My Little Decoy

♪ Epilogue ♪

"Will do. Don't get mugged." Xander smirked, ruffling my hair.

"I'll try not to," I laughed and bid him farewell, making my way down the corridors and out of the hotel. Once the door opened, I was hit with a gust of humidity, making me grimace. But even with the groggy weather, it wouldn't stop me from relishing the fact that I was in an entirely different country.

Wreck-It Records was already within sight - it was just across the street. Making sure I had some money on me, I blended into the crowd of passersby, heading for the crosswalk so I could get to the other side. The footsteps of people walking and the rumbling noise of chatter made me feel secure, like I was back home in Seattle.

I crossed the busy street - gawking for a split second about how their driving lane was on the left, not the right - and pushed through the doors of the old record shop, immediately hit with the scent of old books and guitar wood. It was comforting, and I knew that I would instantly love this place.

"Welcome, welcome!" a voice to my right startled me. Turning in the direction it came from, I was met with the sight of a young woman - her raven black hair was cut short into a pixie cut, shielding the right eye. She was like the definition of punk rock, dressed in a lacy black mini dress and fishnet stockings, piercings in her eyes and nose. Her voice was high and cute, different than what I expected.

"Hey," I greeted casually, taking out a hand and waving towards her.

"I'm Sasha, by the way," she said in her accent, and I cracked a smile.

"Lacey." I replied, wincing at how American I sounded.

"American?" Sasha guessed, her voice like laughter.

"How could you tell?" I replied sarcastically, though it was lighthearted.

"Lucky guess," the woman replied, leaning onto her counter with her elbows. her ruby red lips were curved into a smile, as she cocked her head in my direction. "So what brings you to my brother's humble store?"

"Your brother's store?"

"Yeah," Sasha stretched her arms over her head, rolling her neck. "He's over in America now actually, been there for a while. Wreck-It actually started there, but I asked him if I could start a branch here in his hometown."

"Do you know where? Maybe I'll see run into him one day."

"I doubt it," Sasha waved a hand nonchalantly. "He lives in some nowhere town called Somerset. But enough about him, do you need help with anything or are you just gonna look around?"

"I think I'll look for now," I said sheepishly, giving a surreptitious glance towards the rest of the store. But something on the counter made me pause, glancing down at it. "It's been a while since I've seen one of those."

"Hmm?" Sasha hummed, glancing down to where I was pointing. She let out a little laugh. "Cassette tapes? Yeah, why have one when you can have an iPhone?" I laughed, nodding.

"Have you ever made a mixtape with one of these?" she asked curiously.

"No," I admitted, rubbing the back of my head. After a little pause, I asked hesitantly, "Can you somehow record your voice onto one?"

"Oh, definitely." Sasha shook her head energetically, picking up one of the cassettes and spinning it around her finger. "But you would need to have a cassette recorder and microphone in order to. But you're in luck," she winked. "We happen to have some in stock."

"I'll take them to go." I said, pulling out my wallet.

"No, no. This one's on me. I don't know but there's something about you that I like. Just promise me you'll stop by again." Sasha put my items into a bag, pushing it in my direction before I could argue.