Isabel looked around the room she had suddenly found herself in. Just a few minutes ago, she had been in the hotel room, trying desperately to sleep. She had eventually put on her headphones to let the music lull her to sleep, and it did for a few minutes until she was woken up by a very familiar laugh. She woke up immediately and looked around desperately for the source of the laugh. Where was he? She tried to move her arms and legs but found that she was unable to. They were all tied to the chair she was in, and her headphones were still on her head, but no music played through them. Finally, the man that had laughed stepped into the light and took the headphones off of her head.
"Well, hello there, Isabel. Long time no see, eh?" he asked, and she stayed silent. "So, a little birdie tells me that you don't like lightning very much. Is that true?" Again, she remained silent. She thought that maybe if she ignored him, he would just go away and leave her alone. But he didn't. Now, she knew this man. She had run into him before, but not with her new team. She knew this man when she was still in Circia, and she couldn't believe that he had followed her. He laughed again, clapped his hands, and when he pulled his hands apart, lightning bounced and flickered in between them. Isabel's eyes went wide, and he knew at that moment that he had her scared.
"Please, ye don't need to do this. What more do ye want from me? What do ye want that ye haven't already taken from me?" she asked, and he smirked.
"Well, that answer is simple. What do I want?" he repeated, before stepping closer to her, the lightning on his palms dangerously close to her skin. She could feel the heat and electricity surging through the air, dancing on his skin, begging for her skin to join the dance. As his hands neared her body, he finally answered. "I want to hear you scream."
**********************
Reid immediately went to his laptop to search for nearby record stores. He had Ciara's list in hand, but he wasn't exactly sure what to do with it. He quickly pulled up the search engine and decided that the best way to go was just to search for record stores in Columbus, Ohio. That generated several good results, so he just clicked on the first one and read through the list and descriptions of the nearby record stores, and finally, after scrolling to nearly the bottom, he found what he was looking for. There was a record store not even a ten-minute walk from where he was, and according to the description, they had nearly every kind of genre in multiple media. He wasn't quite sure what that meant, but he assumed it meant something along the lines of that they didn't have just CDs, but maybe they had vinyls as well. He put his phone in his pocket, grabbed everything he might need, including his coat, and started the walk to the record store.
As he walked, he sincerely hoped that there would be a person there willing to help him, because he really wasn't sure what he was doing. He looked down at his list, and shrugged, deciding that he would just look for CDs by those bands and just look around at the related ones nearby and try to pick one he thought she would like. Not that he really had any clue what she liked. He had a list, but that list told him absolutely nothing. None of the words on that page really meant anything to him. Before she had mentioned them, he hadn't heard of any of the bands or CDs on the list. He sighed, the voice in his head deciding to speak up.
You are absolutely hopeless, you know that, right? Didn't he know it. He had no clue what he was doing, but just like everything else he did, he was going to give it his best effort. And if nothing else, this would be a learning experience for him. He could learn and next time he attempted something like this, he would be better at knowing what she liked and wanted. Finally, he saw the record store come into sight, and in another couple minutes, he was walking into the store. Even if he had no clue what he was doing, he was at least out of the cold. He looked around at the many shelves of CDs and vinyls, and he was immediately overwhelmed with the sheer amount of stuff in there. He would definitely need help because otherwise, he would be searching forever. He looked at the overhead signs, listing the genre of music that section was devoted to. He saw several different ones that might be appropriate to look at, mainly the signs directing him to the rock, metal, punk, and alternative sections. He also saw a rap section and looked down at his list, barely remembering that Eminem was a rapper. It was official. He was screwed.
Reid went to the rock section to start, deciding that was a better place than any. He found a couple of the bands on her list quickly, such as Breaking Benjamin and Three Days Grace, but there were some that he knew were in another section. He prayed that someone would come along to help him soon, but he kept looking, trying to see if there were any that jumped out at him as a potential for Ciara, but none of them did so. They were all the same to him, not one of them standing out as potential listening material. She could like them all, or she could like none of them for all he knew. He just wanted to get her a good gift that could help her out. He didn't expect it to be this hard. Why couldn't she just listen to the kind of music he listened to so that he would actually know what to do? But that would be asking for her to change herself, and he didn't want that. Reid mentally reminded himself that he was a genius and was usually able to figure problems and puzzles out without a problem. So why was this so challenging and frustrating for the genius?
"Hi there! Can I help you?" a young woman came up to him, and he thanked the Lord for finally sending him help. Her name was Miranda, according to her name tag, and the first two things that Reid noticed about her after that was that she was wearing a choker and that she had a side-cut, the rest of her blonde hair combed over to the right side. Reid had a feeling he was in good hands.
"Um, yeah, so I'm looking for a gift for my friend, but I'm hopeless. We listen to two very different kinds of music, and I have no clue what anything she likes is. Think you can help?" he asked, and Miranda lit up.
"Heck yeah, I think I can help. I have nearly this entire store memorized, even... even the country section. Ew. Anyway. Do you know what kind of music she likes?" Miranda asks, and Reid smiled at the apparent disdain for country music in her voice.
"Well, what did she call it... she called it emo," Reid said, and Miranda's smile increased. She was apparently in her element.
"Well, okay, that's pretty broad. What kind of emo is she? There are many different sides to it. There's rock, punk, metal, which also has endless types, indie, alternative... and so many others. Does she have a preference?" Miranda asked, and Reid just stared at her for a couple moments, completely lost.
"In English, please?" he asked, and she sighed. "Hey, I have a list of bands and CDs that she likes and has. Will that help?"
"Actually, yes. May I see it?" Miranda asked, and Reid handed her the list that he had made up. She took one look at it, and started to laugh, causing Reid's face to quickly turn red. "Great spelling. Okay. This is a pretty good start, but there are some that I can't believe she doesn't have. She doesn't have any that have female vocalists, which a shame. No Evanescence or Paramore or Avril Lavigne. But how does she like these bands but not All Time Low, or Pierce the Veil, or Sleeping With Sirens, or..."
"Can we just get to the part where you help me find a CD for her without criticizing what she doesn't have on her list yet?" Reid asked, and Miranda laughed and nodded.
"I'll do you one better. There's a lot of bands I would recommend, so why don't I make you a list of my own with recommendations? That way next time you get in this situation, you can pick one?" Miranda suggested.
"Yes, that's a great idea! I just have one other request for that list. My friend, Ciara, only really wants debut albums, and then if she likes the band, she gets the others on her own. Can you write the debut album by the band or singer so I know what I'm looking for?" he asked, and Miranda raised an eyebrow.
"That's an unconventional way to do it. Not all bands stay the same from album to album, though I guess if she likes Panic! At The Disco, she already knows that. They did swear to shake it up, after all. But anyway, I suppose I can do that. Come with me. I'll make the list, and then we'll pick one for her. Actually... I think I know which one would be best for her. She needs to round herself out with some female vocalists, and since she likes rock, I think she'd like Evanescence. Their debut album is called Fallen, and it's actually right over here somewhere. Let's get it and then as you're checking out I can make that list. Sound okay, or would you rather explore a little bit more?" Miranda asked.
"No, no, Fallen sounds great. I really don't know anything about her music, and I trust your opinion. I just want to get this over with," Reid said, and Miranda smiled, laughed softly, and looked around, before pulling a blue CD off the rack. She handed it to Reid, and he looked at the pale woman on the cover of the CD. Would she like this? He flipped it over, and read the titles of the songs, but it's not like they meant anything to him.
"She'll like it, I promise you. Anyway, let's go get you checked out if that's all you need," Miranda said, and Reid confirmed that yes, that was all he needed, and followed her. He was thankful that he was able to get a CD found so quickly since Miranda seemed pretty knowledgeable in this area, and she was even making a list so that he wouldn't have to struggle like this again. Next time he was getting her a CD, he'd probably just pick a random band or singer from the list and go with it. After checking to make sure that she hadn't already found it on her own, of course. Before ringing up the CD, Miranda grabbed a notebook since Reid hadn't brought his (he had just ripped the piece of paper out and left the notepad) and began working on the list of recommendations, making small talk as she did so. "So, I haven't seen you here before. Are you from around here?"
"No, I'm actually from Washington, D.C.," Reid answered, and Miranda looked up, brushing some blonde hair out of her face.
"Really? What brings you to Columbus? Family? Work?" she asked, still writing band after band, each with a debut album to accompany it.
"Work. I'm with the FBI," Reid answered, and Miranda suddenly stopped writing and looked up at him, tears threatening to form in her eyes. What had he said that had hurt her so? What was it?
"You're working on that strangler case, aren't you?" she whispered, and Reid nodded. "My best friend was victim number 3. Riley Harrington. Do you remember her?"
"Yes. I remember Riley. I'm so sorry for your loss, Miranda, and I promise that we are doing everything to find the man that did this to your best friend. I promise that we will find him as much as you promise that my friend will like this CD," he said, and Miranda smiled weakly at the last sentence.
"It won't bring her back. I've accepted that. But at least you are going to get some justice for her," she said, and Reid promised that she would find justice and closure. Miranda stared at the CD in Reid's hands for a moment, before shaking her head and writing a couple more bands onto her list, before handing it to Reid. He looked over it in little more than a second and noticed that she had put Evanescence at the bottom.
"Why did you put this album at the bottom if I'm getting it now?" Reid asked, and Miranda smiled, asking for him to hand the CD over. He reluctantly did so, unsure of why she was changing her mind.
"You can get one of these anywhere. You're helping to find my best friend's killer, so you deserve something special. Follow me, I have something that you might not find anywhere else besides Columbus," Miranda said, and Reid shook his head and sighed, but followed her anyway. She was the expert here, not him. And yes, that was extremely hard for him to say.
"Why is it only found here?"
"It might not be for all I know. But, this is a homegrown band. All three of the guys in it were born and raised right here in Columbus, and this is still the town that they call home. I actually live a few houses down from the drummer, but I know the guitarist better since I had him in a lot of my classes during high school. I actually never met the lead singer, but I hope to someday! He seems like a really cool dude. Anyway, here it is! They released it on December 29 of last year, so it's not even a month old yet. The guitarist made sure this store was one of the first to get some copies, but I think this will be the first we've actually sold. Go ahead, take a look, see what you think," Miranda said, and Reid turned the thin CD over in his hands a couple times. It wasn't in a normal jewel case, but rather a type of paper case.
He was immediately intrigued by the cover, which had what looked like a man lying on a bed, a light bulb and fan above his head, a paper or scroll of some sort in his left hand. It was as if the man didn't have a scalp, but flowing from his brain was all sorts of colors. He couldn't take it all in at once, and he kept noticing new details, something that he knew Ciara would like. If nothing else, she would like the cover. He flipped it over and started to read some of the song titles, the first, second, fourth, fifth, and tenth song titles already jumping out at him, the first for one of the words used. Implicit, meaning either implied but not clearly expressed, or absolute. He tried to find an album title, but he couldn't seem to be able to find it. He asked Miranda what it was called, and she told him it was a self-titled album, meaning that the band's name was the name of the album. He looked again, and at the bottom of the back, he found their name.
"You know, I think she might like this. And if it's quite special, it'll be perfect for her since she's the same way."
"Quite special?"
"Quite." Miranda smiled, asking if they were really just friends. "Yeah, of course we're just friends. Why would you think otherwise?" She shook her head and smiled, saying nothing more on the subject, instead asking if the CD was his final decision. He nodded, and looked back down at the CD, seeing the three band members on the back, and asked her which ones were the two she knew. She told him which two were which, and reiterated how much she wanted to meet the third. Smiling, she rang up the CD, and after Reid had paid, said goodbye to Miranda with a promise that he'd come tell her once they actually arrested someone for the murders, and walked back out into the cold, he looked again at the list Miranda had provided for him. There were several there, and at the bottom, he noticed that she had hastily written not a band suggestion, but just a single song from a band that was already on the list. Was there something special about the song? There was a handwritten note next to the song, and he read it within seconds.
This song helped me get out of a dark place, so even if you don't buy the band's CD for a long time, at least tell her about this song. It's amazing! He read the song title again. "Welcome To My Life" by Simple Plan. He decided that he would tell her when he gave her the new CD. Once he got back to his hotel room, he grabbed the bag he had brought with him just in case he actually found Ciara's gift and the small amount of tissue paper he needed. He had prepared to actually find it, and now all he needed to do was make sure that she didn't find it, which would be easy if he just kept it in his go bag. Before packing the new CD in the bag, he looked one more time at the band name, wondering how much this band might come to mean to Ciara, and how much they might help her. The name was only three words, but he had no clue how much those three words would come to mean to Ciara. He read it one more time:
twenty one pilots
Okay, who knew once I started to describe the cover what album it was? And for all twenty one pilots fans... yep, he totally got her self-titled and he has no clue how coveted that album is today. So anyway, how do you think Ciara is going to react to the new band? Are you a little sad Miranda changed from Evanescence to twenty one pilots? Anyway, the next chapter is gonna be mainly analyzing the album, so I need to know which songs you guys want her to listen to! "Implicit Demand For Proof" is a given since it's the first one, and most likely "Friend, Please" will be on that list, but I want to know what you guys want to see her react to! She'll listen to them all, but they won't all be mentioned since that would be a lot. So comment which ones you want to see! I swear I'm not just looking for more comments, I really want to know what you guys want. Anyway... BYE!
"Find people that'll introduce you to new music, art, culture, ideas, books, etc. People who'll expand your mind and help you grow." -Unknown