The original five boys caught the Monster and after a few tries, so did the Mom and her kids. Jacob and I took a breath as they walked away.
“That was interesting,” I said. “I didn’t expect that.”
“Neither did I,” he said. “Man, they came out of nowhere, didn’t they?”
There was hustle and bustle behind us, coming from the direction of the parking lot. I turned around to see a line of cars pulling up. The parking spots became filled in seconds and people spilled out, all running toward us with their cell phones out. There were folks of all ages making their way toward our private picnic area.
“Jacob, what’s happening?” I asked.
“That latest update, the one that expanded the map and put street names on,” he said. “It must be bringing people from all over. They saw the Legazeus and they’re coming to catch it.”
Things started to look like a movie. Everyone moved like a swarm of zombies, walking quickly across the park, making their way toward us. Their arms were held out like zombies, too. The only difference is that they held cell phones in their hands. It was insane. But what had me even more shocked than their erratic and excitable behavior was the sheer number of them. Hundreds. Literally hundreds of people swarmed the park, all within a matter of minutes.
“Jacob, we should go,” I said. There were more people showing up every minute, and all of them were headed straight for our picnic site. I wasn't sure we were going to be able to get out of the park.
“I agree,” he said. He looked a little despondent.
We stood up from the blanket and quickly rolled everything up in it, stuffing it into the picnic basket. Before we could even finish, though, we became completely surrounded by people. They were all shouting in excitement about the Legazeus. Every single one of them was there for the same reason, and they were all rushing, knowing that this particular Monster wouldn’t be there for very long.
Jacob looked upset as he bundled up the picnic things and pushed through the crowd.
“Is everything okay?” I asked. I had to practically shout to make sure I was heard over everybody.
“Yeah, I just wanted this to be special and it feels like it’s ruined.” When we got to the car, he threw everything in the trunk and then opened the passenger door for me. “It’s kind of cool to witness this kind of craziness from a game, but I wish it hadn’t ruined our picnic. This wasn't at all how I planned it. I should have thought about this a little more.”
I laughed and squeezed his arm. “Jacob, it didn’t ruin anything and there is no way you could have predicted that a Legazeus would show up.”
“If you say so,” he mumbled.
“I mean our picnic is obviously done now, but think about how memorable this is. We’ll never forget this moment, as long as we live,” I said, as I pointed back toward where we had been seated. There was a swarm of people, and where there had once been a picnic, now looked more like a mosh pit at a concert.
“I guess you’re right,” he reluctantly said. “I just had no idea there were even this many people playing the game here. The town isn't exactly a Monster GO hotspot.”
Overhead, a helicopter whirred. I had no idea how this many people had found this spot so fast.
I squealed in excitement. “I’m so excited to show Tommy. He’s going to flip out when he sees it. This Monster is all he’s talked about since the game came out.”
Jacob walked around to the driver’s side and hopped in. He started up the car and began to back up, before realizing there was no way we’d be leaving any time too soon. People and cars had congested the parking lot and the road out of the park.
“How long until the Legazeus disappears?” I asked as Jacob turned off the engine.
“The rare ones won’t last more than twenty minutes,” he said. “I guess we’ll have to wait for a little bit.”
I shook my head in awe as I looked through the windshield. In just the few seconds that it had taken Jacob and I to get to his car, the horde had grown substantially in size.
“At least we have something to watch,” I commented as yet
more people streamed past our car. The helicopter was making another loop over the park and I had a feeling this would be on the evening news.
“How are this many people here?” Jacob asked, annoyance in his voice. “These kinds of crowds are exactly the reason I moved away from the Valley.”
“You don't like crowds?” I asked, looking over at him.
Jacob put on his dark sunglasses and pulled a baseball cap out from under his seat. He shook his head. “I hate crowds. Especially crowds having to do with the game.”
The phrasing seemed funny, but I just shrugged. “I'm sorry. We'll be out of here soon. Do you want me to drive?”
“No, I'm fine to drive.” He sighed and did an attempt at a smile. “I just wasn't expecting this. I wanted a fun, memorable afternoon with you. Not a zoo.”