Maira.

" .. And that was the end of my hair problems!" Maira ended, which was followed by great exclamations, encouraging whoops and applause.

She exited the stage and happened to bump into a fairly good looking young woman. 

"Maira?"

"It's m'am to you" came the quick reply from somewhere in the crowd surrounding this famous beauty.

"Wait, have I seen you somewhere?" Niki asked Maira.

"Figure it our yourself Miss Bully" she muttered under her breath and left.

Niki was bewildered for quite some time .. Firstly she was late and she missed the chance of interviewing Miss Universe 2012 Maira, she was sure to get it tomorrow at the office. But that, strangely enough, wasn't what was nagging at her mind.. 'What did she mean by that sentence? Bully? What's she talking about?' Niki thought, as she got out of the lift, walking towards her house.

She entered to see her roommate stretched on the couch, watching television. The channel was broadcasting Maira's interview/press conference.

" .. and hey, I didn't get here unscathed. I was bullied. In school, oh yeah, don't gasp or look at me like that, I was bullied. But I wasn't all that fat, or ugly, and I wasn't hit, well then what happened? Let me tell y'all.

I was the only girl in my class who never did anything to my hair. I had pretty decent black locks which went down my lower back, which I always kept braided or tied up in a ponytail whenever I left home.

My parents were pretty conservative, not the type to keep me in the dark about boys and growing up and everything, but I wasn't raised up in a surrounding that made me want to experiment and color my hair. Among all the straightening, curling, bonding, streaking and dyeing, my hair was always the constant. Now a lot of girls kept getting mad at me because the teachers would always reprimand them, but since there was no such rule that said we couldn't do whatever we wanted with our hair, they could do nothing but lecture the class. The teachers would often take my name as an example, but hey, I wasn't some teacher's pet or anything. Far from it" Maira said, and giggled, her endearing dimples on display.

"I went to parties, I played basketball, I studied too, but was pretty average. The girls in my class would put chits into my bag calling me names, they would prank call at my house at times too.

So this goes out to every girl who oils her hair because she's not scared of being branded a behen-ji or boring. To that girl who doesn't fall prey to whatever the current hair fashion is. To that girl who ties her hair up simply. To every girl out there watching, who has being laughed upon because of her plaited hair, I survived it, and came out strong. And so shall you!" Maira stated, the audience captivated by her story.

" That was then and now? Well I am here, in a press conference midst hundreds of people, and forget what those girls do for a living, I have almost forgotten their names and faces even! Life is hard. But the fruits of labor, of having dealed with crap people, it is worth it!" she concluded.

"Maira, what exactly do you do to maintain your hair?" a journalist asked.

By now, Niki was gaping at the screen, Maira was the girl she had bullied? This exotic looking beauty? She'd never realized how her actions could've affected someone. She removed the plug out of the socket and ran into her room.. She felt horrible. Her only solace was the thought that Maira deserved all of it. The hair, the beauty, the fame..

- THE END -

This an entry for the "... and that was the end of my hair problems!" contest by Dove on Indiblogger. This is their 'Hair Aware App' which not only checks how much you know about your hair, but also suggests the Dove shampoo&conditioner range best suited for your use.