The Woman of His Dreams
Raymond hesitated for a few seconds before knocking on his roommate's bedroom door. Things had been getting increasingly strange over the past few months. It had all started when David, desperate to overcome his shyness and learn how to talk to girls, decided to rummage through a box of old things Raymond had brought back from his sister's house. Inside, he found a self-help audiobook with a peculiar title: Becoming Anyone's Dream Woman. Raymond had tried to warn him at the time, laughing as he said, "Dude, just listen to it and mentally replace the word 'woman' with 'man' whenever it gives you advice." He assumed his friend would take the hint. He didn't. Little by little, David's demeanor began to change. He became calmer, more serene, and developed an almost obsessive sense of vanity. He bought expensive cosmetics, let his hair grow down to his shoulders, and started showing off long, perfectly manicured nails.