him again. She hoped so.
 
***
 
Chad left the small barber shop on the corner in somewhat of a daze. This change was BIG. He had noticed that even Amanda, his hairdresser, seemed astonished with the result.
Amanda.
Amanda had kind eyes, with a spark of mystery in them. Even in his head that sounded cliche, but it was true. The entire time she worked on his hair, gently massaging the shampoo into his scalp, carefully examining each and every cut to ensure a consistent length... Chad felt that Amanda was someone who put a lot of care into everything she did. He liked that about her. There's something inherently attractive about someone who cares about even the smallest of details.
What am I thinking? What will Becky say? Chad was filled with a giddy anxiety about possibilities but a cloud still remained. What was he going to do about Becky? It's as though with each snip of Amanda's scissors, Chad became more free, more open to possibilities he'd never imagined. His life had always been so controlled. He was the predictable one. The responsible one. He never made rash decisions and yet here he was on the brink of barging back into the hotel and telling Becky that things weren't working out.
 
***
 
Chad opened the door.
Becky started in, enraged. "Where have you been? It's been hours!"
Then she went silent as she took in Chad's new look.
The silence was nice coming from Becky. "I should have gotten my haircut a lot sooner," he thought to himself.
"WELL?"
 
***
 
Chad couldn't believe it. He was practically a different person and Becky barely paused to notice.
Her morning egg face mask barely cracked as she attempted to control her facial rage.
Chad thought about Becky - all the times she rolled her eyes, rebuffed his help, and was just a flat out rude bitch. Even now she was exaggerating to make a scene. He'd barely been gone an hour and a half and he knew it wouldn't have mattered anyway. Becky has a rigorous morning routine thatincludes yoga, a face mask, and sending 50 email requests to her assistant.
Becky was always exaggerating to benefit herself.
For once, Chad rolled his eyes back at Becky.
 
***
 
"DID YOU JUST ROLL YOUR EYES AT ME??" Becky exclaimed, forgetting all about the egg white mixture on her face.
"Ugg, you just made me ruin my face mask!" Becky was pissed.
 
***
Chad thought about his next move carefully. He was feeling liberated now that he had a haircut that would have made many mistake him for the actor who played Finnick in Hunger Games, but he still remembered how his mother raised him to treat women. He didn't want to hurt Becky's feelings, now matter how miserable of a person she was. He wished to be kind about his desire to move on.
"Perhaps we can sit down and talk for a bit. Do you want to take a moment to clean off the egg on your face?"
Becky was fuming through the peeling cracked egg white. "Talk? TALK? Wait. Are you going to break up with me? Is that what this is?!"
 
***
 
If Rebecca knew that we were calling her Becky for short, she'd be furious.
 
***
 
Chad had not expected such a fired up response from Becky. He was mulling over what to say to her when something caught the corner of his eye. It was something on the floor.
Something that wasn't Becky's and wasn't his.
 
***
 
Becky saw Chad's eyes focus in on the hat. She attempted to step in front of it but knew she wouldn't be able to talk herself out of this one.
A small part, ok, a large part of her wanted to get caught. It's not that Chad wasn't a nice guy, it's that he had no edge. He was so vanilla.
And now here she was, practically rendered speechless by the man standing in front of her. He looked good. He look really good. How could a simple haircut have transformed him so much? It's like even his abs became more defined.
 
***
 
The rest of the day was rather uneventful. In fact, Amanda would have no other street traffic pop in, for even a quick trim. At this rate, she knew she was on track to be swallowed up by the lease debt if clientele didn't improve. And then what? It's not like she had a plan, not that she ever really did to begin with. Amanda fancied herself somewhat of a free-spirit. Plans would only tie her down.

Her mind drifted to Chad.

He was handsome and personable; and shockingly unpredictable. By all accounts, Chad, with his boring, shapeless mop should have been just like everyone else who comes in for their 6 month trim. Most people know the haircut they want and exactly how they want it cut. It's not that there's anything wrong with that, but the artist inside of Amanda just couldn't stand the dullness in setting a coif. When Chad walked in that morning, she saw opportunity. His cheekbones hidden by the flat sandy, blonde hair, even his hazel eyes downplayed. But why did Chad trust her so openly? People like Chad, people who've had the same haircut their entire life don't just wake up one day and decide to be spontaneous, do they? 

Amanda was surprised by the ease in which they conversed during the 50 minutes spent reviving his locks. Well, she was more surprised by herself she supposed, and how openly she answered Chad, who leapt from question to question about her. She talked about her late grandma, "Nan," who made the best beach picnic baskets. She told Chad about her silly art degree. Ugh. It's not silly. It just won't ever pay my bills. Why don't they tell you that in school?  They talked about movies, her favorite - anything scary, anything that made her heart race. She realized when all was said and done, she had talked more about herself than she had in a while. She also realized she had learned nothing of this man sitting in front of her. While he spoke from subject to subject with a natural fluidity, she sensed a tension, and anxiousness in his stiff posture. She wondered why. Why had Chad come into her salon that morning? Where was he from? His accent and polite manners indicated somewhere in the South but Amanda couldn't quite pinpoint where. She'd never really had the opportunity to travel much. 

She guessed he was in his late twenties. What did he do for work? His traditional style and practiced manners suggested corporate, but despite all of this, Amanda couldn't shake the feeling that Chad was anything but corporate. 

As she locked up the salon that night, she couldn't shake the curiosity bug that pierced her veins. She wanted to know more about Chad, his hobbies, his passions. Did he have a girlfriend? Maybe a wife? Was he here for work or pleasure? What was upsetting him that day? Amanda pondered over the possibilities.  Was it weird to want to know more about a complete stranger, she questioned herself? She chuckled as she thought to herself, Who makes up stories about strangers they may never meet again?

A small part of her nudged her to believe they would meet again, but she was one for believing in serendipity and couldn't be sure if it was just her whimsical nature leading her on.  
 
***
 
This is Amanda.

AND NOW YOU’RE ALL CAUGHT UP!