Heart Attack

It was like that song that I couldn’t get out of my head a couple summers ago…”Fell in love with the girl at the rock show..” Well, except that it was a guy..and I’m the girl.. We met when our bands played the warped tour. My band, Precious Stone, had already played, and his band, Hi Mom, was waiting around for their turn. I was looking forward to seeing them, because I had heard that their live show was really good.

I was hanging out back stage, looking for my band mates so we could get something to eat, when he was suddenly standing in front of me.

“I really liked your show,” he said. He looked a little nervous, and I wasn’t sure why. Maybe because his show was coming up.

“Thanks,” I said, and smiled. “I didn’t think it went that great, but it was okay.” I shrugged, and suddenly noticed how amazing he smelled. Is there any appropriate time to ask a guy what cologne he’s wearing? Suddenly, I felt a little awkward. Why is it that a good cologne means an instant attraction for me? I’m in a band, I hang out with other bands, but as soon as I talk to a “rock star”, I turn into a silly fan girl.

Then it was as if I was looking at him for the first time. He was kind of short for a guy, but then I’m really short for a girl, so that is kind of nice. He had short spiky hair that was dark brown. He was wearing a Dead Kennedys t-shirt, and – oh my god, he’s wearing eyeliner… His eyes were the coolest part about him, they were that color that looks green one minute and blue the next.

“No, it was really good. I like that guitar solo that you did in “Did you Know”. That’s different than on your EP wasn’t it?” he asked.

“Yeah, I like to change stuff for the live shows sometimes. Plus the one I did on the EP is really hard to play live.” Why was I having such a hard time talking to him?

“Are you hungry?” he asked. “I have like 2 hours till my show, and I should eat something. There’s a diner down the street, do you wanna go?”

“Yeah, I’m hungry.” I replied. “A diner sounds good.”

He smiled, and I melted inside. Oh boy..what is wrong with me? I made a decision a long time ago not to fall in love with a rock star, especially one that I am on tour with. It brings on way too many complications, and being on tour is complicated enough.

When we got to the diner, we sat down at a booth in the back, and we started having this great conversation. Soon I was very comfortable talking to him, but I never forgot that initial attraction. We both ordered a turkey sandwich and a coke, which we tried not to feel awkward about. It’s weird when you order the same thing, and suddenly it started feeling like a date.

We talked about a lot of things, like guitar stuff and being on tour. We both missed home, but we loved touring. It’s a strange thing, doing something that you absolutely love, but being miserable sometimes having to be away from home so much. There’s nothing like the Warped Tour, though, and a lot of people will agree.

At some point, I noticed that our feet were touching under the table. I moved my foot over, wanting to give him more room, but eventually our feet were touching again. I looked at him, and he was looking right back at me. We locked eyes, and I lost all sense of anything else in the world. We were playing footsie! It’s so corny and stupid, but I didn’t care.

When the waitress came over with our check, I cursed her in my head because it broke our concentration. I was falling for this guy really fast, and somewhere in my head I was thinking that this was not a good idea. But that’s such a tiny voice in your head, and sometimes your heart beats so loudly that it drowns out the voice of reason.

I didn’t let him pay for my meal, because that would have been too weird. I let him leave the tip, though, and I was happy to see that he was left a decent tip. Sometimes the smallest things make a big difference.

We walked out of the diner, and suddenly he was holding my hand. I turned to look at him, and he was smiling back at me, the cutest and most evil smile I have ever seen. Oh, this is so bad…
We walked down the street like we had known each other for years. It’s funny how sharing a cup of coffee and a good conversation can make you really comfortable with someone.

As we got nearer to the venue, we started walking more slowly. It was like we knew that we would be back to reality, where we weren’t supposed to be holding hands and looking into each other’s eyes. It’s like an unspoken rule that bands on tour don’t date. Invariably, it happens, but it’s not a good idea.

About two blocks away from the venue, he suddenly pulled me to the side, toward an alley. I started to ask what he was doing, but I couldn’t find the words. We were standing really close, and he put his arms around me. Before I knew what was happening, he was kissing me. I could taste the coffee that he had just finished, and I could smell his cologne, and I was in heaven. We kissed for what seems like forever and an instant at the same time. I remember his hand on the side of my face, in my hair, on my neck. I realized I was holding my breath, and I sighed into his mouth. Somewhere in the distance, a band was playing “Kiss me Deadly” by Generation X, and it was the perfect moment.

I couldn’t tell you in detail what happened after that kiss, because frankly it’s not that important. What I do remember is that we went back to the venue, and tried to act like nothing had happened. Tried to act like we weren’t just itching to find some dark corner to have another moment of innocent passion together. We hung out back stage with a bunch of guys, and every once in a while, he would tap my foot with his foot when no one was looking. I kept trying not to blush, and I don’t know if it was working.

When it was time for Hi Mom to go on stage, I went out front near the pit to see the show. They played my favorite song “Falling”, so I was really happy. When he introduced the song “Heart Attack”, he said, “This is for a girl,” and they played the song. Hmm..for a girl? Ha ha..try not to blush when a rock star dedicates a song to you. It’s impossible!