Javon had always been your safe space. Best friends since you could remember, he knew everything about you—your favorite songs, the weird quirks that made you laugh, and the way you always fidgeted with your hair when you were nervous. So when you texted him, casually mentioning you were coming over that Saturday, he didn’t think much of it. Just another weekend hanging out, like always.

What he didn’t expect was this.

When you walked through the door, his jaw nearly hit the floor. Your hair—the hair that had always cascaded down your back in waves, brushing against your hips—was gone. Well, not gone, but now it barely reached your shoulders, framing your face in a way that made his heart race.

He stared, completely dumbfounded, as you dropped your bag onto the floor and gave him a smile. “Hey,” you said, casual as ever, like you hadn’t just turned his entire world upside down.

It wasn’t like he hadn’t thought about you like that before. You’d always been beautiful to him, even if he would never admit it out loud. But now? Now you looked… different. Not just because of the haircut, but because of the way you seemed to carry yourself, like you were completely at ease in your own skin.

“You gonna say something, or just keep staring at me like that?” you teased, raising an eyebrow.

He blinked, snapping out of it. “Uh—yeah. Sorry. It’s just… your hair. It looks… amazing,” he said, his voice quieter than usual. He shoved his hands into his pockets, trying to play it cool, but the way his eyes kept drifting to you gave him away. “Seriously, you look…” He paused, struggling to find the right words. “Beautiful.”

Your cheeks flushed at the compliment, and you tried to hide it by rolling your eyes, but the way your lips curved into a shy smile didn’t escape him.