Overgrown
A Flash Fiction by Coralie
Inktober Day 14: Overgrown
“Well, if the overgrown, boar of a man would get out of the way I would bother to see!” I grumbled, throwing my hands out despite the crowd of bodies pressing in on us.
“Shh!” Sally hissed, casting a weary glance toward the giant figure hulking in front of us. “He’ll hear you.”
“And if he does?!” I growled, pushing past another couple who tried to squeeze between me and Sally. “Maybe the big bear can be bothered to move.”
“Manny, stop!” she begged. She turned her pleading blue eyes on me and I felt my grumble soften in my throat.
“Fine. Whatever.”
We avoided as many of the people streaming between us as we could and followed the crowd, pressing in closer to the stage. We were still too far away to see anything meaningful. This wasn’t exactly the experience I’d hoped for when I’d asked Sally to the concert last month. I’d been planning this for ages and now everything was going out the window because Andre the Giant over there just had to beat us through the ticket line by two people. I fingered the cool metal ring in the pocket of my hoodie and scowled.
“You’re stewing.” Sally’s laughter tinkled in my ear. She nudged my side and I crossed my arms.
“Am not,” I muttered. I looked away.
“Are too,” she giggled, wrapping her arms around me from behind. Then she whispered, “Your nose always wrinkles when you don’t get your way.”
My nose twitched and I sniffed. “Yeah, well, maybe I’m catching a cold.” But even I could hear the weak tone in my voice. She set her chin in the dip of my shoulder and I sighed.
“I just wanted…” I ran a hand through my hair. Tonight was supposed to be special.
“I know.” She squeezed me once before letting go and ducking under my arm to face me. She snuggled into my side and wrapped her arm around my back. “It’s perfect. I’m happy just to spend time with you, Manny. Really.”
The first thrums of guitars filled the air, quickly drowned out by the roar of the crowd, as the band filled out the stage.
Despite the Mountain jumping up and down like an overexcited toddler in front of us, I felt my heart lighten. I looked over at Sally and she grinned up at me before turning back to the band and loosing an ear-splitting whistle.
Maybe we didn’t need to see her favorite band. She knew all the words anyway. Shoot, by now I knew all the words. At least she could hear them.
I let out a holler beside her when the first set finished, but the light feeling in my chest dropped to the pit of my stomach when Goliath turned around and made direct eye contact with me. He frowned and then moved toward us. I tensed.
Sally shifted beneath my arm. I quickly moved her behind me and shifted my weight. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut like she said. A trip to the ER was really not what I’d planned for tonight.
The Hulk stopped right in front of us. Sally was a short girl, even by my standards. But this guy made melook like Vincini.
Sally’s small hand knotted the back of my hoodie into a fist. I felt her tug gently, but it was too late to bolt.
“Can I help you?” I asked, eyeing the man wearily.
He looked back and forth between me and Sally, considering something. He nodded to her, but looked right at me. “You two big fans?” His voice could have shook the earth.
A man of few words, but straight to the point. Behind me, I felt Sally nod. “Course,” she answered before I could. I felt her shrug, “Who wouldn’t be? I mean they’re only the most classic rock band in history.”
He glanced back at the stage. “I heard you singin’.”
Yeah, buddy, along with everyone else in the field. I rolled my eyes, but Sally’s gentle tug kept me from opening my mouth.
Sally stood on her tip toes and set her chin in my shoulder again. I could practically hear her grin when she spoke. “Manny got tickets and we decided to make a night of it. I’ve loved these guys since I was a kid.”
He considered something, then nodded. “Wanna get closer?”
My brows rose. “What?” I asked. Sally sucked in a breath.
“Wanna get closer?” he asked again, staring at me as if I were dimwitted.
I tilted my head and looked around him, then pointed. “Dude, there’s a hundred screaming fans between us and the stage.”
Then that overgrown man cracked a wide-toothed smile and let out the deepest belly laugh I’d ever heard. His eyes crinkled at the edges and he waved a hand, turning back into the crowd.
“Stick close to me,” He said. “Come on.”
Sally squealed and practically dragged me after him. Dude was quick on his feet. We pushed through a few people to catch up, but once we did, he basically parted the waters for us. People practically fell out of his path, though he was always careful to apologize when he accidentally bumped into someone. I squinted up at him as Sally tugged on my hand. But before I realized it, we were three rows back from the stage.
“Manny!” Sally squealed and jumped up and down. The Iron Giant grinned down at her, then looked over her head at me and mouthed something. I stared at him dumbfounded, but scrambled to help when he picked her up from his side. We set her between us and lifted her up until the bass guitar threw out a rose to her.
I don’t think Sally ever thought twice about him, but I could hardly focus on the band through the night. When the concert ended, we parted ways, but I never forgot the towering man. Sally always said he was the reason I forgot to propose until the next day. Me and my big mouth. When I picked her up for coffee the next morning, I reached into my hoodie pocket for my wallet and spilled the secret before I’d realized what I’d said.
Just goes to show. Life doesn’t always go as planned. But…sometimes, it’s more memorable that way.