The venue was packed, a lot of people moving to and fro in the few minutes before the door opened. It was a sea of tattoos, black shirts, jeans, and cigarettes. Adgarr stood out like a sore thumb despite the old band tee he wore. Even so he was engaged in deep discussion about song rankings, arguing the finer points of a song Elsa had only heard throughout her childhood. She loved her father, but she wasn’t nearly as avid a rock fan.
It was the reason she had bought the tickets in the first place. It had been a close call too, a snap decision on her part. Something about the advertisement on the radio had caught her attention. The VIP ticket she chose for him had been expensive; but after seeing the sheer childish delight in her father’s eyes...well it made her feel ten times better about her impulse buy. Nevermind the fact he had dragged out his old CDs and played them non-stop for a week. He had psyched himself up so much that by the time the concert had come around he had been all but wiggling in excitement.
This had to be what the week before their Disneyland trip when she was five had been like.
“Man this linnnneeee is so loooonnng.” Elsa snerked at the words, the woman turning slightly to grin back at her. She was interesting, a kind of aesthetic that Elsa didn’t get to see often. Her jeans were old and worn down, with tears and paint that looked like they hadn’t been intentional.
“First concert?”
“That easy to tell?”
“It’s the blouse, it screams blue collar worker. You chose quite the concert to have as your first. Hard rock legends and I heard the opening act is okay.”
“I will have to take your word for it.” Elsa tried to think of something else to talk about, already feeling the conversation dying when she came clean. “Honestly I only bought tickets because the headliner is my dad's favorite.”
“Really?”
“Yes. He hasn’t seen them in person ever so…” Elsa relaxed the longer the conversation went on. Drifting from music to other topics, even some as mundane as favorite colors. The stranger was for some reason comfortable to talk to. She listened and seemed to go out of her way to try to wring smiles out of her.
To her embarrassment, it took almost thirty minutes to realize that the woman was flirting with her. It fact, when she did a blush hit her face and she couldn’t help but blurt out her next thought aloud.
“You’re flirting!”
The woman blinked a bit before she laughed, freely and loud enough to draw the attention of a few people. Elsa blushed more darkly, but the way that the woman patted her shoulder eased some of the embarrassment.
“Haha! Finally! Realization dawns!”
“Uh.. uhm.”
“I’m not making you uncomfortable am I? I can turn down the flirting.” From the way the woman seemed to just deflate Elsa couldn't help but give an honest reply.
“Oh no, well uh. I don’t get hit on that often.”
“Whaaat? Man, this place must be like Wonderland, so fucking crazy. You’re hot and cool. Even if you haven’t even ever heard of Queens without Crowns.”
“More like I intimidate people, now that I think of it.” Elsa’s words drifted off as she came to a whole another series of realizations, her hand met her face. Okay, really she didn’t notice the flirting. She had been tuning it out since high school. Which explained a few things about her sporadic social life really. Wait, did she even like women?
“I like a challenge.” The voice was deep and smoky, making a delicious shiver run from the base of her spine up to her brain. Well that answered that.
It took a few tries to get the hang of flirting, but the blushes were a good gauge of when she got it right. Besides, she had always been a quick study.
It continued right up until they got in the building, then the red-head had to run over and ‘get checked in’. Elsa didn’t get it, but having never gone to a concert before she assumed it had something to do with the shiny pass she had hanging from her neck. She turned to check on her dad, but he had grabbed a CD from somewhere, holding it while looking very much like an excited child.
“Hey first timer!” Elsa turned to get a shirt in the face. She fumbled for a few seconds before she managed to pull it off. The shirt was navy in color, which was odd since most of the ones she had seen in the last hour had been pitch black. The over enthusiastic drawing of a rocket getting sucker punched was underlined with the words ‘Rockit!’
“There, you said blue was your fave, so I scored you a blue one.”
“You didn’t have to buy me a t-shirt.” Elsa had to raise her voice, the mass of people starting to become louder in the confines of the building.
“It’s okay, I work with the band. So consider it a gift, besides if this is your first concert then that is your first concert T-shirt. So I get to be all happy that some first timer’s first tee was one of ours.”
Elsa’s face brightened at the thought. Instead of seeming creepy it came across as sweet. Though that probably had more to do with how nervously the rocker was chewing at her lip piercing. She pulled the shirt on immediately, having to fight a little to get it situated over her blouse. Since it was a few sizes too big she managed. Soon enough she was pulling her braid from underneath it.
She pulled it out, looking down at the design laying across her chest, “Thanks.”
“Welcome, Blue.” The lights started to dim a little and the woman looked up startled. “Shit, I gotta go. Hey, see ya after the concert? If you like the Rockits I can recommend some other bands for ya over coffee or something.”
“That’s a big if.” Elsa smiled, amused as she watched her squirm under her gaze.
“A very big, hopeful if!” The woman tried to play it off, but by now Elsa was starting to recognize her little quirks. It was nice, to know such an expressive person. Most of her emotions were just there for her to see and it helped her get comfortable sharing her own.
Actually, now that she thought about it she really liked her. No where near love, but enough that she wanted to see how it would develop. Enough that she decided to do something crazy.
For the first time in her life Elsa decided to take a chance, “Sure.”
“Really?” The words came out almost at the same time as the woman stumbled, surprise clear on her face.
“Going on a date with a stranger seems par the course tonight.” Elsa tried to keep still, watching her soon-to-be date get pulled along. She had almost been ready to turn and head to the seats when she heard the woman’s voice loud and clear over the crowd.
“Anna.”
Elsa turned her head, catching Anna standing on something so she was a bit over the crowd.“What?!”
“My name, Blue! Now you’re the stranger and par for my course! Meet me at the Rockit! merch table after the concert!”
“Will do!” Elsa laughed, rolling her eyes as Anna whooped loudly, jumping off back into the crowd.
The seating was close, but she tolerated it. She was roughly in the middle of the mob, well away from this caged area in the front and able to see most of the audience from where she sat. It took her longer than she thought to find her father in the caged off VIP section, but he had texted her quickly before the lights started to dim.
According to what she remembered the first opening act was that Rockit! band. She didn’t know them from Adam, but seeing as Anna worked for them she was willing to give a loud cheer when they were announced.
In the dark she smiled, feeling the energy that started to pour into the crowd in the form of excitement and cheers. The band slowly filtered out, lugging their instruments or walking to them in the case of the drummer. The smallest person walked right up to the microphone, looking back before they tapped it twice.
Elsa’s mouth dropped when she heard the voice, recognizing it instantly.
“This song is for a blue-eyed first timer popping her concert cherry tonight. Let’s give a warm applause for the stranger, Blue.” The smile that spread across Anna’s face could only be described as wicked.