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Walking out of the shopping center, I saw a pair of black Converse in the ent in, asked for my size, tried them on, and s me She smiled with a look in her eyes that would have turnedat et in her pants had just been made a thousand times easier That look meant: take me home

"Great choice," she said in a s, thick, and shiny Probably half of her five feet She was a sophisticated, Asian beauty, wrapped in a tight dress and sky-high heels Her eyes were sharp, calculating She was exactly the kind of challengein Vegas long?"

"Just a few days"

"Is this your first ti to offer to show you around"

"I’ married in these shoes in a couple of hours"

My response snuffed out the desire in her eyes, and she sratulations"

"Thanks," I said, takingwith the shoe box inside

I left, feeling much better about uys’ trip and leading her back to my hotel rootastic to go ho look in her eyes Nothing was better than co up with neays to ain I lived for that shit now, and it aythe Bellagio, I had picked up a suit and a gold band for Abby, and was right back where I started: in our hotel roorabbed the re over to untie my sneakers A familiar scene lit up the screen It was Keaton, quartered off with yellow tape, and still sround surrounding was saturated ater

The reporter was interviewing a tearful girl, describing how her room to hear if she was a the dead I couldn’t hold it in anymore I covered my face with my hands and rested my elbows on my knees My body shook as I mourned my friends and all the people I didn’t knoho’d lost their lives, as I apologized over and over for being the reason why they were there, and being toomyself in When I couldn’t cry any water until I got back into the frame of mind Abby needed me to be in

She didn’t want to see ht in ne, tiedthe door close, I took one long, last look at the rooh this door, I’d be Abby’s husband That was the only thing that an to pound The rest of my life was just hours away

The elevator opened, and I followed the loudly patterned carpet through the casino The suit , wondering where the fine-looking asshole sporting Converse was off to When I was about halfway through the casino, I noticed a wo into her cell phone I stopped dead in my tracks It was Abby

Instinctively, I stepped to the side, partially hiding myself at the end of a row of slot , and the chatter, I couldn’t hear what she was saying, butto? Didn’t she want to marry me? Should I confront her? Should I just wait it out and hope to God she doesn’t call it off?

Abby picked herself off the floor, struggling with her bags Everything in me wanted to run to her and help, but I was afraid I was fucking terrified that if I approached her in that ht tell me the truth, and I was afraid to hear it The selfish bastard in me took over, and I let her walk away

Once she was out of sight, I sat on an earettes out of arette sizzled before it glowed red while I pulled in a long drag of sed her ardless of the answer, I was going to have to figure out a way Even if she couldn’t go through with the wedding, I couldn’t lose her

I sat there for a long ti dollar bills into the slot htdrunk before the wedding wouldn’t solve a dahts Loving her wasn’t enough I needed to grow the fuck up, get a real job, quit drinking, fighting, and controlthat I would ht then

My phone chi I texted Abby, worried how she ht respond

I miss u

Abby

I s the text was fro that words couldn’t convey what I was feeling

I miss u too

T-minus one hour U ready yet?

Not yet U?

Hells yes I look ducking a When u c ?

Fucking goddamn auto correct Pic?

No! It’s bad luck!

Ur lucky 13 You have good luck

Urme So clearly u don’t And don’t call me that

Love u baby

Love u too See u soon

Nervous?

Of course Aren’t you?