Page 9 of Certified to Handle You
I took my time cleanin’ around her hairline and moisturizin’ her scalp before installin’ the lace. I smoothed everything down slowly and styled the hair in soft curls that framed her face beautifully. Once the makeup artist finished her part, the wig brought everything together in a way that almost made her look peaceful instead of tragic.
That was always my goal… Peace.
I kept adjustin’ little pieces until everything felt perfect, and once I finally stepped back, my chest tightened again because she looked like somebody who should’ve still been alive. She looked like somebody who should’ve still been raisin’ her baby.
I walked closer without even thinkin’ about it and gently brushed a strand away from her lips before reachin’ down and softly holdin’ her hand for a second.
“Rest peacefully, Queen,” I whispered.
My eyes burned immediately after that, but I blinked the tears back because I still had another baby to take care of.
And Lord… the little girl almost took me out.
She looked so small layin’ up there with her pretty little brown curls, tiny hands, and little pink lips. It hurt my heart because she still looked like a baby who should’ve been runnin’ around somewhere playin’ instead of layin’ in a funeral home.
I couldn’t even imagine what the grandmother was feelin’ right now, knowin’ she lost her daughter and grandbaby at the same damn time.
I worked slower on the little girl than I normally did because I kept havin’ to stop myself from gettin’ emotional.
Her curls was soft when I touched them, and I carefully parted her hair into neat little sections before startin’ the twists. I added tiny beads at the ends because her grandmother mentioned she always loved wearin’ beads. That part almost made me cry right there.
I kept picturin’ this baby runnin’ around somewhere laughin’ while her beads clicked together.
I finished the twists carefully and laid her baby hairs down soft around her little face before finally settin’ my comb down.
For a minute, I just stood here lookin’ at both of them together, and somethin’ about seein’ a mother and daughter gone at the same time made my stomach hurt in a way I couldn’t even explain
My throat tightened so bad I had to turn away and busy myself with cleanin’ my station before I started cryin’ in these people funeral home.
I always took pictures of my work for business purposes, but this time it felt different while I stood, quietly takin’ photos of the hair.
A few minutes later, the grandmother finally came in with another woman beside her. The second she saw them, her knees almost buckled.
“My babies…” she cried.
That sound broke somethin’ in me.
I looked down immediately because my own eyes was fillin’ too fast.
The woman walked closer to her daughter first and touched her curls real soft before lookin’ toward me with tears runnin’ down her face.
“She looks beautiful,” she whispered.
I pressed my lips together and nodded. “Thank you.”
Then she looked at the baby, and man…
The way she cried over the little girl almost had me cryin’ with her. She eventually turned and wrapped her arms around me tight.
“Thank you so much,” she sobbed. “Thank you for makin’ my babies beautiful.”
I hugged her right back because at that point, I couldn’t even pretend I wasn’t emotional too.
“They already were beautiful,” I told her softly. “I just wanted to help send them home with love.”
That made her cry harder…
I rubbed her back gently while fightin’ my own tears because moments like this always reminded me how fragile life really was.
