King of the Party

This is a short prequel of How to Date A Better Woman, though that story doesn't need to be read to understand this one. This story stars Miguel and it takes place many years before he meets Savannah. Not much sexual content here. All characters are over 18 years of age.

The car rumbled along the dirt road, heading straight for the open-air concert. In the rearview mirror, the dust cloud billowed into the air. Goosebumps pricked up on my arms as the dark mass of the concert's audience grew closer.

I played no music in the car. Maybe the interior silence made my anxiety go up, but I kept it that way to be in tune with my environment.

No one in my life except for my best friend Mike knew that this would be my first concert. I'd make sure it remained that way. The green grass whisked by the window as I closed the distance with the crowd. Several of them had their shirts off, and the sight had my heart pounding.

This was realer than any party I'd been to before. There were probably drugs, vomit, and other crazy things involved. Deciding to get a taste of the action, I rolled down my window. The scent of dust flowed in, kicked up by my tires.

The music bellowed from the stage. The band was one I didn't know well; this concert had just been recommended to me earlier today. I parked next to another car, my heart thudding hard. For a few seconds I imagined this car getting stolen. It was a rental. Things would get complicated if it got stolen.

The mass of sweaty, crowded people had me excited and nervous. I rolled up my window and took a deep breath. This was worth it, whatever happened. The excitement seeped into my blood as I opened the door. And once my feet touched the grass and my nose inhaled the smells of alcohol, I felt myself transform.

For years, it had been the same. On many Saturdays, while kids played outside, I was stuck in my room while the stereo blazed. But now I stepped into the crowd for a concert that felt unmistakably adult. Several yards away, a mob of people rocked a car back and forth. They yelled and screamed. In any other context I would've been scared but today the sight thrilled me.

I moved through the crowd, getting closer to the stage. A scuffle nearby got my attention. A guy darted between several parked cars, wearing no shirt. He gripped something in his hand, maybe a hat, dashing in my direction. At least eight security guards chased him, all sprinting in a single file line between the cars. My eyes gaped at the sight. What had he done? Why did they need several guards to take him down?

The guy broke out into the open but was tackled right away. Yellow dust rose up from the struggle on the ground. My breathing became shallow as excitement flooded me. I couldn't help but tremble. That was the sort of thing I only saw in movies. Seeing it here felt surreal. Mike would probably have found the whole thing hilarious.

I continued moving toward the stage. The music became louder. Then I recalled my goals for this party. I had to get a girl's number, at least one. One would be enough. If a girl kissed me or did anything more, that would be even better. A bonus.

I had the misfortune of being a twenty year old virgin. Maybe it was due to me being sheltered, maybe it was because the community college didn't offer many opportunities, or maybe it was because of something else. Who knew? Either way, just a single girl's number would get me a step closer to changing that.

But to gain a number, I had to talk to girls. That would be a challenge. Looking around, many girls milled around in the crowd. A lot of them were hot, while others weren't my type. Some of them stood alone while others had groups of guys around them. I'd need to go for one who was alone, though that thought made me feel like some kind of pervert.

However, one particular girl caught my eye. She sat on the hood of a dark car, a dyed streak in her hair. She was tall, but not too tall. She talked to a guy sitting on the hood of the car with her. And this guy looked like he ate nails for breakfast. With a square jaw and a black beard, he was at least twice my size. The girl smiled at him in a way that made my heart pang. On a normal day, I would've avoided these two. She was occupied.

But today, the rock music infected me with a stupid confidence. I passed by them. The guy didn't notice, but the girl's eyes flickered to me. I smiled at her and leaned in their direction. The girl narrowed her eyes at me, staring at me like scum beneath her shoe.

Well, she certainly wasn't giving me her number.

My cheeks burned and I turned away, passing another parked car. But out of the corner of my eye I saw his eyes on me. The guy with the build of a marine looked at me, and I could've sworn he raised an eyebrow.

Avoiding eye contact, I moved on.

Pushing through the crowd, I remained far from the stage, but it had grown a little closer. I decided to talk to a guy, but an exciting part of the song came on so I started moving in response. It became easy to join the crowd, jumping and singing along with them. The song flowed through me, driving me buck wild.

The song calmed down and so did the people around me. I stopped moving and took a deep breath before someone noticed me looking crazy. People talked around me, raising their voices to be heard. Bits of conversation stood out to me but my frazzled mind couldn't connect any of it. I wanted to join in but no words came for me to say.

I hated being such a wallflower. If not for that I'd be able to join these conversations with no effort. My heart felt heavy. Then Mike's voice sounded in my head. Go for it. With a gulp, I tapped the shoulder of some guy wearing a bandana. He spun around.

I summoned all the courage I could. "What's up?"

The guy brought his palm up to his ear. "What?" he asked.

Frustration came on me. I raised my voice, probably sounding like some kid. "What's up? Are you a fan?" I asked. Maybe it had been a stupid mistake to come here. Trying to force myself into a situation like this was foolish.

But the guy answered me. "Oh yeah!" he said, smiling. "What's up? You a fan too?"

I nodded, even though I barely knew the band. The guy said something I couldn't hear, but based on his tone he seemed to approve. Then he said, "I didn't catch your name!"

"Miguel!" I yelled. He said his own name but I couldn't hear it.

Before I could ask him to repeat himself the song changed and bandana man jumped with excitement. "Conga line, let's go!" he yelled. Other people around us yelled incomprehensible things.

Charged up with their energy, I began to feel like I belonged. Some girls came in as well, joining the guys as we formed a conga line. Bandana man put his hands on my shoulders and I put my hands on another guy's shoulders. My chest swelled as we danced forward in the conga line. Dust kicked up. I stayed quiet as they sang along, taking in the moment. The rolling base of the music reverberated through my ribs.

The hands gripped my shoulders tighter, increasing my pride. This was awesome! The conga line swept me along and we snaked through the crowd. This had been worth it. My whole life, including all my one-sided crushes, had led up to this moment. Yells sailed through the crowd, and the thrills rose into my throat. I sang along, knowing no one would hear me over all the noise if my voice was embarrassing.

People fell down on the ground several feet behind me. Dusty shoes trampled over them. They were just people being silly.

Yells became more aggressive. The sounds came closer. Behind me. People broke off of the conga line. It fell apart. I turned back once the yell sliced through the air. "Motherfucker!"

A fist cracked me across the cheek. Pain exploded in my face and I stumbled, losing my balance. The sandy ground flew up to slam me in the face. The music became muffled and my vision filled with a tangle of legs. Then large arms pressed on me, mashing me into the ground. One look at his face was enough to understand.

It was him. The marine looking guy I had briefly seen on the hood of the car held me down. He raised his fist and punched my ribs. Two other men stood on either side of him, watching him with crossed arms and satisfied approval. Then his arm pressed on my throat. "You think you're funny, fuck-nuts?"

I opened my mouth to say something but he pressed his jacked arm harder into my neck. My struggles didn't budge him. My mind spun. In seconds, the guy backed off. I stayed on the ground, catching my breath. What the fuck just happened? What was wrong with him? My chest hurt and I tasted blood. The jerk pointed a finger at me and laughed, but the laugh didn't come to my ears. He and his goons turned away.

No one came to help me to my feet. A forest of legs surrounded me. All were indifferent as I lay gasping for breath.

Through the forest of legs I glimpsed the jerk again. The girl with dyed hair stormed up to him. He spread his arms in front of her and shook his head in confusion. She shoved him before stomping away. More people got in my line of sight and the two vanished. I pushed myself to my feet. I rubbed dust out of my hair.

Seeing an opening in the crowd, I made for it. I sat myself down against a white van. Upon checking myself for injuries, I found only a couple of bruises. But my cheek throbbed in pain. My lip quivered. Hopefully that guy didn't come back.

The sun set on my battered form being slumped against the van. As I sat there and mentally pieced things together, the pain in the side of my face began to ebb away.

That guy had come after me for daring to look at his girlfriend. I wished Mike was here. He would've distracted me from how dumb my ideas had been. Heck, if he was here we would've stopped this from happening in the first place.

Together, we could do anything.

The concert raged on, indifferent to my solitary mistakes. The night was cold. Wind tousled my hair and made me shiver. I didn't cry, but shame gripped my heart.

"How's everyone doing tonight?" one of the musicians bellowed into the mic.

The crowd roared. I sat there, feeling defeated. Maybe it was time to go home. This concert had been expensive, but there was no use staying here. People like me didn't come to these things. God had spoken. People like me didn't belong here. I didn't know what to tell Mike once he asked me about tonight. The prospect of that conversation made me slightly nauseous.

I wanted to move soon. Just a few more minutes of rest, then I'd get up and figure out my next move. The lights on the stage came on. The crowd screeched in excitement as the next stage of the night began. The wind changed. The air carried the familiar scent of weed. I'd never had it, but the smell was distinct. Something about the wind opened up my lungs. My mind kept slipping back to Mike.

The faces of the girls I'd seen today blurred together. The light illuminated the figure who came in my direction. I turned. It was her. My eyes widened and my fingers trembled at the sight of her. The yellow dye streaked through her hair. Maybe she was passing through.

Her eyes. They glared right at me. I paled. She came toward me alone, but there was no doubt one shout from her would bring that jerk back. My ribs were sore. I was far from ready for another beatdown. As she strode closer I made to scramble away.

"No," I whispered to no one in particular. "No, no, no..."

She stood over me. Her shorts exposed her long, bare legs. I didn't dare make eye contact. But when she spoke, her words came out in a hoarse yet gentle voice. "Hey, you."

Looking up, I found her eyes not glaring at all. They seemed almost... soft. She beckoned with her finger and I stood, leaning against the van. This girl wasn't as tall as I'd assumed. In fact, she was a little shorter than me. She stood to my side, leaning against the vehicle with me. She wore a white, shimmering necklace with smooth beads that would've been nice to hold. Of course, I didn't do something as stupid as reach for her necklace.

"This your van?" she asked.

I shook my head, not having the heart to talk to her. She tapped the glass of the van's window. "You're sure acting like it's yours."

"It's not..." I said, noticing how much she focused on me. It made me nervous. My mind focused on the moment, realizing the opportunity I had.

"You alright?" she asked. I considered asking for her number. No. That would've been a big mistake. She was off limits even though she was the first girl to talk to me tonight.

"Yeah," I said, standing a little taller so as not to look as pathetic as usual. "I'm fine."

"Don't worry about that dumbass," she said, making me feel warm inside. "You been a fan?"

The lie came to my lips, then stayed back. "No," I said, too weak to lie. "To tell you the truth, I barely know this band. I just wanted to see a concert. Maybe..."

She glanced away. "Maybe what?" she asked, sliding her hand toward me.

"Maybe... I could've met some new people."

The woman looked back at me and smiled. "Night's not over yet," she said. "Besides, you seem like a nice guy."

That might as well have been a kick in the gut. Nice guy. Everyone knew what that meant. "Yeah..." I said, looking away from her eyes.

Then her cold but soft hand was on my cheek. The pain had gone away by now, but when she touched my face it felt like the pain had never existed in the first place. My eyes darted to her own. Her brown-eyed gaze was warm. Inviting. Her grin seemed playful. "I told you, don't worry about my brother."

"Your brother?" I asked, tingles emerging all over my skin.

She nodded. "He thinks he's tough. Like he's standing up for my honor or some jazz."

So that guy hadn't been her boyfriend. I forced a light chuckle, then shut it down. It wasn't my place to laugh at her brother. Then a witty line made it through my relief.

"He seemed tough to me," I said.

She laughed. I basked in the glory of actually making a girl laugh. Before I could think of any witty lines she pressed her lips to mine and kissed me. My mind screamed in shock. So this was what a kiss felt like. If anyone had told me this morning that I'd kiss a woman today, I wouldn't have believed it. Even if an oracle told me it would happen it still would've been unbelievable.

The woman held my shoulder. She kept kissing me, her eyes closed. My entire body froze except my lips. Not an expert at kissing, I kissed the way so many pornstars had kissed on my computer screen. She hesitated, but didn't push me away or anything, so I must've done it right. The kiss went on and on. It matched the music rhythm.

This woman carried my darned soul from my body. My arms unfroze and dared to wrap around her. She didn't break away from me or even flinch from my touch. I could keep going. It was safe. I hugged her while she hugged me. My back hit the van. Her hands calmed me, tight but gentle as they held onto me.

She drew away. Her eyelids opened halfway, with a lazy sexiness to her. The woman's hand touched my cheek again as my heart hammered with excitement. Then the song changed. Something about the beginning notes awakened me. My blood ran wild as I held eye contact with this beautiful woman. She took her hand from my cheek and brushed a hand through her hair.

"Shortest kiss I've had in a while," she said.

Shortest? That kiss felt like it lasted twenty minutes.

"You'll find someone," she said, her smile still gentle. "Someone nice."

She was so hot. Her being so close, necklace and smile and all, had my mind in a tailspin. The kiss had been legendary. Now I felt like I could do anything. What opportunities lay in the crowd close to the stage? I turned and headed away from the hot girl, heading into the crush of people.

I made my way through the crowd, ducking and weaving between bodies. The bright yellow and white stage lights were beacons for me. I plunged through people, dancing to the music. My foot became wet as it stepped into a puddle. I didn't care. Someone's body shoved into mine. It didn't stop me.

The music picked up. My heart pounded as the stage loomed closer. Yesterday I was a kid who stayed in his room on Saturdays and let the stereo blaze. A loser. Tonight, I had become something different. A girl had kissed me, dammit. I shoved my way between people and ended up jumping up and down with people in a mosh pit. People shoved me with their hands but this time I shoved them back.

We screamed, cheered, sang, and jumped. A hand touched my ass. A drink was thrown over my head. My eye caught someone whipping their shirt back and forth.

Time to do the same. Grabbing my shirt's hem, I pulled my shirt off over my head while still jumping. I whooped like a madman, losing myself to the energy of the party and spinning the shirt over my head.

I lost my grip on my shirt and it went sailing off into the crowd. Oh well. I kept dancing. The band was only yards away. The lights bathed my scrawny and shirtless body along with everyone else.

Several people, some without shirts, danced on stage alongside the performers. Yesterday, I wouldn't have had the guts. But tonight as the lights flashed and the speakers blasted, I wondered why I wasn't on stage.

"Come on! Come on! Come on!" one of the performers yelled to us. In seconds, I clambered onto stage and danced with everyone else. Several people whooped and cheered at me as I jagged into the crowd.

I couldn't even hear my own voice. It didn't matter. Someone put their arm around me and I jumped with them, the floor sticky beneath my shoes. The triumph carried me through. This should've been embarrassing for me but the action, lights, and song blew away any self-consciousness. It didn't hurt that a girl had kissed me tonight.

The crowd in front of the stage spread out before me. The sea of people, arms in the air, had me staring wide-eyed. They all saw my scrawny, shirtless figure. I wondered what Mike would say. Was the woman still here? I smiled wide, taking in everyone's energy.

I threw my arms into the air and howled. "Yeeeaaaaah! Let's fucking go!"

Before even thinking it over I threw myself onto the crowd. Their hands propped me up and they passed me over them. And I fucking crowd surfed. The yellow and white lights presented me to the night sky as the crowd carried me. The hands of girls and guys alike brought me along, cheering and groping me with wild abandon. I laid my head back, floating on the crowd like I was in heaven. Getting a woman's number didn't have to happen. My expectations had already been exceeded.

This must've been what it felt like to become a party animal.