Friendly Persuasion

I can't say I remember everything perfectly.  It has after all been many years.  And the night was already a bit of a blur to begin with..  But what I do remember is deciding that if she wanted people to see what I was into, then I'd give her what she wanted.

She got the group going, and while usually not such a sucker for peer pressure, in this case I suppose I didn't really want to fight.  Let them think they were manipulating me into it.  Let them think I was going with the crowd.  In the end, they'd understand.

A few people volunteered, and I got the crowd to taunt Lisa for not stepping up herself, after instigating this little escapade, so before long, I had a few people sitting before me nervous, anxious, and a quiet crowd hanging on my words behind me.

I don't remember all of the volunteers, but a few do stand out in my mind.  As you might guess, I've changed all the names to protect the guilty, though the descriptions are accurate. 

Lisa, a willowy brunette with wide eyes, a wide mouth, and a condescending gaze.  I think at the time she had it died red, though that may have been a few years later.  She's never been curvy in the least, not generally my type, but she wasn't bony, and was pretty enough if you like that in a girl.

Daniel, who's the only male volunteer that I remember.. Probably because I had a bit of a crush on him.  He used to date Lisa, a while before this occurred, but she dumped him for another friend of ours.  I did mention that I didn't much like her right?  In any case, Daniel was sort of an odd duck.  Ginger, freckled.. quite smart, but made terrible decisions.  Easily lead.. He went from one serious relationship to another, often with girls he didn't even like, because he was just too nice to break up with them.  Women walked all over him, but somehow he was still a womanizer..  I know, it makes no sense to me either.  In recent years he had been working labour jobs, and the time outdoors had given him such heavy freckles around his chest and shoulders it looked almost like a tan.  And the time at physical labour and given a well defined body.. a rare thing among the boys I was around..

Enough about him.. The third volunteer I remember..  She was special.. I had a hell of a crush on her as well.  I think everyone who met her did.  We can call her.. Kailen.  She was, and is, beautiful, as well as a kind hearted and generally sweet person.  As I try and describe her I find that nothing really stands out as the reason.. the cause of what made her so striking.. It was just, how everything fit together.  She was average height, long sandy brown hair, with clear brown eyes.  She had clear skin, perfect skin actually, and a soft kind face.  I think everyone who knew her was just a little bit in love with her..  And as it happened, she also had a fabulous singing voice.  She's married now.. With a beautiful baby boy who I've never met, and I wish her much happiness.

There were others.. Friends of Kailen's, of Daniel's.. People who I had never seen before and never have since, people who's faces and names are a complete blank to me, but these 3 were the ones I knew, the ones I cared about, and the ones I remember still.

I was hesitant, shy at first, with such an audience.. Especially with such a buildup.  If I couldn't manage anything, it wouldn't be much of a show, and I'll admit I was quite worried about making an ass of myself.  It had been a while after all, since I had tried to hypnotize anyone, and in fact I hadn't had much luck then.  But I had been hypnotized, many times, and I thought maybe I understood better now, and more, I understood these people..  Knew what made them tick..

So I started to talk...