Ryan smiled as he woke up from his brief nap, feeling happier and better rested than he could remember being in a long time. He was so glad he had these headphones; they made it so easy to sleep comfortably, and have such pleasant dreams.
And speaking of dreams, the one he just had made him feel inspired. It put ideas into his head of how to use these headphones of his to fulfill his lifelong desire for control, how to put their power to use and show anyone and everyone the joys of service.
But to really make his fantasies complete, he’d need a little enhancement. Luckily, one was already close by.
He rose from the bench, brushing back his short, brown hair, and turned around to head back into the magic shop, putting a winning smile across his thin face.
The young man behind the counter, a scrawny blonde, looked over at him.
“Oh hey man, back again already? I hope you enjoy the headphones, but maybe you should steer clear of here for a bit? I don’t think the manager would like that I gave you a pair of 200 dollar headphones for free just because you’re cool.”
A free pair of headphones? Ryan couldn’t recall getting anything from his short browsing session…
There was another beep, and Ryan remembered what he came here for.
“Relax, man,” he said, the low music playing again. “Take a few deep breaths… That’s it, now clench your fists… Now unclench them. So how nice that feels?”
The man behind the counter nodded.
“Don’t worry about what the manager thinks. Just focus on the here and now. Focus on how good it feels to relax and listen.”
“I hear you, man…”
“Now, I’m looking for a little something to make some mind over matter magic. Something that’ll make the mind and body match, that I can apply to whoever I like.”
The man behind the counter nodded dimly. “Sounds like fun.”
“And I think your shop has something like that, doesn’t it? Maybe your manager gave you a hint?”
“Yeah, dude,” the man replied, pointing to a shelf of records, cassette tapes, CDs, and gift cards for a “Magic music” app. Ryan stepped closer, looking at the labels, boasting genres like Hyperpop, Furry Funk, TG Trance, Animal Alt-Pop, Indie Inanimate, House Hermaphrodite, Shrunken Soul, Giant Grunge, Muscle Modernism, and more.
All perfect tracks to remix Ryan’s controlling concert with trance-formative twist. Thanks to the power of the headphones, money was no object.