I looked around at the motel room we were staying at. It wasn’t much, but it was the best available in such a small town.
“Aurora, Esme had the idea of going to a rodeo! What do you think?” Millie called from the bathroom.
I turned off the TV and walked over to the dresser that held all of our clothes. “That sounds great! What time?”
“Well, Esme’s gone off to get some tickets, so as soon as she’s back we’ll leave. 5 minutes, maybe?” Millie walked into the main room, drying her bright red hair with a towel. She had changed into a pair of jean shorts and a white tank top.
I grabbed my clothes and glanced up at my reflection in the mirror. I groaned, looking at the state of my waves. “Could you turn on Esme’s straightener? My hair needs to be tamed.” I walked back into the bathroom and changed from my pajamas. We hadn’t done anything all day, and I hadn’t been bothered to put on proper clothes. I slipped on a pair of severely ripped jean shorts and a loose sea foam green tank. Deciding against makeup, I left the bathroom.
Millie was sitting on her bed, slipping on some cowgirl boots she bought a couple of days ago. She pointed to the dresser. “It’s ready.”
I picked up the iron and managed my hair, leaving it straight, yet still slightly wavy. The blond tips of my naturally brown hair flowed down my chest, and I brushed it behind my shoulder. After I unplugged the straightener, I grabbed a pair of white socks and my black converse.
As I sat down next to Millie, I heard the lock jingle and my blond friend walked it, holding three tickets.
“Ready to go, girls?” Esme asked. She was wearing her usual summer dress, paired with a light jean jacket and vans. Her crazy, curly hair was pulled back with a bow.
We stood up, grabbing our phones. Esme and Millie were ecstatic; the idea of meeting a southern boy was highly appealing to them. But all I wanted was to go back home to London and hear the refreshing voices of the Brit boys. We had come to this small town in Georgia because we wanted to get away from the busy life of London, where it was too cold during these months. So we came here, where it was hot all day long.
As we approach the rodeo on foot, I can see the bright lights of the rides. The sound of laughter flitted through the air, and I see families gathering around the large event. The dark night was illuminated with the fluorescent lights; the air was thick with the smell of candy floss and animals.
Arriving at the entrance, we gave our tickets to an employee and walk inside the gate. All around me, I could see the smiles of the locals. I felt out of place- I had never been to a carnival, having been raised in the city. Millie and Esme, on the other hand, were born in the countryside.
“Ferris Wheel!” Millie squealed, pointing to the large ride. In fact, it was the only ride here.
I looked around at the carnival and spotted a large barn. I could make out loud music erupting from it. “Let’s go there.” I pointed it out to the girls and they smiled. We were all over 18, so we’ve gone drinking and partying before. But we had no idea what to expect when we walked into the barn.
We made our way through the crowd, walking past petting zoos and stadiums. I groaned at the sign next to the door. “Must be 21 or older to drink- we check ID’s.”
“Come one, Aurora! We can get drunk off of dancing!” Esme laughed, opening the door for us.
When we walked in, we were immediately hit with the loud noise of country music. The beat filled me, making it impossible for me not to tap my feet. I ran into the large crowd in the middle of the room, jumping around to the music. Millie and Esme followed me, a smile on both of their faces.
“Been working, so hard,
I’m punching my card.
Eight hours? For what?
Oh, tell me what I’ve got.
I’ve got this feeling,
That times just holding me down.
I hit the ceiling,
Or else I’ll tear up this town.
Tonight I gotta cut loose,
Footloose,
Kick off your Sunday shoes.”
Laughter peeled through the crowd, the crowd jumping simultaneously. I raised one hand and closed my eyes, feeling other bodies dancing next to me.
“We’ve got to turn this around,
And get your feet off the ground.
I’ll take a whole of your soul.”
We all started singing along to the iconic song. My heart beat was soaring, but I didn’t dare stop dancing.
“Everybody cut, everybody cut,
Everybody cut, everybody cut,
Everybody cut, everybody cut,
EVERYBODY,
Everybody cut footloose!”
The song came to a close, followed by a slower country song. All three of us stood in a ring, breathing deeply, the smiles never leaving our faces. We all looked around at the couple pairing up for the song, and we turned to leave the dance floor.
Then, two very attractive country boys walked up to Millie and Esme, asking to dance. They looked back at them, not wanting to abandon me. They would say no in an instant if I said so, but I could see that they really wanted to dance.
I nodded, smiling. “Go!”
Millie and Esme were pulled back into the crowd of people and I went up to the bar.
The bartender gave me a glance, raising an eyebrow. I waved him off. “I just want a bottle of water.”
He nodded and grabbed me a bottle from under the bar. I give him a dollar from my pocket and turn to find a table. My legs were exhausted from dancing nonstop, and I just wanted to kick my feet off and relax.
I sat down at a little table near the edge, and took a few large gulps of the cool water. I could see Millie’s bright red hair in the middle of the crowd, and I spotted Esme’s curly blond hair near here. They looked happy, slow dancing with the handsome cowboys.
I closed my eyes, holding the bottle up to my forehead. I gave a loud sigh as the cold condensation ran down my face. I wiped it away and opened my eyes, only to find that someone had sat down next to me.
His bright green eyes were trained on me with intrigue, his messy brown hair swept over to the side. He was wearing a white t-shirt rolled up at the sleeves with dark skinny jeans. Nothing about him screamed ‘country boy’.
He leaned forward and I placed the bottle on the table, sitting up. “Hi, I’m Harry.” His deep, heavy accented voice made me smile. It was nice to know that Millie, Esme and I weren’t the only foreigners here.
“Hi, Harry. I’m Aurora.” I introduce myself to him, a smile tugging at my lips.
“Ah, how refreshing to hear a familiar accent after listening to cowboys for so long.” He let out a laugh.
“You’re here alone?” I kept up conversation with him because I couldn’t get enough of his deep voice.
“No, I came here with my four best mates,” Harry pointed over to the dance floor, where I presumed his friends were. “But they’re pretending to be American. It’s horrible.”
“Yeah, I’m here with my two best girl friends, and they’re obsessed with southern boys.” I rolled my eyes, remembering how that was the first thing they said when we arrived here.
“Are you?” He asked, and I could see a look of panic fill him for a split second.
I laugh at his worry. “No, I prefer English boys.”
A large smile spreads on his face. “Then I have a feeling that we’re going to get on real well.”
