Inferno Festival Flop

In which the band is at an outdoor festival that appears to be a little less than legitimate, and the extreme temperatures are affecting some of the group.

“Whoa, Jessie, are you alright?” Frankie asked. Jessie glanced up from her daze. It took much more effort than was strictly necessary to focus on him in front of her; the heat from the asphalt was overwhelming.

                “Yeah, I’m good, just a little hot,” Jessie answered. She tried valiantly and in vain to keep the guys from seeing just how awful she felt. The air in the lot was baking and dry, an outdoor oven they were all stuck in for the time being. Kevin couldn’t return quickly enough; he’d left the others moments ago in search of water and the event manager. The summer show consisting of ten local bands had been slated to start two hours ago, and musicians, fans, and roadies alike stood around sweating on each other while they waited for someone to figure out what was going on and create some semblance of a plan.

                Jessie wished desperately for a bench or some shade. Her vision swayed, and the visible waves of heat rising from the pavement weren’t helping. The soles of her feet burned, both from the temperature of the blacktop and the pressure of standing for so long. Her pulse pounded along the right side of her skull, from just above her eye to the back of her head, and her vision and hearing were gradually being replaced with whiteness and rushing, respectively. She exhaled shakily as Kevin returned.

                “Yeah, so the event manager is apparently a no-show; no one here knows where he is and the number on the fliers is out of service, so I don’t think we’ll be going on anytime soon,” Kevin remarked. He glanced back the way he had come, then refocused on the rest of the group. He took one look at Jessie and his tone shifted entirely.

                “Holy crap, are you okay? You look like a steamed lobster,” he said, his voice brimming with concern. Unfortunately, Jessie didn’t hear him; she swayed slightly before she began tipping toward the ground. She’d lost consciousness before her balance had even begun to shift.

                “Uh oh,” Frankie said, shedding the flannel shirt from around his waist. In one swift motion he had it draped across the scorching pavement, and Kevin managed to catch her before she’d fallen very far. He laid her down gingerly and gently placed the back of his fingers on her cheek as he knelt beside her. He turned to Frankie worriedly.

                “Oh my God, dude, she’s burning up,” he fretted. Frankie knelt with him and touched her face for himself.

                “Yeah, she’s really hot. Did you ever end up finding any water when you hiked off?” Frankie asked. Kevin huffed, visibly frustrated.

                “No, none of the vendors showed up either, or so I’m told.” He wiped the sweat from his forehead. “I think this whole thing was a scam to get some fast cash; whoever was in charge knew how to ask people who wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to play a show.”

                “Well if no one’s going to fix this, and it doesn’t look like anyone really can, we may as well get out of here. We’ve got nothing to gain by just sitting here with our thumbs someplace, we’re obviously not going to get to play or get our money back, and Jessie needs help.”

                “You’re right, let’s bail,” Kevin agreed. He scooted his arms beneath Jessie’s knees and her shoulders and gingerly lifted her off the ground while Frankie snatched his shirt from the pavement. They made the long and tedious journey through the annoyed crowd and back to their borrowed pickup full of gear. Frankie unlocked both doors, and as he slid into the driver’s seat, Kevin stepped into the passenger side and cradled Jessie carefully on his lap. The pickup was old, so there was no back seat, but the bench seat that was there provided plenty of room for its three passengers. Frankie started the truck and began the laborious journey through the expansive hillside parking lot. “Where do you think we should go first?” he asked. Kevin hoisted Jessie up a bit further so that her head was resting on his shoulder, rather than just lolling about.

                “Step one is to hit the gas station at the bottom of the hill so we can get some water, step two is to head back East into town. That should give us some time to see if she’ll wake up; if she does, we can bring her back to your guys’ place, and if not, we can keep going and take her to the hospital. I’m not entirely sure what to do with her,” he was thinking aloud. “Do you know if there’s a rag in here?”

                Frankie simply threw his balled-up flannel in Kevin’s general direction. “Use that, I could care if it gets wet. Hang on,” he said. He turned the truck sharply to the right, careening through the field adjacent to the highway, thereby bypassing the growing traffic jam from the exodus of people from the empty lot intended to be the venue. The abrupt detour jostled the passengers, and Kevin clutched Jessie closer to his body to prevent her from smacking into the solid steel of the vehicle. “A little warning might be nice,” he grumbled under his breath.

                “Quit your girly bitching, I just cut half an hour off a trip that should only take five minutes, max,” Frankie retorted, pulling into the gas station parking lot. He threw the truck in park and jumped out, leaving the key in the ignition and the truck running. “Stay here, I’ll be back with water in a sec.” After slamming the door just slightly harder than was strictly necessary, he disappeared into the convenience store adjoining the gas station. Kevin readjusted Jessie on his lap while he waited. He brushed her hair from her face, and his hand came away soaked; he hadn’t realized until then just how hot Jessie was �" she never sweated this much. Supporting her weight with his right arm, he used his left hand to take Frankie’s flannel and gently dry her face. He looked down at her face; it was red with sunburn and still tangibly hot; he could feel heat radiating off her body even if he wasn’t touching her.

                He was startled out of his reverie by a sharp rapping at the window. After he realized it was only Frankie, he cranked the window down.

                “Pass me my shirt, I’ll wet it down out here,” Frankie said as he set the 6-pack of water bottles on the roof of the cab. “I don’t want to try to do it in there, Ed would have my a*s if I spilled in there.” Kevin handed Frankie the flannel through the open window, and Frankie poured half of one water bottle into it. He squeezed it just enough so it wouldn’t drip excessively before folding it into an oblong rectangle and returning it to Kevin, who then proceeded to lay it softly over Jessie’s forehead. He let it rest there for a moment before rubbing it carefully over her face, then folded it over on itself to reveal a cooler side before draping it over the back of her neck. He glanced up at Frankie and was greeted by a bluish bottle an inch from his face. Gatorade.

                “Make her drink this first. Electrolytes, or something. It’s what my mom always had us drink when we were kids,” Frankie said, his tone authoritative. Kevin accepted the bottle from his friend, and as he began unscrewing the lid, Jessie let out a low moan. She tipped her head up slowly and opened her eyes, gradually focusing on Kevin. She glanced around without moving her head before she spoke.

                “Ugh…what happened?” she said, blinking with more effort than was traditionally required. “Where did we go?” Kevin offered her the cool beverage in his left hand.

                “Drink this, and we’ll explain,” he bargained. Jessie took the bottle gingerly and sipped from it slowly. Frankie picked up the six-pack of water bottles off the roof of the cab before walking around the front of the truck and getting back in. As he did, Kevin explained what had happened.

                “I came back from looking for the event manager at the lot and you passed out from the heat. The whole event was a scam, none of the administrative staff even showed up, and the venue manager’s phone number said it was disconnected, so we think that it was all just an elaborate scam to try and con a bunch of bands out of money.”

                “And a colossal dick move,” Frankie interjected, drinking from a water bottle. He leaned on his left arm out the driver’s side window. Kevin chuckled.

                “Yeah, that too. Anyway, once I got back to tell you guys what was what, you passed out. We didn’t see a point in hanging around, so we brought you back to the truck, and subsequently to the gas station so we could get you some water. We’d still be in the parking lot though, if�"”

                “If it weren’t for my genius idea to skip the million-year line out of the lot,” Frankie interrupted.

                “You drove through the field next to it and hopped the curb to get here,” Kevin accused.

                “Hey, we made it here fast didn’t we? And we didn’t even get pulled over; I consider that a win,” Frankie took another drink before looking at Jessie and winking. “You’re welcome.” Kevin rolled his eyes.

                “Anyway, that’s about what went down. Do you feel any better?” he asked. Jessie nodded; her color was closer to normal now. She was still sunburned, but her complexion wasn’t so violently red as it had been. She’d downed half the bottle of Gatorade during their explanation and was now noticing the soggy flannel on the back of her neck. She peeled it off, now warm from her body heat.

                “Trade me,” Frankie said, reaching for his shirt. Jessie handed it to him, and he handed her an unopened bottle of water in return. “Put that on your neck, it’s colder.”

                She obliged and was instantly rewarded. The slight chill of the water bottle was ecstasy; another satisfied groan came from deep within her chest.

                “Oh my God, that’s so nice,” she whimpered. She proceeded to roll the bottle over all sides of her neck, then over her face, pausing on both of her cheeks and her forehead. Kevin smiled.

                “Looks like you’re feeling better,” he remarked. Jessie grinned right back.

                “Oh yeah, I’m doing loads better,” she replied.

                “So, now that you’re not dying and we’re out of a gig today, what’s the plan?” Frankie asked. “We have Ed’s truck until tomorrow morning.” Jessie’s grin quickly turned devilish.

                “Let’s go to Paul’s,” she said impishly. Both boys looked at her in confusion.

                “Who’s Paul?” Frankie asked. Jessie’s jaw dropped.

                “What’s that for?” Kevin asked. Jessie swatted his arm.

                “Shut up! You guys have never been to Paul’s?” she plowed forward, not giving either of them time to answer. “That’s only the best mom and pop ice cream shop in town! It’s been here for like fifty years, how have neither of you been there?”

                “This may shock you, but we do have lives,” Frankie quipped.

                “Well you’re mine for as long as we’ve got this truck, right? So let’s go! We’ve got nothing to lose, and I’m not the only one who needs to cool off.”

Frankie squinted and pantomimed thinking. “The lady makes a compelling case.” He looked to Kevin. “What do you say, man? You down to get ice cream with a dude named Paul?” Kevin grinned devilishly.

                “I think that’s a perfect idea,” he said, his comedic face wavering for only a fraction of a second. Jessie hooted with excitement.

                “Woo! Hell yeah, man!” she hopped off Kevin’s lap and flopped squarely between the both of them on the bench seat, folding her legs beneath her Indian style before slapping Frankie on the thigh. “Giddyup, horsie, let’s get this show on the road!”

            Frankie threw the truck into reverse, gliding smoothly out of their parking space and out onto the highway. He merged expertly, and soon the trio were hurtling toward their cool and sugary destination, the fiasco of the nonexistent festival behind them.

Author's Note

These little one-offs are just for fun. I write them because I enjoy writing, not because I'm out to be the best new novelist. Let me know what you think!