Cracking Spines

“Am I coming over tonight?” Jonah asked.
“I have a hair appointment in the morning,” Jenna said.
“Is that a ‘no’? Do you ever realize that you never answer questions directly? You always come up with some phrase that’s like a substitute for an actual definitive answer.”
“Do I?”
“You always have a hair appointment, too.”
“I always have hair,” Jenna said. Even though she was just twenty-four, her hair was starting to gray. Every two weeks she had it dyed black. Jonah didn’t know this yet, and while he believed her whenever she said she was going to get her hair done, he never was able to notice any change.
“I like that,” Jonah said. “That was cute.”