The best memories come from the most insane ideas

The Runaways

I turn the doorknob and the door squeaks. The floor is wooden and the walls are all lined with vinyl-records. And the room is bright with colors of Billy Joel, Britney Spears, the Clash's records, just waiting to be bought and listened to. And the girl behind the counter lifts her head and smiles (I don't know if it's a polite smile which she gives to every costumer or she's genuinely happy to see me, I hope it's the latter). And let me tell what a girl it is. What a girl. Baz... That's her name. And that's her real name, believe it or not. Guess her parents also believed in this "boat-calling" shit but, clearly, they had different aspirations than my parents. She is the exact opposite of the floral name end everything it's stands for. She's unique, she's cool and she's a rebel and she doesn't even try. She has this cool boho style jacket that makes my knees weak. You would think that she's some manic pixie dream girl in this story but no. She's not. And neither am I. We're not here to make some man's storyline interesting and challenging on our account. We are about to make OUR life interesting and challenging. So I take a deep breath and smile back at her. And her smile grows instantly bigger so I guess it was not just a must-smile-to-customers-polite kinda smile.

"Hi, how can I help you?" she asks.

You can help me by coming with me on the craziest journey ever but I don't tell her that just yet.

"Hhii, hm... I.. I'm looking for a record" I finally find my voice.

"Huh, what a coincidence, we happen to have all of them, anything specific?" she smirked.

I told you she's awesome, she's funny, sarcastic and gives everybody shit.

"Yeah, it's called "Runaway Train" by Soul Asylum, do you happen to have this one?"

"Wow, oldie but goodie, are we? Good choice, let me check it."

"Thanks" I said clearly a bit embarrassed. Everything that I do when I stepped into this store has a purpose, nothing is an accident and my choice of a song is no exception. Hopefully, her praising my music taste is going to help me win her over.

While she went to the back of the store to check whether they have this record, which I'm convinced they do, like I said earlier nothing is an exception, I planned everything, I decided to look around and act super casual. Super duper casual. I knocked over a stand with CD discs. Shit.

"Shit, sssorry, I'm so sorry, I'll clean it up" I started saying.

She was at my side in an instant. She kneeled beside me, while I tried to collect fallen discs with the remaining of my dignity and putting them in place.

"Hey," she touched my hand, "don't worry. My first week working here I knocked over this stand three times, I felt like an elephant in a porcelain shop, I still do sometimes." and she winked at me. SHE FREAKING WINKED AT ME! Okay, so maybe I really have a chance in this. I start to feel more confident.

"You might be the tiniest and the most graceful elephant on the planet. Aside from baby elephants perhaps. But they are babies, and you're not, so that doesn't count, whereas grown elephants are gigantic and they can destroy this place with their trunks..." and she laughed. Oh god, it was the most angelic laugh I've ever heard in my life. She truly is an angel. Okay, Dixie, get a grip.

"You're cute and real funny and talk a lot when you nervous. I like that. Why did we never talk in school? I saw you a couple of times but for some reason our paths never crossed. I'm Baz by the way, ha-ha, that sounded funny, a lot of b and z sounds." She held out her hand for me to shake. I quickly took it and gently shook it.

It's the first time I'm gonna introduce myself with a new name. It's exciting, for the first time I'm excited to introduce myself to somebody and excited to see their reaction.

"I'm Dixie and I saw you more than a couple of times, you're kinda hard not to notice." And now I feel embarrassed. Again.

"Dixie is a totally bad-ass name, it suits you" she said.

"Thanks, but not as bad-ass as Baz, like Buzz Lighter from Toy Story and it's totally bad-ass."

And she laughed. Again. Oh lord, I might never wanna leave this store. I wanna stay here with her on the floor surrounded by the mess of CDs.

"You think Buzz Lighter is a bad-ass? I suppose you're right, he IS a space ranger superhero after all."

I told you she was awesome.

"Oh, here, I found your Runaway" she said and handed me the record. "Interesting choice, if you ask me. The majority of people come in here and ask either for something that will make them look cool and grunge or for Taylor Swift vinyl records to fit in with the whole country and pop vibes. No middle ground. And don't get me wrong, I like T Swift, she's a bad-ass."

"I think we broke some kind of a record of how my two people can say "bad-ass" in 5 minutes." I said jokingly but she looked at me more serious.

"You're right. There's too much expectations with that name."

"There's too much expectations with any name."

"I'm looking at you now and have no clue why we aren't friends or why we at least haven't talked in school. You're cool and you've admitted that you saw me more than occasionally so, why not come up and say hi?"

"That's exactly what I'm doing now. I came in here, knocked over a stand with CDs so you could come up to me and help and I said my name's Dixie. It just takes quite a minute for my mind to gather all its strength and act on it. Especially when it comes to important stuff." I looked at her and she was speechless for a minute and just stared at me and then after what seemed like an eternity she smiled.

"You think that I'm important stuff?"

"Of course you are, I wouldn't be here if that was otherwise" I said.

I think it's time, we're in a moment, it's now or never. If I don't ask her now, I never will.

"Hey, would you like to go on a road trip?"

That's Baz for you.

And that's me.