The air was still warm, but you could tell the summer months were slowly turning into fall by the light breeze you felt over your shoulders. It was one of those golden afternoons that the sun shined so bright in the house the three of you shared.
You could see all the dust and cat hair from liho floating around in the air. You all had decided to take advantage of the lingering warmth and go for a swim before the season entirely changed.
As you approached the pool, its water sparkled under the sun, and excitement bubbled up inside you. However, as much as you wanted to get in the water, the thought of getting your hair wet put fear inside you.
Ever since you were a little girl, you have never been allowed to get your hair wet. Your mother always burned into your mind while you sat on the floor between her legs, getting the hot comb through your hair. "Do not get your hair wet at this pool. You don't want people to see you when it's like that."
You knew what she meant when she said "like that." Out of all your siblings, you were the only one with the curly, coily hair that shrunk up as soon as you got it wet.
You never got to experience the joy of cannonballing into the pool's deep end like all your friends. Instead, you were stuck sitting at the edge, only allowed to put your feet in the water.
The one time you decided to rebel and get in the pool, it went badly for you. Your overly straight hair, which usually reached down to your shoulders, was no longer recognizable in the now curly fro that rested upon your head.
Your mother was livid when she saw you. You couldn't tell whether it was because her time from earlier that day had been wasted or because your natural hair had seen more than the four walls in your house.
Now you are sitting in the lounge chair watching your girlfriends play in the water. Natasha keeps dunking Wanda under, and Wanda comes back up with a cute pout on her face each time. You long to be there playing with them.
"Detka, come get in the water with us; it's so warm!" Wanda shouts from her place on top of Natasha's shoulders.
"Yeah, please. I want to play Marco Polo, and it's a lot more fun with three people." Natasha adds while throwing Wanda back into the water and swimming over to you.
"I would love to, but I can't get my hair wet," you explained.
"Why not?" Wanda asks, getting out of the pool to sit next to you. "We don't have anything to do tomorrow, so it doesn't need to be done, and we'll even help you wash it. Right Natasha?"
'Right, and you know I love your natural hair." She agreed, while bringing up a hand to caress your cheek.
This wouldn't be the first time they would see your natural hair. You remembered when you had braids and got the time they were supposed to be getting home wrong, and they saw you taking them out. You were mortified, but they didn't care. They even offered to help you.
You knew they wouldn't judge you, but that little girl still lived inside you from the last time you got your hair wet in a pool. Their reassurance was just enough to put that behind you. For now, you were going to let that little girl live.
Standing up, you took off your bathing suit cover and left the book you were reading on the pool chair. You walked around to the diving board. You could hear both of them asking what you were doing, but you didn't reply. Instead, you decided you were going to show them.
When you reached the edge of the diving board, you finally understood why kids took so long to jump off. It didn't look so high from the sidelines, but from up here...You swore it felt like you were 50 ft in the air.
Just as you were about to change your mind, you hear your girlfriends from below cheering you on.
"Yayyy! You got this!! Don't be scared."
Without another thought, you jumped. An arm wrapped around your legs, pulling them to your chest, and a hand covering your nose.
When you hit the water, you emerged laughing and smiling. Your girlfriends rushed over to you, pulling you into their loving embrace.
"See, your hair is beautiful, natural or not," Natasha said, her voice filled with warmth and sincerity.
You spent the rest of the day in the pool, diving under more times than you can count.
Once the sun began to set, it was time for all of you to make your way back inside. True to their word, once all three of you were undressed in the shower, you tackled the task of washing your hair. The moment was filled with soft touches and scalp massages. The pair worked together to make sure every tangle was combed out as gently as possible.
After washing up, each of you got ready for bed, as the pool day had worn you out. As you were getting ready to lay down, you saw your bonnet already laid on your pillow. You smiled, knowing they remembered because you often forget to put it on.
You kissed each other goodnight, and as you drifted off, you thought about how lucky you are to have not one but two caring and attentive girlfriends, knowing that you could dive into any pool and still be seen as beautiful.