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From the moment the ice hit her oblivious ass, Kristi launched upright, executed a clumsy pirouette and glared at the man standing behind her. His jaw slack and a horrified expression on his face, Mark gesticulated wildly in a poor attempt to mime the tragedy. The deafening music left little room for an auditory explanation. This unique circumstance led to an unexpected resolution.
"Lunachicks" were touring, promoting their "Babysitter on Acid" CD. As a Deejay for a campus/community radio station, Mark picked up free tickets for the show. New to the city he went alone.
The all-girl-band was electrifying. There was a multitude of bodies jostling and pressing against each other; crammed to the rafters, it was a cyclone of dancing and moshing. Barmaids never made it to the darkened recesses of the bar. The going was laborious and not without danger. Slipping on a beer soaked floor would not be amusing.
The volume was deafening and Mark stuffed a small tear of toilet paper in his ears; it filtered out the distortion. Useful if you wanted to maintain an auditory capacity late into life.
Mark sat on the edge of the stage staring up at the lead guitarist grinding out chords dressed in an outrageous array of colours and fibers. Laughing and grinning, Mark enjoyed himself, the views of the crowd and the band couldn't be better. The sweaty girls dancing front stage, with tight fitting tops and luscious smiles were delicious eye candy.
Hopefully one of these girls is coming home with me tonight
, he thought.
Half way through the show Mark elbowed and pushed his way to the bar for more water, he didn't drink alcohol. There was no defining line-up to the counter; no differentiation between the sweaty people wanting thirst quenching drinks and the crowd socializing or dancing. Waiting for what seemed like an eternity, he finally got his prized glass of ice water. After tipping generously Mark struggled through the masses to find a different vantage point from which to observe the revelers and the band.
Catching himself as he was about to topple over a row of partiers sitting on, what seemed like the dance floor, Mark wobbled and regained his balance. There were two steps on this side that lead to the main dancing area. People were hunkered down all along the stairs catching a moments repose, getting ready to re-enter the mob with hips gyrating and arms flailing.
From the slightly raised vantage-point, he could observe the sea of heads moving in a chaotic thrashing of bodies, attempting to synchronize to the beat of the music. Elevated highballs and beer bottles refracted the light from the lasers and mirror ball; cheers spontaneously erupted every few seconds. Hoots and hollers greeted the ending of every song, maddeningly propelling the crowd to lurch as one towards the stage like a school of fish. The Lunachicks, fully in their element, screamed back, laughing and provoking them, elevating the energy to outrageous levels.
Standing on the top tier, careful to not step on anyone's hands or fingers, Mark stomped and cheered with the rest of them, lost in the pounding rhythm of the music. His hand wrapped around the slippery glass of ice cold water as it seeped and sweat condensation. As he tossed his head to the beat, the glass slid from his hand. And as he snatched and clawed at empty space, the ice and what little water was left, tumbled down to splash on the floor. Miraculously, the glass was prevented from bouncing off unsuspecting heads. However, a few choice cubes of ice lodged themselves in the crack of the girl's jeans sitting directly below.
Rising in one swift explosion of movement and turning to look behind her, was a tall, athletic woman. Standing below him yet looking down into his face, she gave Mark a withering stare. Drawing his head up to meet her eyes, his jaw opened and closed. Sputtering and heaving her chest in his face, she grimaced and screamed at the top of her lungs, "What the fuck was that?"
Mark quickly found his voice again and instantly spurted out "Oh my God, I'm so sorry! I'm such a fucking clutz!"
"Well my ass is wet! And Goddamn that was cold! What the fuck was that? What were you drinking?" As she reached behind and dislodged a fragment of ice.
"Aaggh, I can't believe this is happening," Mark lamely cried out. "It was ice. Just water -- the glass just slipped out of my hand! I swear it was an accident! I didn't do it on purpose!" Unable to contain a smirk, Mark had to look away.
"Ya, well fuck that was cold!"
Cringing Mark said, "I know, I know, I'm just really sorry ok? Let me buy you a drink -- what kind of beer is that?"
She had a partially finished beer in her hand and simply turned the label towards Mark. He yelled, "I'll be right back. I'm really sorry."
As he turned around she nudged him in the ribs and screaming in his face said, "It's not that bad! I'm not that wet. It was just such a fucking shock to feel ice cold -
something
- go down the crack of my ass!"
Laughing, she winked as Mark made his way to the bar. A few minutes later, they sat together on the step and clinked drinks as they whooped and danced.
As the Lunachicks said their adieu's and the crowd started thinning out, Mark asked, "What's your name?"
"I'm Kristi," she said, now that they could actually hear what the other was saying, voices dry and raspy. "Nice to meet you
despite
the circumstances!"
They both laughed, Mark looking down, kicking at the floor. They headed towards the exit agreeing that the Lunachicks had put on a fantastic show and the crowd, though rowdy had been great.
Once outside Kristi met up with her two sisters. They had gone their separate ways once inside and were now getting in her car. Mark grinned as Kristi headed towards them and said, "So where's the party?" His voice sounded hushed in the cold night air.