"Oh, this is so gross!" Trina yells into my ear. In any other situation, I would get mad at her for yelling in my ear, but in our current situation it's completely unavoidable. Her entire body is pressed up behind me, the weight of 500 others pushing against me from all directions. Breanna is at my right, her strawberry blond hair frizzed out to it's natural state. A young shirtless guy is pressed against me on my left side, sweat dripping from his body onto my damp black Chiodos band tee. I would have been grossed out normally, but I was so covered in moisture and perspiration, I couldn’t even tell what was mine and what wasn’t anymore.

“WARPED TOUR!!!” Someone yells hoarsely from the crowd, resulting in cheers and fist pounds from those around him. I laugh and crane my neck to Breanna.

“I don‘t think I‘ve ever been this hot,” I say to her. The humidity in the swarm of teenagers is unlike anything I have ever felt before. It’s so thick that just the simple process of breathing is making me light headed. With the evening approaching the 12 hour concert, people are beginning to pass out from exhaustion. I duck every time someone is passed overhead, crowd surfing being the only way out of the crammed throng of people.

Breanna pulls out her recently filled water bottle, and hands it to me. I take a few gulps, and pass it to Trina, behind me. “I have to get to that spot.” I say, staring at the back of the girls who are packed together at the security bar in front of me. We are front and center, only a couple people shoved in between us and the bar .

“Yeah, good luck.” The guy next to me says at my determination to accomplish this seemingly impossible goal.

I roll my eyes. “You don’t understand,” I say. “Chiodos is my favorite band. Craig Owens is my hero. There is no one here who wants to be in that spot more than me right now.”

“Well, you still got about half an hour before they come onstage, so you better figure something out.” He says before turning back to his buddy on the other side of him.

“Danielle,” Trina says, her sweat soaked chin on my shoulder. “That girl in the purple shirt was saying earlier that she’s going to leave before Chiodos comes on.” She pulls her cramped arm free from the crowd and points at the girl. She is right in the middle, on the bar, in the spot that I would kill to have. There is only a few people standing between her and I.

“That’s my spot.” I say loudly, attempting to speak over the anxious crowd, my eyes trained on the back of her head. “The second she moves, you guys need to push into her spot, as hard as you can.”

Only minutes later, Breanna yells “She’s moving!” I jerk my head up, and see her waving a security guard down to pull her out of the crowd. All my senses come alive, and I focus myself as if I‘m about to run a marathon.

“NOW!” I yell, as the buff security guard in the yellow shirt begins to pick the girl up. Breanna, Trina, and our other friend, Brianna, propel me forward with all their strength. I tear between the tightly knit people in front of me, and crash into the girl, who is only halfway out of the crowd, pinning her legs against the bar. I push back against the crowd as much as I can, and pull her legs up and throw them over the bar. As soon as she is released, I’m thrust against the metal bar with the weight of hundreds of eager fans. The temperature instantly drops ten degrees, and I take a deep breath. With no one in front of me, I can breath much easier. My arms are crammed to my sides, and I pull them free and release them over the bar. I look around to see the strangers surrounding me, and am surprised to see Breanna pop up behind me. She smiles at me, having taken advantage of being so short. Her chest is pressed up against my back, and she peeks over my shoulder at the same thing I see; A front and center view of the Vans Warped Tour Main Stage.

“I did it,” I say to her. “I’m going to see Chiodos. I’m going to see my hero from the best spot in this entire place. This can’t be real.”