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

[brian_campo]

From his perch atop a ladder, where he sat idly scratching an insect bite on his elbow, Brian spotted the kid when he entered the store. The non-verbals screamed for an employee’s attention in all the wrong ways: hyper-vigilant of his surroundings, aimless meandering, shoulders a few inches too high. It also happened that the kid was blacklisted from shopping in Tracks thanks to a long history of petty theft. It was almost impossible to enforce with a rotating line-up of cashiers, but Brian remembered him. The brunette’s distraction gave him a unique opportunity. He hopped off the ladder and rounded the corner behind the kid.

“No, but I do.” Brian hooked his arm loosely around the boy’s head. He smiled and gave him a noogie. “This is my buddy Troy. We’ve met before. It was Night Ranger that time. What’s he got?”

[brian_campo]

He didn’t notice her alongside him until Holly spoke. “Oh, it’s um…” Brian held up the paper. It was upside down. He flipped it around. The advertisement had been drawn by hand in black ink and photocopied a hundred times. He knew that because he had done the copying for the kid in Billie’s office at the record shop, not that his boss realized it. “There’s this place called the Dive, lots of local bands. There’s something this weekend. You should go.” He shrugged and handed it to Holly. “Just don’t use the bathroom, if you can help it.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Billie said from her stool. She was reading a dog-eared copy of The Unbearable Lightness of Being. The corners were mushy as if the paperback had been dropped in the bathtub. “Also I think the bouncer has rabies.”

“Ahh,” he sighed. Brian rubbed his forehead. “Nice contribution.”

[brian_campo]

Brian had forgotten about the tapes. It looked like one way or the other, merchandise was getting stolen tonight. “Here, I’ll hold ‘em for you,” he said. He wasn’t sure her outfit had pockets. He stuffed them in his pants pocket and climbed the ladder ahead of her. The building was only four stories tall, so it didn’t take much effort to reach the top. He straddled the wall and slung his leg over it. One of his shoes kicked a beer can. He couldn’t remember if it was one of his, or if his assertion that nobody else used the roof was erroneous. In the middle of the roof, there were a couple of plastic crates and metal folding chairs, which seemed to be in the same spot as the last time.

“Got it?” he asked. He didn’t want to be a jerk and imply that Holly couldn’t climb a ladder, but he didn’t want to just walk off and leave her hanging off the side of a building, either.

[brian_campo]

“Are you serious?” He raised his brows.

Jesus. The world was tiny. He took a second to digest this new information. Had he always run in the same circles with supernatural beings and been clueless about it, or was it a side effect of having an ability awakened in himself? Or was there more to it, as he hinted to Valerie… a destiny of meeting the right people at the right time?

Brian scratched behind his ear.

“I’m seeing one,” he said, looking apologetic because it might come off insensitive to a girl whose father had been murdered by a vampire slayer. “She’s not scary. She’s— she’s beautiful.”

[brian_campo]

“Yeah? Does this help?” Brian reached up and twirled his hair into a curly cue on his forehead. He struck a majestic pose.

The door swung open. Billie stuck her head out, no doubt having heard the ladder rattling on the side of the building. “Hey, are you getting paid or what?”

“You know, that’s a subject of some debate,” said Brian. “I did the math and I think it costs more to drive and park here than I make in a day, so actually— ”

“Fuck you.” Billie went back inside.

Brian blew out his cheeks. “I think that’s my cue,” he said.