“Ow, Mom. Stop hitting me!”
“Shh…” whispered Liv, wanting to hear nothing but CB’s voice singing her favorite song.
In my mind I’ve already let this go too far
Saying goodbye tonight
Would be just like a broken heart.
Let’s don’t let go of this
No, let’s don’t let this go.
The song ended and Liv wished she could hit replay, like she did so often when she listened to their music. It was as though the words of every song were written just for her. She’d never forget this night, finally having the chance to see them perform live.
Since CB Rice was the opener for the opener for the headliner, their set was short. After six songs, CB thanked the bands that would come after them for inviting them on stage tonight.
“Playing Red Rocks has always been our dream,” CB told the cheering audience.
Every band she’d seen at the spectacular venue nestled into the mountains outside of Denver had expressed a similar sentiment.
The natural rock formations created an open-air amphitheater with perfect acoustics. A large, tilted, disc-shaped rock formed a multi-story backdrop behind the stage, and a huge vertical rock angled outward from the right of the stage. Several more large outcrops angled outward from the left.
From the stage, rows upon rows of wooden benches led up to a vast and open view of starry Rocky Mountain nights.
“Ready for a beer?” Paige asked.
“Sure. Why not?” Liv smiled. She’d insisted th
ey rush to their seats when they arrived, so she didn’t miss a single minute of CB Rice on stage.
“We’re going to look at merch,” Renie told her mother, pulling a pouting Blythe behind her.
“All the years they’ve been friends, you’d think Renie’s personality would’ve rubbed off at least a little on my daughter.”
“She’s fine,” Liv answered.
Liv started humming the last song the band played, wishing again she could hear it one more time.
“You should get a t-shirt,” Paige teased.
“Maybe I will.”
Two beers and one of every t-shirt CB Rice was selling later, Liv and Paige returned to their seats just as the second band took the stage.
Their seats were situated just outside the roped-off area that was designated both for VIPs, and for the sound equipment. When Renie came and sat beside her, Liv leaned against her daughter.
“Having fun?” Renie asked.
“Thank you for doing this,” Liv answered.
“I know how much you like Red Rocks, and with three of your favorite bands playing, it seemed like the perfect way to end our summer.”
Her daughter was a pre-med major at Dartmouth, and would be returning to school next week.
“I miss you already, sweetheart.”
The second band began to play, and soon everyone in the ten-thousand person audience was on their feet, dancing and singing along.