Bad Tastes

[holiday_pirner]

When Holly entered Tracks, the record store was mostly empty, save for a few people milling over some new releases. A Cinderella track was playing over the sound system, and strains of glam metal accompanied the brunette as she wandered over to the cassettes.

As she rifled through the Q's, trying to find a Queen album a friend had recommended, a movement in her periphery caught her eye. A boy, maybe in his mid-teens, was grasping a few tapes in his hand and acting twitchy.

Holly tilted her head, watching him closely. He was too busy looking out for store employees to notice her, until she pointedly cleared her throat. "Are you sure those are the ones you really want? I mean, if you're going to opt for the five finger discount, make it worth your while."

The brunette approached him, ignoring his surprised glare. She grabbed one of the tapes and held it up. "This one isn't too bad, but...is that Quarterflash?" Holly shook her head disapprovingly. "I think someone should call your parents just to warn them of their son's budding horrible taste in music."

He pulled away from her, grabbing the cassettes back. "Do you work here?"

Comments

[holiday_pirner]

"Oh! I know Echo." And Holly's smile widened, because it was shaping up to be quite a small world.

"So besides recommending music and moving things with your brain, what else do you do?" It would be nice to have a friend in town, especially now that she was looking to settle.

The brunette had an absurd mental image of Brian and his slayer girlfriend on a double date with her and Daniel. Yeah, maybe not.

[brian_campo]

This was the part he dreaded. No matter how busy he felt, it always seemed like a lackluster list of activities when he said it out loud. He needed to pick up a hobby or start feeding the homeless or something.

"I play music," he said. "To tell you the truth, not much else. What about you? Now that you're not working at fake Vivienne Westwood."

[holiday_pirner]

"So you play at this Dive place, then? I'd like to see that." Holly picked at a spot where her tights were pilling. She wondered what the pink-haired manager thought they were up to.

"Well, I..." The brunette trailed off prematurely. What did she do? Discover dead bodies. Hang out with vampires. Mild breaking-and-entering. Stare at the mirror and wonder how she'd look with a bob.

"I see how far I can push things before I become a cautionary tale, I suppose."

[brian_campo]

Brian nodded to her question. “On the weekends.”

He let her remark hang in the air for a minute. He inserted his shoe into a gap in the crate and dragged it closer. The lighter wobbled in the plate. He picked it up and flicked his thumb on the flint. It still had juice. He watched the yellow flame sputter and straighten itself out.

“Do you want to be a cautionary tale?”

[holiday_pirner]

She watched him play with the lighter, trying to figure out why his question seemed to make her insides shift and dance. Taken aback. That was it.

What did she want? It had taken a lot of time and effort to carefully construct a mask of I Don't Care.

"I can't say it's a dream of mine. But I think about stopping and, I don't think I can." Holly bunched her sleeves over her hands. "And I hate not being able to do something, so I just pretend that I won't. Won't is different than can't."

[brian_campo]

“Stop what?” he asked. “Specifically.”

The heat started to burn his finger. He released the button. He wondered if Billie had looked for him out back yet. If push came to shove, she might have to set down her book and ring up a customer. Brian dropped into a crouch and put the lighter back in its customary place. He didn’t like towering over Holly, so he stayed there.

[holiday_pirner]

"Oh, right," she said slowly. "Not privy to my inner monologue. That would be a telepath."

Holly recalled Daniel's assessment of her mental state. "I pretend not to know better. You know, do completely reckless, mental things." This was getting too personal. Weren't people supposed to tell her their deepest, darkest secrets?

"You're turning it around on me!" The brunette stood up and held out his wristwatch. "I'm the perceptive one, remember?"

[brian_campo]

Brian smirked and took the watch. “It’s not a one-way street.” He slapped the band around his wrist and fumbled with the clasp. “Especially when what I told you could land me in an FBI lab for experimentation. What’s the worst I could do to you?” He looked up through a hank of hair. “Scold you to death?” He finished with the watch. The cassettes were still in his pocket. He’d carry them down for her and let Holly take it from there.

[holiday_pirner]

"You don't understand. I let my guard down and confide in you, you'll disappear. And I'll have to start all over with someone else." Holly picked up her bag, slinging it over her shoulder.

"At any rate, your secret is safe with me. I need a good music connection." The brunette gave Brian a smile.

[brian_campo]

He chuckled but his brow creased in confusion. “What are you talking about, I’m not going anywhere.” Brian climbed over the wall and started down the metal ladder. Each footstep sent a vibration the length of the structure. “At least,” he said, jumping to the ground, “Not on purpose.” He wiped rust off his palms and dug in his pocket for the tapes. He extended them to the descending brunette.

[holiday_pirner]

"It's never on purpose," she muttered, following him. Holly took the tapes. "You know, there's a lot of potential in what you could do. You could rescue kittens from trees. Stop a runaway stroller from rolling into traffic."

The brunette tilted her head, framing Brian's face with her hands. "From this angle, you do resemble a sort of rough-hewn Clark Kent."