"So here's the plan, Tally," Rei said. "After the show, you can run interference with the boy while I try to get my mack on with the ginger hottie."
At least she had a plan. All I had was an objective.
When Rei had invited me out to this concert, I'd thought for sure that it would be the next stage of my whole "broaden my sexual horizons" initiative. What had started with me getting my very first ever vibrator as a gag gift had morphed into something much bigger. Whereas before I'd been a sexually frustrated girl in her mid twenties that was stuck in adolescence, I'd started to open up in new ways, both physically and mentally. That's why, after seeing a picture of the guitar-playing, two-piece musical act we would be seeing tonight, I'd decided that I was going to try to get some actual physical sexual activity with the male half of the group.
Problem was, I had no idea how I was going to do that.
Rei, on the other hand, came prepared. She was a rather voluptuous woman, and proud of it. Tonight, though, she was flaunting her best assets, with a tight skirt and a low cut top that didn't have to work hard to draw people's attention. Whereas I didn't think far enough ahead to dress in anything fancier than a pair of shorts and a Minecraft shirt, her outfit had a purpose. I knew she was hoping in particular to get the attention of Courtney, the red-haired singer of the group. Their music was alright, but Rei's entire motivation for coming to this small, coffee-shop concert was less to do with auditory stimulation and more to do with tactile fun.
Not like I had a better reason to be there.
When Rei had shared the band's Facebook page with me, I'd taken a shine to Dylan, the guitar player, almost immediately. He had the sort of scruffy, scrawny look that I hated myself for being so into. The green eyes you could get almost lost in didn't hurt either. I saw him right after my little excursion into the produce department, and was already in a sexual mood. Seeing him, though, pushed me over the edge. I wanted him. In that moment, when I first read Rei's invitation, I knew that I would have him in some way
There weren't many people in Java Jerry's as we walked in. The duo wasn't exactly rocking Madison Square Garden, so I doubted that many people were here to see them. Instead, there were a few customers milling about the small coffee shop, getting drinks and engulfed in either their phones or laptops. Over in the corner was a small stage, laden with various bits of audio equipment.
And there he was. Dylan.
Truth be told, I didn't really know anything about the guy. I just liked the way he looked, and he seemed to have a decent voice on one of the songs on the band's Facebook page. But I'd built up this moment in my head. Something was going to happen tonight. Between me and him. I was going to assert myself, goddamn it. No more shy Tally who obsessed over the cute guy in IT for three years before he eventually left which resulted in a solid week of crying. That Tally was gone now. This was New Tally. Like New Coke, but hopefully better received.
Oh, and his red-headed band mate was up on stage as well. Hopefully they didn't have a thing going.
I tapped Rei on the shoulder. "There they are."
"Excellent," she said. "Let's find us a seat. You know, something not too conspicuous, but where she can still notice me."
"If you say so," I said, shrugging.
"Like I said, a plan," she replied. We ordered some drinks, a coffee for her and a bottle of water for me, and sat down at one of the tables. On stage, the duo were tuning their instruments. I looked over at Rei, who had her eyes fixed straight on Courtney. There was something to admire about that level of directness.
The red-headed object of my friend's affection tapped on her microphone. "Hi, out there. I'm Courtney, and this is Dylan, and we're Social Stigma." Her voice reverberated throughout the establishment. A few people turned to look, curious about what was going on. "We're gonna play some of our songs for you tonight, and I hope you dig 'em."
With a rhythm count, they began to play.
It was a fairly decent show. They were the sort of folksy act that there seemed to be a million of these days, all of them fighting for the chance to be featured as the song over the closing montage of some earnest TV drama. These two weren't bad though. My attention was mostly focused on Dylan. He did look hot while he played that guitar. While Courtney was clearly the frontman, or frontwoman. Frontperson of the band, Dylan still got a chance to sing every once in a while. When he did, there seemed to be a passion in his voice that I found enthralling. I'd set some ground rules in my head about how far things could go tonight, but, given how physically drawn to him I was, I wouldn't have minded if, say, tomorrow night, even, things went even further.
They played a few songs I recognized from their Facebook page. While the rest of the shop didn't seem to be as into it as Rei and I were, I couldn't imagine anyone having a problem with their abilities. The only hiccup in the show came about during the third song, where Courtney seemed to lose focus for a moment while looking in the direction of Rei and I's table. I happened to notice that, at the same time, Rei was sitting with her legs open in a way that my mother would call "unladylike." Something told me that Rei's skirt and posture had put on their own show for the singer.
Eventually, they finished playing, and Rei began applauding. She was the only person in the room to do so, which made me sort of slink back into my chair a bit. Rei's a great friend, but her boisterousness could unintentionally cause embarrassment to the socially inept like me.
"Alright," she said, turning to me. "I'm going to chat her up. You should go talk to Mr. Guitar. Buy me some time."
"Sure," I responded, and watched her walk away. Courtney, her voice no doubt tired from all the singing, had gone to the counter to get a cup of water. Rei was on the intercept path. I looked back over at the stage and saw Dylan gathering up the various instruments and audio equipment from the show.
Deep breath. It was time to talk to him.
I stood up out of my seat, the scuffing of the chair against the floor making an uncomfortably loud noise as I did so. Okay, Tally. Now was the time. Time to take action. Time to be bold! And fierce! And other adjectives that all the inspirational songs on the radio liked to use.
Oh. He was talking to one of the baristas. I sat back down.
And they were done talking! The barista went back to the counter, and he went back to putting up the equipment from the set. Right now, he was rolling up some microphone cables.
"I'd like him to roll my cables," I thought, before realizing that didn't make any sense.
Hands shaking, I made my approach. My heart was beating at a rate that could not be healthy, but I didn't care. I wanted this. One foot in front of the other, Tally. That's all it takes. Finally, I was standing right next to him, although he was a bit busy setting a guitar in its case.
"Um...hi!" I chirped, sounding a bit less casual than I'd like. He turned to look at me.
"Um...hello."
Friendly enough. Might as well proceed. "So...I really liked your songs. You guys were good. You know, at the singing part."
"Thanks," he said, with a smile. I could see his eyes darting toward the equipment still scattered about. Clearly he hadn't intended for this to be a drawn out process.
"And the other stuff, too. Like, with the guitars and all that," I tried to give a flirty chuckle, but no actual sound came out. It was more like a smile and a sigh. Come on, body. I know you're nervous, but work with me here.
"Well...thanks...again, I suppose," he said. "I'm glad you-"
"AndIthinkyou'recute!" It burst out of me all in one word, interrupting him.
