I lift my gaze to see that she’s pointing to the empty spot next to me. “No, it’s not.”
“Do you mind if I join you? Everyone else seems to be paired up after Josh spotted his high school friends while waiting.”
I would love to have her sit next to me, but these seats are so damn tiny, so I don’t know if we’ll have space for both of us. Regardless, I still gesture for her to join me, “Sure. Let me make you some room.”
I feel my cheeks flush as I squeeze myself closer to the window, embarrassed by how much space my large body is taking up. Fuck, it’s at moments like this I wish publish transport was more kind to people of all sizes and shapes, instead of making seats meant for a tiny person. Even after moving, I’m still taking over half of the narrow bench.
Tanya slides into the space beside me, her shoulder bumping against my side. Because of our proximity, I can feel the heat rising off her skin. The idea of being this close to her hits me like a shot of tequila mixed with Red Bull.
“Sorry, Edmund,” she apologizes while fidgeting with her hair.
“No worries,” I squeak like a hormonal teen, praying that my deodorant spray won’t fail me now. That would only add to my embarrassment while packed like sardines for the next thirty minutes. At least Tanya’s scent is pleasant, like a mix of fresh flowers and clean linen. It reminds me of summer nights at my maternal grandparents’ house, calming my increased heart rate down.
A few moments of silence pass before Tanya speaks again. “You mentioned earlier that you’re from New York—what brought you here for the festival?”
“I grew up loving country music, thanks to my mom and her family being from the Midwest.”
“Whereabouts?”
“Near Sioux Falls in South Dakota,” I tell her, a small smile touching my lips. “A year ago, one of my coworkers told me about the MCF as his friend had attended and loved it. I signed up for their newsletter, and when tickets went on sale, I thought, why not? What about you? Did you buy yours right away, too?”
Tanya’s entire body language changes as she straightens her back and smiles. “I actually won four VIP passes for the weekend.”
“No way!”
“Yes way,” she giggles excitedly. “We picked them up from the hotel reception only a few minutes before you asked if you could join us.”
“That’s cool. What’s included in that, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“Let me think…food, drink coupons, merch, and backstage access both days.” She counts the things with her fingers before admitting, “I’m more excited about seeing all the bands live than the rest of it, to be honest.”
“Still a pretty great deal, if you ask me.”
“I know, right!” She exclaims, looking down at her lap. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure, whatever you want,” I reply, curious about her question.
Tanya tilts her head, looking directly at me, when she asks, “Why did you come alone?”
“What do you mean?”
“Isn’t it lonely to attend an event like this without your friends?”
“No, not at all.” I shake my head. “There are so many people here. Almost every single one of them could be my friend for the weekend if I asked nicely.”
“Like you did with us,” Tanya points out.
“Exactly. And when we all go back to our daily lives, we'll still have memories of the good times and moments we shared through music."
“Oh wow, I didn’t even think about it like that.”
“It’s definitely something different,” I agree. “But yeah, back to your original question; coming here was an easy decision. I had a feeling I’d meet someone to hang out with.”
“And you were totally right. You met us before entering the festival grounds.”
“Yeah, meetingyouhas definitely been the highlight of my trip so far,” I emphasize my words.
Tanya beams, the laugh lines around her clear blue eyes getting deeper, making her even prettier than before. “I’m glad we met, Edmund.”
