I was in a crowd of thousands packed into Cowboys Stadium, just south of the city I called home. Alvin and the Chipmunks were onstage, playing a concert that, unbelievably, wasn't that bad. I hadn't come for the music, though; I just wanted to stare at the tall, dreamy chipmunk on bass: Simon Seville.
Simon was my secret crush, and tonight I was reminded why. His playing was flawless, and his singing spot-on. His dark, pristine fur glistened in the lights, his t-shirt doing little to conceal his thin yet muscular frame. His bright, blue eyes almost glowed, and his 'hair' was styled very handsomely. Simon was absolutely perfect, and I was falling in love all over again.
Eventually, the concert ended, though; it was time to go home. I was awarded a short reprieve, however, when Alvin took the mic to make a special announcement. Even fans who'd been leaving stopped to listen; clearly something big was happening. I craned my neck around a fan who'd stopped in front of me; this I had to see.
"Alright, we've got a post-concert backstage pass for one lucky fan! Unfortunately, Simon will be the only one back there, but hey, it's something," Alvin announced. Most fans seemed disinterested as Alvin tried to make a joke out of mispronouncing the seat number. The attempt fell flat, and a disgruntled Simon snatched the ticket stub from his brother's hands.
"Section 107 Row 17 Seat 7, please bring your ticket to the backstage entrance. Thank you," he announced. The three chipmunks then left the stage, meanwhile fans began filing out of the arena. Remaining inside the increasingly empty stadium, I stared awestruck at my ticket. Section 107, row 17, seat 7; the backstage pass was mine. Regaining my composure as best I could, I headed towards my prize.
When I arrived at the backstage entrance, a security guard was waiting for me. He was a burly, caucasian man, likely in his mid 30s. He sported dark hair and a goatee along with dark brown eyes. Surprisingly, while his physical appearance was very tough, he was actually a rather nice guy.
"So, you're the winner, eh? Let's see your ticket," the guard remarked. I held it up and he looked at it closely.
"Yep, those are the right numbers. Here's your pass; Simon will be waiting for you," he finally remarked. Putting the pass around my neck, I walked past the guard and into the secure area. The dressing rooms quickly came into view, and soon I stopped in front of Simon's. I knocked lightly on the door, and after a moment it was answered. I froze immediately, now eye to eye with my crush.
"I have to say this upfront: if you're expecting me to sign 100 things or be your 'BFFL' you can forget it. I don't mean to sound like a crab, but you fans are crazy sometimes," Simon remarked. I remained frozen, my mouth agape. "You okay?"
"Uh, f-fine. Why do you ask?" I sputtered.
"You look a bit stiff is all. Not used to meeting celebrities, I presume?" Simon questioned.
"Yeah..." I confirmed, giving a slight nod. Simon smiled warmly at me.
"Just try to relax, you'll get used to it," he assured me, "Come on inside." I entered Simon's dressing room, and sat down next to him on the couch.
"So, we've got about an hour together, what do you want to do?"
"I dunno... truth or dare?" I suggested randomly.
"Sure," Simon responded, shrugging. We set off into a spree of questions and dares, and slowly I adjusted to being with Simon. Then, after I chose 'truth' for the umpteenth time, he asked the big question.
"Who's your biggest crush?" I froze on the spot, my heart beating wildly.
"It's, erm..." I sputtered.
"Come on, it can't be that bad! It's not like I know the person," Simon remarked.
"You don't understand..." I replied nervously, looking away. Suddenly, Simon stood up and turned towards the door.
"I've gotta go use the bathroom; think about it while I'm gone, alright?" he remarked. I nodded, and seconds later Simon had left. Standing up, I sighed and began pacing nervously through his dressing room. As I debated what to do when Simon returned, I noticed a couple glasses of soda next to a chemistry set. The set was mostly devoid of chemicals aside from a strange, brown solution in a cylindrical beaker. Ignoring the solution, I started to grab one of the sodas when Simon reentered the room.
"So, are you going to answer my question now?" he asked curiously. I reached behind my back and grabbed a soda.
"I guess..." I remarked, taking a sip. Strangely, the liquid tasted nothing like soda, and suddenly I knew why.
"Shit, don't drink that!" Simon cried out. I suddenly grew dizzy and had to grab something to support myself. I glanced down at my drink and recoiled in horror: I'd accidentally grabbed the chemistry solution! Simon rushed over as I began to fade from consciousness, lowering me slowly to the ground. The last thing I remember was him pulling out his cell phone and dialing 9-1-1.
A week had passed since Simon's chemistry experiment went wrong. I wound up in the hospital for several days because the solution transformed me into a chipmunk like my bespectacled crush. Simon had visited once to apologize, after which we parted ways in good standing with each other. Now, I found myself back home, preparing to attend the NRA 500 at nearby Texas Motor Speedway.
With everything packed, I pulled on my Denny Hamlin coat and headed for my car. I was caught by surprise, however, when I walked outside to find my dad talking to Simon! A limo was just driving off, and there was a blue duffel bag sitting on the back of my car. I was too shocked to do anything, and merely stood in the doorway with my mouth agape. Simon quickly spotted me and turned towards me with a smile.
"Someone's surprised to see me," he remarked. I managed to regain my composure, closing the door as I stepped outside.
"Of course I'm surprised; I never thought I'd see you again!" I responded.
"Well, I wanted to make up for what I put you through last week. I promise, this is going to be the best race weekend of your life," Simon explained, giving me a one-armed squeeze. I blushed lightly, but thankfully it was hidden by my fur.
"If you say so," I responded, "Come on, let's get going!" We headed off towards the track after that, ready for a fun weekend at the races. Simon's promise had my hopes high despite the knowledge that my favorite driver wouldn't be in the race. Still, I was leading my fantasy league and there were a few other drivers I liked. Even with all this promise, however, the weekend failed to live up to expectations.
Things first went sour about halfway to the track, when I realized I'd left my Denny Hamlin hat at home. The weekend was already headed downward, and it wasn't about to recover. We eventually parked next to a one-way entrance to the campground, which prevented my uncle from meeting us at my car. As a result, we had to haul three full ice chests 100 yards before loading them into my uncle's truck.
When we arrived at my uncle's RV, we learned he'd had a damaging blowout on the way to the track, and as a result the built-in refrigerator, microwave, oven and stove were inoperable. Thankfully, we had a couple of camp stoves with which to cook. An afternoon of camping and a Nationwide series race later, my dad kept us from leaving until 1 in the morning. We didn't get to our hotel until almost 2, which really irked me and limited my sleep.
Our woes continued that night, as I woke up feeling sick and nearly vomited. The nausea subsided quickly, though, so I was able to get back to bed. The next morning I woke up to the sound of our eight o'clock wake up call, annoyed at how much sleep my dad had cost us. After eating the continental breakfast, we left the hotel and returned to the track. My uncle and cousin were still asleep when we arrived, much to my annoyance.
My aforementioned relatives had a very late breakfast, so lunch was pretty much skipped. At 3 we made a run through the souvenir haulers, and I eagerly made my way to Denny Hamlin's. However, I was disappointed to find nothing worth buying, and returned to camp empty handed. By now I was starving and much awaiting the fajitas my uncle had promised us for dinner.
After a lengthy wait, dinner was served and we all wolfed it down. Cooking it had delayed us, however, and for the first time I heard the command to start engines from outside the grandstands. Thankfully, Joey 'Jackass' Logano had been delayed due to a rear-end housing that failed inspection. His car rolled out of the garage as we passed the souvenir haulers, the image shown on the screen of the FanVision scanner we'd rented. I smiled toothily at his misfortune as we passed through the gates.
Things got a bit better as we made our way to the Victory Lane Club suite Simon had reserved. The seating inside was comfortable and the amenities were amazing. The same could not be said about the race, though, as bad luck ruined my fantasy team's score. The race ended past ten with Kyle Busch taking the checkered flag. We then waited through a massive line and bumper-to-bumper traffic to return our scanner and get back to camp.
We got back to camp at around 11, and talked for a bit before my dad, uncle and cousin went to join the mob of people watching an improvised stripper pole. Left alone at camp, Simon and I sat down next to each other in collapsible chairs. For a moment, we were silent, but that soon changed.
"So, did you have fun this weekend?" Simon asked. I sighed.
"Yeah, but so much has gone wrong. No offense, but I think I had a better time at last year's fall race," I answered. Simon nodded.
"I understand; things didn't exactly go as planned," he responded. Then a light bulb seemed to go off in his head. "Hey, you never did answer my question."
"What question?" I asked, confused.
"Who's your biggest crush?" Simon replied, reminding me. I immediately turned scarlet.
"Uh..." I sputtered. Simon grinned.
"I thought you might say that," he remarked, "mind if I make a guess?"
"Not really; go ahead," I responded. Suddenly, Simon was upon me, his lips pressed against mine. I froze immediately, shocked by his actions. I couldn't let this moment go to waste, though, so I quickly began kissing back. I'd scarcely done such a thing before, but somehow it came naturally. The kiss soon became french, our tongues eagerly exploring each other's mouths. We finally separated after what felt like hours, blissful expressions on both our faces.
"You still think last fall was better?" Simon asked after a moment. Even he was blushing now.
"Not even close," I responded, smiling. At that point I thought our troubles were over, but the weekend had one last curve to throw at us. Dad once again kept us at the track until 1 in the morning, at which point I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open. Dad decided to drive home for safety's sake, so I sat in the back seat with Simon. The two of us fell asleep about a mile down the road, resting comfortably on top of each other.
The post-race traffic had dissipated, so it didn't take long for dad to get us back home. He woke Simon and I at 2:30, and we decided to wait until the morning to unload. I led my bespectacled crush to my bedroom, closing the door behind us. I then turned and looked him in the eye, a big question on my mind.
"So about that kiss..." I started nervously. Simon raised an eyebrow. "Was it just a one-time thing, or...?"
"Do you want it to be a one-time thing?" he questioned.
"I never said I did, but-," I started. Simon put a finger to my lips, silencing me.
"Then it's not," he whispered, "Now come on, I think we both need a shower."
"W-What?!" I sputtered as he pulled me into the bathroom. This was a bit more than I'd bargained for.
After sharing an unexpected but much needed shower, Simon and I stepped back into my bedroom. Pulling on t-shirts and fresh underwear, we quickly brushed our teeth and climbed in bed. The hour of sleep we'd gotten on the way home was starting to wear off, so naturally we were exhausted. Still, this didn't the stop Simon from snuggling up to me under the sheets. His larger body enveloped mine, holding me close.
"I love you," Simon whispered.
"I love you too, Simon..." I responded, nuzzling him gently. He nuzzled back, our eyes closing as we drifted off to sleep. Our lives had changed forever.