Woodstock

2

He had taken a seat since his feet were starting to ache. Bert Sommer was next to perform. It wasn't really his kind of music but he listened anyway. He realized that he hadn't brought a sleeping bag or a tent. He hadn't thought that far, and he wouldn't have been able to sneak that past by his family anyway. He had a suitcase of clothes but he had left that in the trunk. He could always sleep in the car.

Tim Hardin took the stage. His music was soft with a lot of piano. Louis was a little disappointed. He had come here to listen to rock. So far he hadn't heard any of it. But it was just the beginning of the four-day festival and there were a lot of artists performing.

He shivered. It was getting cold. Well, it was getting late so the temperature dropped. He should have brought a blanket. The guys next to him had blankets wrapped around them. They probably went to a lot of festivals. He would remember to bring a blanket next time, if he would go to another festival. That wasn't a given.

At ten a new artist took the stage, Ravi Shankar. Louis stared at him as he started to play an instrument he had never seen before. It sounded beautiful. One of the guys got up and started to spin around, dancing. Louis glanced at him. He looked really high.

Halfway through the performance, the sky opened up and rain poured down. Louis opened his umbrella and curled into a ball. The concert continued.
"Do you mind sharing that?" The same guy that spoke to him earlier asked.

He did mind. Louis hesitated.
"Come on! You look cold! Here, I'll share my blanket." The man smiled.

It was probably soaking wet by now but Louis was freezing. He got up and took a seat next to the boy who immediately wrapped the blanket around both of them. Louis held the umbrella over their heads.
"I'm Harry."

"Hello. I'm Louis." Louis greeted politely.

"You're British!" Harry commented.

"Yeah." Louis smiled.

"Awesome! Where are you from?" Harry asked.

"Doncaster." Louis replied.

"No way! I'm from Holmes Chapel." Harry grinned.

"That's close to each other." Louis said, sounding surprised.

"Yep. This is fate, Louis." Harry grinned.

Louis rolled his eyes at him. Sure. Harry just smiled and introduced his friends. Liam and Zayn were also from England, Niall was Irish.
"What are you doing in New York?" Louis had to ask.

"We moved here six years ago. Wanted to try something new, you know?" Harry said.

He did know. That was why he was attending Woodstock. Louis smiled.
"How about you?"

"I moved here as a teen. My dad got a new job." Louis explained.

The rain was pouring and made everything muddy but Harry's body heat helped him stay warmer.

A woman named Melanie entered the stage. She sang folk music and Louis swayed along. His trousers were soaking wet but he didn't care. This was everything. After Melanie someone named Arlo Guthrie came on. He was more rock than the other acts that had performed so far and Louis smiled brightly. His smile faded abruptly when he spotted a couple having sex just a few feet from where they were sitting. He gasped in horror.
"What?" Harry asked.

He pointed at the couple and Harry giggled.
"Good for them."

"They're naked! Doing it right in front of us!" Louis argued upset.

"Sex is natural. Lighten up, Louis. You need to be more relaxed." Harry chuckled.

Zayn lit another joint and passed it around. Louis declined and they didn't comment on it. The final act was about to start, which was about time. Louis was tired. It was almost one. At least it had stopped raining but he stayed under the blanket with Harry since he was wet and cold. There was a mudslide a couple of feet away and people went down it, head first while they were laughing and screaming. It looked fun but Louis would never do that. He looked down at his shoes. He had no idea how he would explain to his mum why they were so muddy.

Joan Baez started singing. Another folk artist. Louis liked her voice and enjoyed her songs. He learned to talk to Harry.
"Didn't she used to be together with Bob Dylan?"

"Yeah." Harry confirmed.

Louis smiled. His mum loved Joan Baez. She listened to her all the time. He wished that he could tell her that he had seen her live. Maybe one day.

The couple next to them were done having sex and were dancing naked instead. Louis didn't know which one he preferred. He yawned discreetly. He was really tired. Joan Baez mostly sang covers but that was okay. When she got off stage he cheered with the rest of the crowd. Harry stood up.
"Thanks for the company. We're gonna try and find a dry place to sleep. Where are you sleeping?"

"Ehm, I think I'm gonna crash in my car." Louis said at got up as well. He tried to brush the dirt off his pants.

"Alright. Who knows? Maybe we'll bump into each other again." Harry smiled and pulled him in for a hug. Louis patted his back awkwardly.

They said goodbye and Louis walked the long way back to his car. He opened the trunk and found some dry clothes and a jacket. He got in the back and rolled up a jumper for a pillow and put the jacket over himself. It was cold but he was exhausted and fell asleep anyhow. Today had been absolutely amazing and he was looking forward to tomorrow.