I gulp gasping for air and I nod.
“You’ll be fine. I promise Katie, this will be good for you, okay?” She is looking at me with sympathy and I hate feeling this way.
“I feel stupid. I don’t know why something as simple as going to a concert has to be so hard Penny?” I must be the worst best friend, ever. She can’t take me anywhere.
“Because you love him Katie. You always will.” She smiles weakly and fluffs my hair.
“That’s what scares me Penny. What if I never get over him? What if I go my whole life missing him?” What if this is it…my life…spent wanting him…and never having him.
“Who says you have to Katie?” She grabs my hand and leads me into the ever-growing crowd.
We make it to the first stage. Some band I have never heard of is playing, and I find myself relaxing and enjoying their grunge sound.
Penny has to go grab more flyers, so I wander to the second stage. I am minding my own getting into the music. I even find myself joining in on some of the chorus. A strong hand taps my shoulder and a familiar voice calls out my name, “Katie?” I cringe inwardly but put on a brave face.
“Stewart. What are you doing here?”
“Wow, I wasn’t sure if it was really you…you look amazing. You mentioned a concert and then I heard about this on the radio so I thought I would check it out.” His eyes rake over my body and I see a longing in his eyes that I never noticed before.
“Thanks. I am actually glad you are here. I think Penny might have ditched me.”
He wraps his arm around my shoulders and we walk around and check out the third stage and some of the booths.
I feel a lot more relaxed and I am having a great time. It is exhilarating to enjoy music again. I check my phone to see if I have any missed messages from Penny but I don’t so I continue to walk around with Stewart. We grab a bite to eat, sharing some nachos from one of the vendors.
I finally spot Penny near one of the gates when Stewart has to take a call.
“There you are. I was beginning to think you were hiding from me.”
She shrugs and smiles awkwardly.
Stewart comes back from his phone call and Penny’s face falls when she sees him. If I didn’t know better, I would say Penny is acting sneaky.
“Stewart what a nice surprise,” she lies quickly.
I give her the eye and she pretends not to see the way I am looking at her.
Stewart checks his watch. “Hey, mind if we go towards the main stage one of my favorite bands are getting ready to go on?”
“Oh, which one?” I ask curious whom his favorite is that would be playing here today.
“Uh, Stewart I need a HUGE favor.” Penny interrupts him before he can answer me. “I need your help getting a box?”
“A box?” He questions and I give her A WHAT THE HELL look.
“Yeah, so Katie go over and make sure you get us a good spot to see this band and we will meet up with you in a few minutes,” Penny states tugging on Stewart’s arm aggressively.
I fight my way through the crowd gathering at the main stage. This band must be huge. Everyone is abandoning the smaller stages to watch whomever is getting ready to play.
I use my pass to get around the massive sea of people. The security guard scans his eyes over his list and matches my name for safety purposes I suppose. He pushes his way through the people dragging me with him. We come to a stop in front of the stage.
“Stand right here. You are tiny and I would hate for you to get trampled. If the crowd pushes on you too much, just signal, and one of us will pull you over the barricade.”
Okays, so that is weird, but comforting at the same time. I look around for Penny and Stewart but they are nowhere to be found. I feel anxious. The excitement of the crowd is adding to my nerves.
The crowd starts chanting but there are so many voices, I cannot make out what they are actually saying. My head is spinning.
A blonde-haired woman in a red shirt comes out on the stage. OH MY GOD! It’s Penny! What in the hell is she doing up there? She scans the crowd and sees me and smiles at me. I give her a thumb up for encouragement, even though I am not sure what she is doing.