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The crowd cae area for us where ould be under the pergola and yet in full view of the whole crowd as they gathered round to watch And then our cue, this had been planned in advance "Young e People

Perfor "YMCA" had an incredible level of irony to it, when you thought about it, for a bachelorette party But hey, we didn’t choose it We just showed up, collected our tips, and gave everyone a good tie in the croas probably thirty-five The bride was a pleasant, giggly woman who reminded me of a blonde version of Aain, every client reminded me of Amy Hell, every woman I walked past on the street reminded me of her It made life both easy and hard, all at once

As we danced I heard a voice cut through the uard Darla? Was Darla here? I could hear it faint and floating on the wind, but I had to ignore it Maybe a guest just happened to have her accent It was eerie It set uard

I knew that A, Darla had told ht It had given ht, because it was oneher know

A woed on purpose, some sort of a fashion style, caround my hip into hers "Do you do extras?" she whispered in

I looked at her and did exactly what Louise had taught rin, and say, "Sorry, but I’m taken," and then to thumb toward Jack He’dWhen I’d first learned that soust How hypocritical is that?

I’d take the hypocritical label over what those guys did, though Not e any more Women wanted them, women paid them for more than a look or a quick touch, and everyone walked aith a happy ending

So to speak

Amy

I reached down into ain butwhy? There wasn’t going to be a new text It had only been seven minutes since I’d checked it last This quiet frorattled around in ht they were, on the surface at least Sam wasn’t like that, he didn’t bullshit people What you sahat you got, and so, there was so a secret

As a cool breeze swept in, ht of how Sas when he played Everything these days re should re was Sahthat wasn’t Sam

Where was he? He obviously wasn’t here with me, and I had no reason to doubt hiht? He wasn’t the type

Darla walked back out onto the balcony and said, "Hey, come on in Have a drink" She peered down "Whoa--that’s one hell of a bachelorette party, huh?" I followed looking down, and tracking her eyes A group of people cra like they were The Village People Woainst headless torsos, theon down there, it certainly looked like fun More power to therabbed ically conjured an Arin "How’d you know?"

"That’s what you were drinking when I ht in the bar"

I narrowed my eyes Maybe that’s why she was so popular with people She paid attention Maybe I needed to pay more attention to other people, and less attention to myself Or maybe I just needed to pay attention, period "Thank you," I said,it deeply

"You’re welcome" We looked around the crowd There were a number of people who looked just like us, except more sophisticated That aardness that poured into an to fill me Darla sensed it "We don’t have to stay if this isn’t your thing"

Jane appeared out of nowhere, looking more and more like Wednesday Addams with red hair "Darla, may I have a ith you?" she said pleasantly, her voice modulated and friendly, her face a ed "Be back," she said to me, and I nodded

Drawn by an invisible force to the balcony again, I stood out there Three or four people sarettes, in animated conversations it was obvious I wasn’twas a bal wo bills of undeteruys with physiques that re hats, andwas that red hair under one of them? And surfer blonde hair under another? I couldn’t see their faces but soo off in me I closed my eyes and shook my head quickly Stop it, A shadows to be afraid of What kind of demented mind did I have that I would try to uys that I kept fantasizing about, one of as my bedmateand maybe my soulmate

I tried I really, deeply tried I drank the Amaretto Sour I looked out on the river and watched a ss of so fifty thousand people to move to New Hampshire, and take over the state For the next thirty minutes, I tried And I failed

As the party downstairs got louder and louder, I finally heard someone shout, "It’s a Diana sandwich!"

Whoever Diana was, she wasn’t going to be the ht know This was silly, I knew it, but it also gave ently found my way back to the front door and didn’t even bother to try to find Jane, as pointing to a disturbing bit of watercoloring on her wall that appeared to be different shades of blood Darla founddown the hallway

"Where ya goin’?" she asked

"It’s just too hot in there," I said

"But you were out on the balcony"

"I- I need to goI’ood"

"Okay," she said

I stu slowly, the drink hitting ht The stairs and hallere extreht in front of an apart made the hall seem tiny, and my body pitched a bit That was one stiff drink

Giggles, Muffled groans Blurred characters, siantaround a woled to see as going on, until I heard a name

"Diana," the voice said, a ht emotion Ah, so this was the irl Who wouldn’t want a threesoht at a party? Her mouth pressed hard as she stood in red leather come-fuck-me-puuy against the wall, her body writhing and s her