eleven eleven

of vinyls & love (1)

Dirty jokes, casual flirting, a strip club and a lot of vinyls.

A chance encounter with a stranger was all Anna needed to realise how desperately she wanted to bone someone.

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Working at a record shop really has its perks.

For one, Jerry, the shop owner, gives me a huge discount on my purchases from the shop. Secondly, since I'm the manager of the store, I get to pick my choice of music to play on the speakers all day long. Third, I get to engage with the handful of the world's population who still believe that vinyls are the best source of music. Fourth, my mother hates the fact that her twenty-five year old daughter is working full-time at a record store, instead of becoming a rich snob.

It's been two years since I started working in Moksha and, though it was never my plan in life to work at a record shop of all the places, I cannot picture myself working anywhere but within these four walls.

My trail of thoughts bring a smile to my face as I lean on the checkout counter and look at the small crowd forming in the store. Every Friday night, there is a live music performance in Moksha and the shop gets jam packed with music enthusiasts and customers. Most of them are our regulars and I recognise them immediately, but some of them are fresh new faces who look like they have entered into a completely different dimension. I grin, Moksha has that effect on people.

We try to introduce new bands every week. Most of them are kids from high school who think that they will be the next Beatles, some of them are college kids who just want to earn a few extra bucks, and others are fully grown adults who look for a place to showcase their talent and advertise their band.

We always get the highest amount of sales when Evolution&Revolution performs. Tonight happens to be one of those nights and as soon as the music kicks in, I know it's going to be spectacular.

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The performance was spectacular. 

Then again, theirs always is. We got double the amount of sales today and though I'm really tired by working constantly for hours, I'm not complaining.

Somewhere around the sixth song, I had lost the track of time. I glance up at the clock and realise it's half past two.

Shit.

I quickly count the green bills and put them in the cash register. The store is almost empty now, except for a few lingering customers and the band. Moksha doesn't have a fixed closing time. We remain open until every customer is satisfied.

Somebody clears their throat in front of me and I break my trail of thoughts and look up. I am greeted by the familiar face of a dark-haired boy who is grinning at me.

I sigh, knowing exactly what's coming next.

"What do you want, Jack?"

I'd be lying if I say I never had a crush on Jack Montgomery, the lead singer of Evolution&Revolution. But then again, everyone has a crush on Jack Montgomery.

Although, with time I have gotten to know him better and my crush has almost faded into a loose friendship with a few flirtations every now and then, mostly from his side.

"Would you believe me if I said you?"

I give him a blank stare, too tired to retort with something smart.

"No."

Jack laughs, completely unfazed by my lack of interest. He, too, has gotten to know me beter over the years and is accustomed to my grumpiness, especially during concert nights.

I pick up the bundle of keys and walk out from behind the counter to lock all the shelves while Jack follows behind me.

"How was the concert?" He asks as I lock the Rock n' Roll shelf. I glance at him and give him a smile.

"I loved it." I really did.

He nods, appreciating my answer. I move around to lock the Pop, Reggae and Country exhibits. I look at him and raise my eyebrows.

"You don't have to stay with me, I can manage on my own."

We are the only ones remaining in the store now. The other members of his band left a while ago.

"I don't mind. Besides," he continues, "now I have an excuse to take you to your apartment."

I snort and look at him with an amusing smile, he grins and winks at me. I shake my head and continue with my work.

"And what exactly will you achieve from that?" I ask, still grinning. He looks at my hands as I rearrange the DVDs in their original place.

"Well, you can't just let such a hot specimen walk away from your door. Even you don't have that kind of self control." I briefly stop to look and him and he continues.

"So you'll have no choice but to invite me in, and then-" he stops and grins at me, "I would go on but you've watched enough porn to know what comes next."

I fake a gasp and look at him and I can see the amusement in his eyes.

"Jacob Montgomery, how dare you accuse me of such a filthy sin? I was raised a proper Christian, unlike you."

Jake snorts. "I saw you slip those DVDs from the adult section last week." My face turns a shade of red and I silently curse under my breathe. Jake smirks, enjoying my flushed state.

"Tell me, darling, what position did they do it in? Anything you'd like to try with m- ow!"

I hear the click of the last lock and turn away to keep the keys in my purse. Jack follows with while rubbing his nose.

The ride to my apartment in Jack's car is silent, except for the soft melodies on the radio. I guess we both are pretty tired. I look over at him and notice the sleepiness in his eyes.

I decide to break the silence. "What are your plans for the band?"

"Hm?" He looks over at me and realises what I asked. "Oh, urm, I guess we'll be taking up some gigs around the city. We recently got a job for a really high-profile wedding, so that'll be easy bucks."

I nod, fairly impressed. I really want him to do well in his life, he's very talented.

We reach my apartment by three and my eyes start to droop. I unlock the door and step inside, and then I turn around to look at him. He's grinning again. He grins a lot.

"So, who's going to be on the top?"

I suppress a smile. "Goodbye, Jake."

He lets out a sigh. "Fine, we'll just watch the dirty movies together then."

I slightly push his chest out of my apartment. "Goodbye, Jake," and I close the door on his face.

I hear the sound of his laughter from outside and I shake my head, still smiling.