the ten

e Logan told

arriage, ten "f

to beg, to cry, to p

alwa

he fight was

it on hi

papers," he

d printouts, dest

de it a c

ined his ent

a small bag, his mo

ed with a fa

else stirred w

ld ember o

' t beg

cry, not in

stay silent,

le had t

break

e bag over

't look

a

, the sound echoing in the sudde

he tires crunching on the gra

his time of year, seemed to se

t felt

ng time, the spilled c

a shar

e my mom gave me, slipp

d on the ma

foot as a shar

y regis

final punctuation m

ce, a space I usually avoided

n the desk, clos

left it

trembled as

my eye: "The

ryp

od ran

pro

ssword. Our

, the one I always made a quiet fuss

ope

ents mad

after

s of

"pathetic" attempts to win

logies for things t

eeds something in

amily friend," to make me jealous, or

my pain

was a game, a

man struggli

calculate

e letter to me – a te

ays, before the money, b

ary student,

arming, a

for him, supported his dr

distance was just him

efforts showe

em as ent

ays started over

ked wasn't t

I made was

wasn't folde

d declare it wa

atch me

wreck, he' d "graci

e t

as the

ffee, these "im

part of t

sc

my part perfectly

me with the force

cherished; it

n't valued; it

loved owning me, break

joyed polishin

to beg for th

g devotion after t

against the years of his meticulous

nd that broke not just the pat

f me that

o

ag

would be no beg

Miller was no

his game. I wa

lve settled

ken doll. He wo

a new pani

loc

' s silve

a symbol of the true love I craved,

ost prized

welry box, my

as g

to f

uldn't care, bu

gala tonight. He' d be th

reconcile, but

ith a mixture of dre

simple dres

care how

was thick with perfum

s group of frie

er, trying t

onight, tail between her

one. He' s really going to make her sweat t

ces were

rough me, followed by

ll in on hi

m behind a large

risingly steady, "I' m here to as

laught

eyes w

he script they