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My er and confusion Where had I gone wrong?

My phone rang in my jacket pocket I alht now But when I drew out the phone and answered, it was only the restaurant, wondering if I still needed my reservation "I’ed"

Had they ever

The tely bitter for a Septe My hands were cold, I hadn’t eaten supper and it was probably ti any of ood boyfriend My only sin was stupidity

I stoate, where I had to wind through a clot of students ere on their way out to so blown off all my soccer buddies to spend my birthday with Alison

And for what?

Numb, I climbed another stone staircase towardht’s disaster "We broke up," was all I illing to say about it

Although the lights were burning, our co in the signs Both of Bickley’s crystal goblets sat on our coffee table, dregs of dark red wine in their bottoms I turned to eye our bedroo on the doorknob, but Bickley was expecting ht So I would have to proceed with caution

I stood very still, listening The faint strains of slow music could be heard, probably from the bedroo to Mat’s tiny single -- was also shut

I shrugged off my jacket and dropped it on our posh leather sofa While most common rooms were decorated in the style of Early American Squatter, ours was exquisite It was all Bickley’s doing He was the son of an honest-to-God British peer, and the faht for our dor in the tiny Manhattan apartment I shared with e of the leather seat, unsure how to occupy ht he finds out his so-called girlfriend gave it up for some rich dude in a tent in Ecuador? Watch a little TV? Play a few video games?

Ritual suicide?

Froures It was just the soundtrack I needed tonight Where was the universal remote, anyway? I needed that sucker, stat I felt around between the couch cushions, but couldn’t find it

Then, fro way Bothto tell ot down onunder the couch, desperate for the remote Bickley had set up his complicated video system in a hich required the remote and a NASA-style checklist of instructions he’d taped to the wood paneling on the wall

Unfortunately, the sexual soundtrack continued in stereo behind me My frustration rose a hundredfold, untilin the world

My foot connected with the stupid gift bag I’d been dragging around all night, al, I stood and sto the door close behind o I was pretty tired of walking around in the cold So I sat right down on the stone staircase, like the loser that I was

All I had going for me was a bottle of overpriced wine I lifted that puppy out of the bag Owing to ne was cold Or at least coldish I probably should have just tossed the whole gift bag into the first trash can I’d found But what a waste, right?

Welp Tine I trapped the bottle between ust of cool air traveled up the stairs Someone had coan the upward trudge Whoever it ould soon appear, probably wondering why I was sitting there twisting the wire thingy off a chagest Loser right here, ladies and gentle and put my hand over the cork It wouldn’t do to put ht was pretty tweaked already, but if I’d learned anything, it was that things could always get worse

"Well hello there"

I looked up to seeured that the sexiest resident of Entryway F would be the one to witness my pathetic little scene in the stairwell Dios What’s one more humiliation?