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He grabs er Then he hesitates as he realizes the thorns are going to cut into my skin as he puts it on

“Do it,” I say, not able to think of a better way to represent our relationship than with this ring A ring of both thorns and petals—a ring of pain and beauty

He slides the ring ontolittle droplets of blood as it slides in place Then he stands, takes me in his arms, and we kiss

It’s a kiss I never thought I’d experience—a kiss of a man ants tothe pain this will cause us both

I feel the tears welling as his tongue pushes between my lips, but I hold them back I won’t cry in this moment I won’t allow any sadness to warp this memory

I wrap my arms around his neck and pretend he just proposed to me in the most romantic way It may not have been sweet, but it was honest, raw, and true It made me fall for him even more

Finally, he setsston takesback to town I rabtoo Finally, we head back into town to go back to the church to get married

Before we ston stops at a small shop in the middle of town He turns me in the direction, and I smile

“Give me just a minute,” I say as he hands me some cash and I step into the s Maxwell, I didn’t care what I looked like, but now that I’et married in a white dress

Most of the dresses in the small shop are beautiful vibrant patterns of the traditional Andean culture, to the point where I al a white dress I decide to settle on any dress when I spot white lace fabric at the back of the store The dress is simple—a low v-neck with thin straps and not much shape It’s perfect

I pay for the dress and quickly change at the back of the store I can’t do much about my wet hair except scrunch it and hope it dries in beautiful waves instead of a frizz ball Then I step outside, where Langston is waiting for -sleeved shirt and dark jeans

I drool just looking at him

“Ready to be my wife?”

I blush, still not sure what being his wife means, but I’m excited to find out

Together alk back into the church, where surprisingl