Reeling It In

The cassette mixtape Ash made for me had a loose loop of brown magnetic tape sagging from its lower opening. Climbing onto the pine desk, I laid the transparent shell flat against the wood. I picked up an unsharpened hexagonal yellow pencil, fitting its flat wooden end into the star-shaped teeth of the left reel hub. Bracing one boot against the tape's plastic edge to keep it steady, I turned the pencil in slow, deliberate half-circles using both hands. The tiny spoked gear clicked softly with each rotation, drawing the glossy ribbon back inside until it settled flat and taut against the miniature red felt pad.