Reaching Emma

24.

Thomas dropped us off at a secluded side of the stadium, telling us that he'd pick us up here after the concert too. We hopped out of the car and followed Emma to a door that was guarded by security. Emma passed us each a VIP necklace and the security guards opened the doors. Emma seemed to know where she was going, so we followed her down an empty winding hallway until we reached the door that led to a hallway crowded with people milling around buying Jay Scratch souvenirs.

"Did you guys want anything? I-" Emma was cut off when two younger girls tapped on her arm, squealing as she turned towards them. They looked about 12-years old and their mom was standing behind them. The girls were both wearing homemade Jay Scratch t-shirts and Emma towered over them in her heels.

"OMG, HI EMMA! I can't believe it's you! Can we have a picture? And will you sign our shirts? We're huge fans!" They rambled, jumping up and down as they spoke.

"Of course!" Emma replied graciously, posing for a photo with the young girls. Their mom snapped some photos and thanked Emma.

"Have you girls been to a Jay Scratch concert before?" Emma asked them.

"No, this is our first concert and we're so excited! We're his biggest fans!" They explained to Emma as she signed their matching Jay Scratch shirts.

"You're his biggest fans?! You know what, I can't believe that I'm meeting Jay's biggest fans right now! You know what? I think Jay needs to meet his biggest fans" Emma said, taking off her VIP necklace and handing it to the girls. She motioned towards mine and I took mine off too, placing it around the other girl's neck. Both their eyes went wide and they started jumping up and down screaming and thanking Emma. She said a final goodbye before turning back to us.

"Did you really just give those away?" Anna asked, sounding shocked.

Emma shrugged and said, "Yeah, I don't actually need them. Actually none of us really do, as long as you're with me. So you're welcome to give yours away too, if you want."

Anna looked down at her VIP pass, then around at the crowds of people. I could tell that she was excited to find some other lucky fans and make their night even better. Anna walked over to some other younger girls and offered them her and David's passes, to which they also screamed in response.

Emma smiled at the scene and checked the time, "We should head to our seats, you guys ready?"

We nodded and followed her down some stairs, I had no idea how Emma could walk in her tall heels, but she didn't look like she was struggling at all. She showed security, something on her phone and he opened the curtain, letting us through the walkway leading to the floor seats. We weaved through the crowds towards the front of the stage, only stopping once we couldn't get any closer.

"These are our seats?! This is awesome!" Anna exclaimed.

"Yeah, thanks Emma. This is incredible!" David agreed. The lights dimmed and the opening band strutted on stage. I hadn't heard of the band before, but they were really good. Emma was singing along; if she was friends with Jay, I'm sure she knew the opening band too.

After the first band finished, it wasn't long before Jay Scratch took the stage. He made a grand entrance, rising up from under the stage with smoke and spotlights surrounding him. The fans went crazy, screaming ten times louder than they did for the opening band. Jay started out with one of his most popular songs, everyone was singing along and dancing, including me. The four of us were jumping and screaming the words, awestruck as he and his dancers moved around the stage. The smoke and even fire effects were timed perfectly to the beat of the music. I couldn't stop smiling at how much fun I was having and couldn't believe how close we were to the stage.