The bell chimed indicating that someone had entered Emphasis, a music store downtown in San Francisco. An average sized store painted dark purple, it looked a little Gothic on the outside, with its three-framed window on both sides and a bold cursive typography splayed above it in its store name. On the inside, it had a black polished wooden cashier counter located on the right side of the entrance, two long rows of music discs lined neatly against one another in the middle of the shop and a tall rack on the left that took up a little corner for vinyl records. 1546Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC0zeu9EwmM
Situated in the back, the 'Listen-To' section consisted of two small booths where customers could listen to whatever music they desire from a tablet with the vintage looking headphones. The walls were painted with navy blue and dark grey with posters of bands and musicians from decades ago until now framed on it. There were also several light bulbs decorated beautifully at almost every corner of the shop which gave the store a dimmed light atmosphere.
The place smelled of vanilla and nostalgia, such as the value of sentiments for old music records, a reminiscence of memories shared with friends or lovers that was full of laughter and warm feelings. It's something that leave people feeling content yet longing at the same time. And the smell of vanilla was the store's new air freshener, which somewhat enhanced the lingering but pleasant feeling of being in the store.
As soon as December Scarborough stepped into the store, she was overwhelmed by the loud rock music blasted from the small speakers that resonated from each corner of the store and smiled in appreciation. She'd come here once or twice in a while, mostly just to check out some new materials or if there was any new releases by her favourite bands. 1546Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9sxEVrPC5S
The place was exceptionally packed on Fridays with customers lounging at the vinyl and discs section and a couple at the back. 1546Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSCpzDnjB0x
Walking to the front row of the discs, she smiled at a pink-haired girl behind the counter, Lara who returned the smile back, before passing by the girl and continuing to one of her favourite sections: Indie.
She'd known Lara, a loud but friendly college student who was on her semester break since the store opened six months ago. After a mindless scan of vinyl records and music discs, December walked over to the 'Listen-To' section and picked up a pair of headphones. She put it over her head before deciding on a song on the tablet when someone bumped her shoulder from behind, causing the device to slip from her hand.
But with a quick reflex, she managed to grab the tablet before it crash onto the granite floor and put it on the table. 'Phew, that was close.' she thought.
Just then, she heard an outcry.
"Dammit! Are you fucking kidding me?"
Startled, she turned around and saw that the angry cry came from a guy around her age. He had a buzzcut, and a pair of dark rimmed glasses on and in his hand, there were five music discs and a vinyl record tucked under his arm. He glared at December with uncontrollable fury.
"You broke my vinyl. And I haven't even paid for it yet!" he seethed.
December looked to where he briefly stared at and saw that said vinyl is indeed broken. Noticing that almost everyone was looking at them especially after he shouted at her, her cheeks started to heat as she felt embarrassed. 1546Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7CPXbHcTt
Feeling defensive, she looked at his accusing glare with her own and said, "I'm pretty sure I did not break it. You're the one who were careless."
Taken aback, he drew a quick breath and said, "Careless? I asked you to move a little bit so I could pass but you ignored me!"
'You have got to be kidding me.' She thought in disbelief.
Peeved, December put one hand on her hip. "Look dude, I don't know what exactly is your problem but let me tell you this," she pointed a finger to his chest, almost jabbing it. "If you did ask me to move and I ignored you, it's probably because I obviously have a pair of headphones over my head in which you could have just tap my shoulder. Or better yet, put your things on the counter so you didn't have to carry it like that!"
The guy seemed to be at a loss for words as he took in what she said and stared at the broken vinyl. He knew she was making sense and it was he who was not but damn if he's going to admit it now. So he settled on just glaring at her.
"I am not going to pay for that broken vinyl." December said firmly.
A few seconds passed and after figuring out that she was indeed not going to pay for it, he gave December a hard look before bending down to scoop the broken pieces and walked over to the counter where Lara was. He finally noticed a few others in the store who watched the scene still staring, so he scowled at them. That got everyone to start minding their own business as they look away and started chatting mindlessly.
Standing on her ground, she watched as he paid for the stuff he was carrying, including the broken vinyl. As he gave her one last glare before walking out of the store, December's hard gaze softened as she heaved a sigh.
Lara, having just watched what could probably be a scene from a movie walked out from behind the counter and stood beside her. "Now that's actually the first time that kind of thing happened here."
Amused, December quirked an eyebrow at her. "Which one? The yelling, the part where his vinyl got broken and he accused me of it or the part where he glares at me so hard I thought it was gonna be permanent on his face?" Lara laughed. "All three, actually."
December chuckled. Just then a thought struck her mind. "Hey, I think you should probably tell your employer about covering the floor with a carpet. So there won't be a repeat of what happened just now."
The pink-haired college student took in what she said and nodded. "That's a good idea. I'll throw in the suggestion tomorrow."
They stared at the door where the angry guy stormed out and after one last thought about the incident that happened earlier, December gave her head a shake before she turned and walked back to the 'Listen-To' section. As she walked away, she heard Lara heaved a sigh, "What a day."
She silently agreed.
ns 15.158.61.46da2
