Old Cassettes and Cigarettes

“Today will be mostly sunny with a high of 79 today in gorgeous Pomona, California. So get out those shorts and sunglasses and enjoy the beautiful day today, guys.”

The tiny battery-powered radio sitting on the ground uttered the muffled weather report. It was pretty early in the morning and everyone that was walking around the first venue of the tour was tired and blurry-eyed.

Avery huffed out a breath of hot air as she dropped the last cardboard box on one of the card tables. Bright yellows, greens, and blues bounced off the reflective surface of her sunglasses. Avery plucked one of her favorite FTSK shirts out of the box and pinned it up on the back wall of the merch tent.

She took a step back and smiled, then reached in the back pocket of her shorts for her cell phone. She glanced at the blank screen and frowned. It was only seven o’clock. She took the sunglasses off of her face and placed them on top of her head before she turned around and put on her best smile.

Kevin, the guys’ good friend and regular merch guy, walked over to the tent, hopped up on the card table next to the box Avery brought in, and started sorting through the brightly colored shirts.

“So, you‘re helping me out today, right best friend in the whole entire world?” Kevin asked. He squeezed his eyes shut as he crossed his fingers and smiled in Avery’s direction.

“Kev, you‘re kidding right?”

Avery stepped outside the shade of the merch tent and put her hands on her hips. The radio began going crazy as it was overcome by a bunch of static and she bent down to turn it off. Kevin’s smile faded and he scowled at Avery. He began unpacking the rest of the shirts and supplies he needed for the rest of the day.

She didn’t want to be cooped up in the merch tent all day. It was the very first day of Warped Tour and Avery was itching to look around and see who all was there that day instead of selling t-shirts and CDs. Everyone would be in warm, sunny California for three days and she was excited to get things on a roll. Even though she wasn’t a member of a band, she still got the rush from being on the road.

It was exciting to be able to travel all across the country in three months pretty much for free. She got to see every corner of the United States and do it all with her best friends and it was one of the best feelings and experiences in the world.

Avery started walking away from the merch tent and towards the giant blow-up schedule for the day. Forever the Sickest Kids weren’t going on until 2, so she had a couple of hours to kill and a few bands she wanted to see before then. She was about to take a snapshot of the schedule with her phone when it began to vibrate and ring loudly.

Austin

Avery grumbled to herself before she answered the call.

“Soooo, where are you my love bug?! I need to see you ASAP,” Austin said loudly into the phone. Avery smiled a little.

“I am looking at the schedule,” she explained, looking all around to see if she could spot him.

“Eh, that‘s too far for me to walk right now,” Austin said lightly. “But I need to tell you that I have finally found out a way to get revenge and get my scooter back!”

“Oh do tell,” Avery said excitedly, her mood picking up a little more.

Notes