Boring Girls(33)

“We’re Catastrophic Enzyme,” he growled. “Fuck you!”

The band launched into their first song, and the crowd started swelling and moving. It became a mass of pushing and flying hair as everyone whipped their heads around. Stunned, I almost lost my footing. Edgar grabbed my arm to help me regain my balance. I looked for Fern. She was right beside me, and when she saw me looking at her, she smiled.

A few songs in, the crowd lost its enthusiasm. The band wasn’t very good, even I could tell. People still cheered and a few heads whipped long hair around, but things definitely quieted down. The singer from the band harassed the crowd between songs, which got a bit of reaction, but the songs all sounded the same. I couldn’t make out any of the lyrics, and no one else seemed to know them either. I began to get bored.

After a while their set ended with the singer reminding us that Surgical Carnage was next, and the shrieked response from the crowd was deafening. All three members of Catastrophic Enzyme gave the crowd the finger as they left the stage.

A few guys came out and started taking away the band’s gear, and the overhead music started playing again. I had to pee, so Fern and I went to the bathroom together.

We washed our hands in two side-by-side sinks. The counter was crowded with girls fixing their makeup and chatting, and we took out our lipsticks to reapply them as well.

“So what’s up with you and Craig?” Fern asked.

“Honestly? He’s an *. I know he’s a friend of yours, but I can’t stand him.”

“How come?”

I shrugged. “I tried to say hi to him one time, and he totally blew me off. He was really rude.”

Fern was quiet for a minute, dabbing powder onto her nose. “Yeah, he’s a bit weird.”

“I wouldn’t say weird. I’d say *,” I said. It sounded pretty arrogant, and I glanced sideways at Fern, hoping I hadn’t offended her, but she was nodding.

“Well, f*ck him if he was rude to you.”

xXx

We went back out and found the others. More people had packed in front of the stage, and it was pretty much shoulder-to-shoulder. I could feel the impatience and anticipation coming from the crowd, and it made me jittery. I was annoyed that my view of the stage was blocked by people’s stupid heads, but I was glad I’d worn the high heels. They raised me up a little bit, even though my feet were getting a little sore.

When Surgical Carnage took the stage, the crowd went insane. The singer didn’t even bother making an introduction, and they launched into their set.

My face immediately smashed up against the sweaty back of the moron in front of me and I lost my footing, but the pressure from behind and front kept me upright. I lifted my face away, gagging at the stench of the guy’s sweat, and opened my mouth to gasp for air. Immediately I got a mouthful of the guy’s disgusting hair, and I choked. It was absolutely disgusting. I felt panic rise up my throat as I gagged, struggling to breathe.

I felt arms close around me and pull me back. Thank god for Edgar. “Are you okay?” he yelled into my face.

“Yeah.”

Yvonne pressed her face towards me. “I’m moving to the back. I’ll meet you guys after.” With that, I watched her turn and disappear into the crowd.

With Edgar doing his best to shield me, I was able to catch glimpses of the stage through the bouncing, rioting crowd. The band looked great. They all threw their heads around in unison, and the singer bellowed and growled through a veil of hair. It was deafeningly loud. I turned to look at Fern. She had one arm braced against the guy in front of her to keep his sweaty back away, pushing him aggressively. Her other hand reached up in the air, fist clenched. Her mouth was wide open in a snarl. She looked amazing. Craig stood behind her in the same way Edgar was behind me, whipping his hair around. Sometimes it would hit Fern, but she didn’t seem to mind it. I was grateful Edgar wasn’t moving his head. He had long dreadlocks and I imagined that it would suck getting one in the eye.

By the second song, a mosh pit formed in the crowd ahead of us. I watched people move through it, smashing into each other. “Hey,” I shouted, grabbing Fern’s arm. “Want to go up there?”

She nodded, her eyes shining. We linked arms and pushed through the crowd. Edgar and Craig followed. It was strange, because to get through the crowd, we had to shove people hard and elbow them aggressively, and no one seemed to mind. It was a very powerful feeling.

“Fuck, Rachel, be careful,” Edgar yelled into my ear, making me pull back at the volume of his voice.