It's only been nine days since I met Dan in Manchester, and we've been texting nonstop ever since.
"Stop it Sarah, you look fine! Don't change again," Katie scolds me, taking the glittery black tank top out of my hands. I glare at her, and take in my reflection in the mirror. I'm wearing purple and blue galaxy print shorts, a white tank top with two ruffles at the bottom, and a star necklace.
"You can't tell me what to do," I say, crossing my arms defiantly.
"Oh, but I can. Stalin powers, remember?" She throws my Superman converse at me, and I give her a look that clearly says 'are you crazy?' instead grabbing a pair of dark blue peep toed pumps. Her face crinkles in disgust, she's not big fan of heels.
"He's like a foot taller than me! Plus they're cute!" There's a knock on the door and I pull on my panda hat before rushing to answer it. Dan is standing there, wearing black skinny jeans and a black t shirt with a white circle on it, smiling shyly at me.
"Hey," he says. "You ready to go?"
"Yup!" I step outside, and turn around to yell at Katie. "Don't wait up!"
"Shall we?" He holds out his arm for me, which I take.
"We shall." The concert is being held at Emirates Stadium a soccer, or as they call it here football, field that's only a few blocks from the flat Katie and I share on Hamilton Park.
"So you ready for this?" I grin at him.
"Of course! I was born ready."
After about ten minutes of walking, we come to a huge crowd of people trying to get inside. Eventually, we get in, though, while the opening act is still going. We decide to look at the merch before going in. The man selling it manages to charm me into trying on one of the t-shirts.
"How do I look?" I ask Dan, doing a little model like spin for him.
"Amazing," he tells me, and I feel myself blush. "We'll take two." He hands the man some money and the guy gives him a shirt too.
"No, seriously, you don't have to-"
"I want to." He pulls his on. "Plus, now we match!" We grab a couple of beers and head into the arena just as the opening band finishes their set. The grass is covered with flooring that is surprisingly sturdy and a huge stage sits on one end of it. My entire body shakes with anticipation and happiness as he grabs my hand so we don't get separated, weaving our way through the crowd until we're only about thirty feet away from the stage. For a moment after we stop, he holds tight to my hand, before dropping it shyly.
The hundreds of people around us engage in excited chatter, all here and united for one reason. To see our favorite band.
"I really really really hope they play at least one of their older songs," I say to Dan, bouncing up and down like I do when I get really excited.
"Me too," he says, bouncing up and down to mock me. Our bouncing is interrupted when music starts playing from the giant speakers and the entire crowd starts cheering. We look at each other, shrug, and start cheering as well.
I know it's going to be at least fifteen minutes before they come out, that's just how it works. Get the energy of the room up, but come out before people start throwing things, leaving, and going on vicious killing sprees. Eventually they emerge and break into Supremacy, causing the entire place to flip shit. Matt Bellamy's voice fills the entire stadium. Dan looks at me and no words are needed. We're just two people sharing this incredible experience and I can tell from the way his eyes are lit up that we both understand each other completely.
After Supremacy, they play Map of the Problematique and then Supermassive Black Hole.
"It's your song!" He yells over the music to me, and I don't think my smile can get any bigger. We both sing louder than before, jumping around and dancing wildly just like everyone else. They play Resistance and Panic Station, and Dan and I steadily get closer and closer as the night wears on. Giant beach balls are released into the crowd and whenever one makes its way to us we hit it as hard as we can, giggling like idiots.
Not only is the music wonderful, but the performance is great as well. The giant screens behind them play weird animations and show pictures, and every so often cannons shoot out glitter and confetti, which I'm sure is in my hair by now. A thin layer of sweat coats my body, and the humidity of the room has made Dan's hair curl up slightly. I like it.
After Animals, Knights of Cydonia, Explorers and Follow Me, I'm sure we're going crazy. Dan grabs me and spins me around, causing me to laugh. Of course, me being me, somewhere in the middle of United States of Eurasia, I manage to slip in someone's spilled beer and fall right into his chest.
"Hello there," he says, smiling down at me and wrapping his arms around me to keep me from falling onto the floor.
"Hi," I say back, and he helps me right myself before going back to dancing. They play a few more songs, and during Starlight, Matt Bellamy throws a bunch of guitar picks into the crowd. Dan jumps up and catches one, kneeling down and holding it out to me like a wedding ring. "My hero!" Survival is the last song they play, and we follow everyone else outside. The cool night air hits my face and it feels like Jesus himself is bathing on my face.
"You wanna go get some coffee?" He asks.
"Yeah, sure!" He takes me to a quaint little all-night coffee shop where we get cappuccinos and sit at a small table.
"So that was possibly the best night of my life."
"Mine too!" My hand immediately finds its way to my pocket to make sure the guitar pick is still there. It is. "Seriously, there was not one part of that that sucked."
"The man who played the harmonica before Knights of Cydonia was really good!"
"I know! I never thought I'd like the harmonica as much as I did!"
"And the drunk dude with the-"
"Oh my god, yes!" We both burst out laughing, and it's a good fifteen minutes before we finally stop.
After about an hour of concert-reliving, he walks me home.
"Thanks so much," I say as we stand on my doorstep. "I had an amazing time."
"Me too," he tells me. "We should do this again sometime."
"Hell yes! I'll text you."
"Sounds like a plan!" I instinctively wrap my arms around him in a tight hug, which he returns with equal enthusiasm. With a little wave, I disappear into our dark flat, and am greeted with complete silence. Not wanting to sleep just yet, I burst into Katie's room and hop onto her bed, kicking my shoes off in the process. I jump up and down until she wakes up with a groan.
"Can I help you?" She asks me. I smile at her.
"No! I'm awesome! That was the best night of my entire life!"
"Couldn't you wait to tell me until the morning? And is that glitter in your hair?"
"No and yes." I lay down next to her and proceed to tell her everything that had happened, even after she falls back asleep, eventually drifting off myself.