Mirella, a confident regular at our salon, shocked me when she told her husband her $50 manicure cost $300. He paid, but she later ran back, demanding I stay silent, claiming he “owed” her. A week later, she tipped me $20 to keep quiet. Two weeks after, her anxious husband asked if the $300 was true. I admitted we had no such service, and he left, looking defeated.
Mirella texted me angrily, accusing me of betrayal, then stopped coming in. Months later, her sister revealed Mirella had left town after her husband filed for divorce, uncovering her lies—secret credit cards, a second phone, and possibly an affair. Her sister explained Mirella felt invisible in her marriage, lying to feel valued, not to be cruel.
The experience made me reflect on how people seek validation—through kindness, status, or lies. Some, like Mirella, chase power when they’re hurting, unable to ask for love. Now, when clients exaggerate costs, I don’t correct them. I offer a small kindness, like a scalp massage, because sometimes dignity, even if fictional, costs less than the truth.
