8. Dax

Chapter eight

Dax

"Today was hard. We almost lost two guys. I'm glad you're home and you're safe. I don't know what I'd do if you weren't."

The last few weeks have passed by in a blur. With the weather changing into the colder seasons, the town isn't as busy as during the warmer months, meaning the shop has started to get quieter during the weekdays compared to the lively days when summer brought music lovers through the door endlessly.

I should feel grateful for the downtime, but the realistic side of being a business owner, knows these times aren't great financially.

"Hey, maybe we could start guitar lessons?" Tyler shouts from the other side of the room.

"You don't even know how to play the guitar," I question, throwing him a look of confusion.

He lifts his head, moving his hand to his forehead, rubbing it in circles while rolling his eyes at me. "Hence the lessons…"

"But you need to learn it first, before you teach it."

"Don't rain on my parade, it's just an idea," he replies as he gets up from his seat, leaving the room dramatically, clearly annoyed I've ruined another one of his not-so-smart ideas.

I turn my attention back to the admin paperwork, but I'm shortly distracted as I hear voices coming from the shop floor. One of the voices I know is Ty's, I can never mistake his voice, but the other is new, feminine.

The paperwork is quickly forgotten as I stand to walk in the direction of their voices, hoping he hasn't scared her away, yet. It wouldn't be the first time.

I am greeted with Ty's laughter as I open the back door, but I don't hear a response from her. This definitely could go wrong . He is a bit of a ‘ladies' man' but sometimes he doesn't get the hint that not every girl wants him, and one of these days a woman is going to give him a piece of her mind and he won't be able to handle the rejection.

"Ahh, here he is..." Tyler winks. "Coming to spoil some more fun for me now, little brother?"

"More like saving a life," I say dryly, enjoying his sigh. Something he always does when he doesn't have a comeback, and I secretly revel in it.

Returning a wink back to Ty after he has not so proudly shown his sign of defeat, I turn to the pretty red-haired girl to the side of me in an attempt to salvage both my brother and the reputation of the store, forcing my lips into a smile, hoping it looks genuine enough to help me sell.

I probably look like I'm uncomfortable or in pain, but she doesn't comment on it.

The girl with red hair returns the smile. Glancing down, I notice she's holding a notepad against her chest with her arms folded around it for protection. I get the impression she feels uncomfortable, so I attempt to start up a conversation in aims to ease.

"Hi, I'm Dax. This is my older brother, Tyler, but I'm guessing he's already told you that. We own Ocean Notes Records together. I'm just thankful I got here in time to save you from Mr. Champ over here." I tap his chest a little forcefully and he grunts but I continue smiling at her. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Hi, thanks but no. I'm new here, well you could say I've just come back. I used to live here a few years ago with someone. Sorry, I'm Idah."

"Oh, that's cool," I mutter.

Feeling uncomfortable with the conversation, I subtly nudge Ty for some backup, but before he can say anything Idah brings her wrist to eye level, glancing at her watch, and then moves her attention to her bag, which she starts to go through. "I'm sorry to cut this short but I'm already late. It was nice to meet you... well, one of you." She laughs and waves before turning on her heels, walking away in a rush.

"She clearly meant me," he jokes. "She'll be back."

"You're a creep. What happened to the girl you were with last weekend?"

"Oh, her? She started texting me constantly. I don't have time for that, places to go, people to see, you know? Hopefully it will start with a little redhead."

I arch a brow in reply to his statement. With the store being empty again, I retreat to the computer in the back, turning on the monitor to keep an eye on the door, ensuring I don't miss any customers as I start to research guitar teachers in the area. I've always wanted to learn a musical instrument, and since Ty mentioned the idea about playing guitar, it has sparked an interest in me.

We already sell guitars, so why not learn how to play them too?

It's a win-win situation, for the store and ourselves.

By the time I look back at the clock, I realise two hours have already gone by and I've rung three potential guitar teachers, compared prices, and checked out reviews on their websites and on Google. After another half an hour, I've booked for a guitar teacher to visit the store at the end of the week. During the call I mentioned how it could potentially turn into a weekly thing teaching classes at the store – both of us seemed eager and loved the idea, the teacher was completely on board.

A million thoughts come to mind, and for the first time in a while, I stop and smile because I feel engaged with something.

I'm putting my mind to work.

I'm thinking about creating something.

I'm excited.

I slowly feel like I'm returning to myself day by day, and as always, I have my brother to thank for that.