The elephant in the room was their ridiculous decision to hold it on the same weekend as AEW’s Revolution PPV, which of course massively curtailed the options for AEW guests (with notable exception of the lovely Taya Valkyrie).

The guests on my ‘to meet’ list were Rikishi, Sean Waltman (aka X-Pac), Sgt. Slaughter and last but not least, the wonderful Lita. All were fantastic and friendly and it was generally a chilled out weekend. Pictures of my autos are below, with dedication blurred to protect the innocent (aka me).

Now awaiting details of the 2025 event and hoping they don’t clash it with anyone’s PPVs!!

So naturally MJF gets to do one.

(written by Mars)

Hunter was standing in a airport in Italy, looking around and grinning. He was excited and was trying to refrain from bouncing on his toes. He slung his carry-on bag over his shoulder, and started checking signs for baggage claim when he heard a panicked voice speaking a different language. His gaze landed on a girl with long dark brown hair down to her waist, and even darker eyes. Her skin looked sun-kissed, and her cheeks were red with a bit of sunburn. She was small, and looked like a decent wind might knock her over.

He made his way over to her as she spoke rapidly to the employee next to her. “Um, hi,” he said, giving a small smile. “Are you okay?”

The woman looked at him blankly and blinked at him. “Okay?” She tilted her head to the side, scrunching up her nose. Her voice came out in a thick Italian accent. “Che cosa?”

He bit his lip, “Uhh …”

The employee rolled his eyes at Hunter. “She doesn’t speak English fluently.”

The woman’s eyes darted to the employee, frowning.

“Oh,” Hunter frowned as well. “Why is she upset?”

“She lost her baggage.”

“Yikes,” he rubbed the back of his neck. “Um, can I help?”

“No, I’ve already told her everything. She’s just ranting annoyingly now about bad airports.”

Hunter glared at him. “That’s not a nice thing to say. Especially because she can’t understand you.”

“Not … nice?” The woman’s frown deepened and she dropped her carry-on and put her hands on her hips. “Who?” She demanded as sternly as she could while struggling to form the foreign word.

A grin crossed his face now and he pointed to the employee. “Him.”

She glanced at the employee and then back at Hunter, giving an exasperated sigh. “Sì. Not nice.”

The employee glared at each of them in turn and then walked away as Hunter chuckled. “I-I’m Hunter,” he pointed to his chest, and then held out his hand.

She gave a slight nod of understanding and shook his hand. “Hunter?” He liked the way his name sounded mixed with her accent, and he could have sworn he felt butterflies erupt in his stomach.

He nodded. “Yes. And you?”

She giggled, “Lucia.” She held her hand over her heart.

The way she said her own name was enough to make him a little weak in the knees. He noticed now the way she stood, and the way she spoke, had an air of confidence about them, and her eyes danced with a hint of mischief, almost like she knew she was driving him crazy with just the sound of her voice. He hadn’t realized he was a sucker for accents that moment. “Um, it’s nice to meet you.”

She raised an eyebrow at him and made a face like she was thinking hard about his words. Lucia closed her eyes for a moment before she opened them again and nodded. “Sì,” she grinned, clearly pleased with herself. She then started speaking to him, using gestures and slowing down her speech. He watched her carefully, trying to decipher what she meant.

“Uh …” He bit his lip. He shrugged and shook his head.

She gave a giggle, and made like she was a pulling on a train whistle. “Choo, choo.”

He laughed, “A train! Well, where are you going?”

She pointed to a crowd of people and then took his hand, dragging him along, after she had grabbed her bag, assuming for some reason or other that he was coming with her. She kept talking in Italian, and though he didn’t understand a word of it, he loved the way it sounded whenever she looked at him with a teasing look in her eyes.

Lucia guided him through the crowd, and it wasn’t until they were standing in front of baggage claim that he realized she was waiting for him to grab his bag. She looked between him and endless amounts of suitcases, still holding his hand. He wondered if the calluses on his fingers bothered her or not. Hunter looked away from her, trying to spot his suitcase. When he found it, he reached forward and grabbed it with his free hand after checking the luggage tag. “That’s all,” he said, putting the strap on his shoulder.

She waited another moment before she seemed to understand he was done and she held his hand tighter before taking him out of the airport. “Where are you taking me?”

“Posso offrirti un caffè?” She asked, leading him down the street.

“Caffè?” Hunter said, trying to say the word exactly as she had, but ended up just making her giggle at his bad pronunciation. He blushed, “Um, you mean like coffee?”

She nodded, giving his hand a squeeze. She smirked a little, clearly enjoying his confusion.

He bit his lip, “Uh, yeah, I’d love to have some coffee with you,” he adjusted his bag on his shoulder. “I have to check into my hotel, though.”

She shook her head and waved her free hand, as if that was some small detail he could overlook. She spoke so fast again as she opened the door to a café, that Hunter couldn’t even catch half of what she said. She didn’t look like she particularly cared, dragging him all the way up to the counter as he tried his best not to hit people with his luggage.

She spoke to the barista, a smirk playing on her lips the entire time, and Hunter felt like he’d gotten himself into quite the situation. This girl was a flirt. She giggled as the barista gave quiet chuckles while he accepted the money she handed him.

“Hey,” Hunter whispered to her, making her deep brown eyes glance up at him, almost making him forget his train of thought. Almost. “Didn’t you say you have a train to catch? Choo, choo?” He found himself blushing again.

“Choo, choo,” she nodded, feigning seriousness.

He bit his lip, “Y-Yeah, when?” She only winked at him and shrugged, taking the coffees that she was handed, letting his hand go for the first time since she’d taken it.

“Lucia, if you have a train to catch-”

“She doesn’t,” the barista said, making Hunter’s gaze snap over to him. “She’s picking someone up at the train station.”

“Wh-Who?”

The barista shrugged, “She didn’t say.”

“Can you-” Before Hunter could finish his sentence, Lucia was putting his coffee cup in his hand and pulling his arm to a table. They sat across form each other and she was giggling.

“Cheat.” She smirked, taking a sip from her coffee cup.

He blinked at her, “Cheat?”

“Sì,” she nodded, sighing dramatically. “You cheat.”

“Me? How did I-” He cut himself off, looking off to the side before he understood what she meant. “You know, you have a bigger grasp on the English language than you make it seem.”

She stared at him blankly. “English?”

He nodded. “Yeah, you’re making this hard on purpose.”

She set her coffee down and nudged it to the side, leaning forward, resting her elbows not he table, and her chin in her hands. She narrowed her eyes at him, like that would help her understand his words.

“Perhaps not,” he smirked a little.

“English …” She bit her lip, still staring at him, “Eh.”

He chuckled. “Eh? My Italian is zero.”

She muttered in Italian, rolling her eyes.

He raised an eyebrow at her, “I hope none of that was bad.”

“Bad?” She frowned. “Me?” He quickly shook his head, “No, no. Not you.”

She let out a breath of relief and ran a hand through her hair, staring at her coffee as she leaned back in her chair.

“Lucia?”

She glanced up at him, the mischief in her eyes fading to sadness.

“I … I’d like to get to know you, but I … I don’t know how,” he gave a weak chuckle. “I want to say nice things to you, but I have no idea how.”

“Nice?” She smiled slightly, just a twitch of her lips upwards.

“Yeah, nice things. I’m going to have to learn Italian to just give you a compliment.” He grinned at her now.

“Complimenti?” She sat up straight. “Me?”

He nodded, chuckling, “Yeah, I want to call you pretty and all of that.” Hunter almost couldn’t believe the words coming out of his own mouth. He didn’t think of himself as forward, but right now he couldn’t seem to stop himself from being honest. Maybe it was because Lucia couldn’t really understand everything he said, but he had a surge of confidence and he wasn’t going to let it go to waste.

“Ci vieni spesso qui?” She asked, stirring her coffee.

“Uh, that …” He blinked, trying to figure it out what she had said. The expression on her face was patient, and she didn’t seem to be in any kind of rush now. “I don’t know.”

She giggled, shaking her head.

The two of them went back and forth, trying to get each other to understand what they were saying, though neither of them would ever know they were on the same line of thought. They started drawing to aid with the telling of their stories. Hunter’s were far less impressive than hers, and he wondered what Lucia did for a living, if it was involved with art at all, because even drawing on napkins, she was doing fairly well.

He smiled at her as she sketched out something, biting her lip as she held back giggles. Hunter was trying to focus on his phone, looking up common Italian phrases, but it was near impossible to concentrate with her gaze sometimes fixed on him, her eyes dancing with amusement and the tiniest bits of wonder. Hunter couldn’t imagine what about him struck her as interesting, but he was grateful for it nonetheless.

His gaze went back and forth from the screen of his phone and her as she tried to make out how to say the foreign language that it was showing him. “La … Lavoro?”

Her gaze snapped up from what she was doing. She grinned at him, “Che cosa?”

“Work,” Hunter said, but then cleared his throat. “L-Lavoro.”

“Lavoro.” She nodded, confirming his word with the grin still on her face. She giggled, “Sono lo scrittore.”

“Uhh …” He blinked at her. “What?”

She laughed a little, repeating herself and then going back to her drawing. Hunter waited patiently, and when she finished, she handed him the napkin. Drawn out in a neat little sketch, was a desk, what seemed to be paper, a pen, and a small figure sitting in a chair.

“Io scrivo.” She said simply, and then pretended to write something on her hand.

“Write what?” He asked and then he snapped his fingers in understanding. “You’re a writer! You write! That’s your job!”

She raised an eyebrow at him, but a smirk was working its way across her face as she seemed to know that he had figured out what she meant.

“I-I write too.” He put his hand over his heart, “Me too.”

She gave him the same blank stare he had given her before. Hunter was used to getting this look from Lucia. He tried to remember what she had said, “Uh, io scrivo too.” It didn’t have the same sound when it came from him, and he flinched after he said it, knowing he was probably saying it wrong.

Lucia gasped and clapped her hands together. She rushed through her next words, overjoyed that they had something in common. Hunter only wished they also had a language in common as well.

She stopped a waiter, and spoke to him quickly, the waiter’s eyebrows raising for a moment and then he chuckled and faced Hunter, “The lady wishes me to tell you that she’s very happy you’re a writer, and wants to know what you write.”

“Songs,” Hunter said quickly. “I-I write songs.”

The waiter spoke to Lucia and she grinned widely at Hunter before saying something to the waiter again. He laughed and then translated for Hunter, “The lady says if you’re a songwriter, then you must sing, and wishes for you to sing to her.”

Hunter blushed, “O-Oh, I … I couldn’t … I-I mean …” The confidence he’d had earlier seemed to be knocked out of him. “I mean, I can sing, but not … not now.”

Lucia giggled and said something quickly to the waiter. “The lady says she thinks you’re nervous. She says not to be, because if you sound as pretty as you look, you have nothing to worry about. And the moment you can sing to her, she wishes you would.”

After that, the waiter walked away, leaving the two of them to continue their guessing at what the other was saying.

“You really want me to sing to you?” He bit his lip.

She slid her chair over so she was right next to him, nodding enthusiastically. She put her forefinger to her lips, “Shh,” she whispered. With a gentle touch, she brought his lips close to her ear, “Sing to me?” She asked, her accent making his heart flutter.

He bit his lip, humming a few notes, but before he could even get the first words out, she gasped, and pulled her cellphone out and in a moment, she held it up for him to see. There, displayed on the screen was himself, the cover art for his debut album staring back at him. “That’s me!” He said, excitement filling his voice before he could stop it. “Y-You recognized my voice from just me humming?”

She looked at him and pointed to the picture. “You.” She said softly. “Pretty voice,” she said, looking unsure of the words she was saying. “Pretty voice.”

He felt his face heat up again. “Th-Thanks.” He smiled a little at her, “I really have to learn some Italian. I cant believe I-I’m going to learn a second language just to try to flatter you.” He grinned.

…..

            She was walking so close to the road he almost didn’t see her. It was dark and the night absorbed her. When he finally saw movement out of the corner of his eye he jerked the wheel slightly in surprise. His car was past her in a second, his heart hammering in his chest. Anyone could easily hit her and they would never even have known she was there.

            He glanced in his side mirror but he could no longer see her. With one hand on the wheel and one worrying at his lip he glanced at the clock. He was already so late. But she was alone and she had to be cold. He sighed and then turned the wheel until he was driving back the way he’d come.

            He drove slower this time and when he finally saw her, he slowed the car even further and rolled the window down. “Are you okay?”

            She jumped at his voice and turned. The snow swirled lazily around her and landed softly on the hood of her jacket. He could see her face better when she turned to look at him and he saw now that she didn’t look so great. Her makeup was smeared slightly across her cheeks and she was shivering in the cold. Her hair that showed beneath her hat and the hood pulled over top of it hung limply on her shoulders.

            Her eyes widened at the sight of him. “Yeah I’m fine.” She glanced around the dark and silent street, her eyes shifting to her left and then to her right. Her hand was in her pocket and he could just see a glint of what looked like a small can. She had her fingers wrapped around a can of pepper spray. It wasn’t until then that Hunter realized what he was doing.

            He dropped his forehead against his steering wheel as his ears turned pink. He had just stopped a girl alone at night on the side of the road. She was probably terrified of him.

            “I’m – I’m sorry,” he tried. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I just thought maybe something was wrong. It’s dark and people might not be able to see you.” He shut his mouth for a second. “I can leave,” he said. “Yeah I’ll leave.” He got his window halfway rolled up before his conscience began to kick in. Funny how his conscience sounded a lot like his mom.

            You always take the time to help someone who looks like they need it. “Yeah even if it makes you a creepy stalker,” he muttered.

            “What was that?” the girl asked, still watching him apprehensively. “Nothing. Sorry. Listen, I don’t really feel okay about just leaving you out here. Even with your pepper spray.” Her cheeks turned pink – or at least pinker than they had been from the cold.

            “Do you need to call someone? You can use my phone if you need to. Or did your car break down? I could wait with you until a tow truck comes.”

            She shook her head quickly and the movement sent her knit hat plopping down over her eyes. She huffed a sigh as she reached up and yanked it off her head. This girl really did not look like she was having the best night.

            “I could give you a ride somewhere.” He really had no idea how to do this without seeming like a serial killer. Would it make it worse if he promised that he wasn’t a serial killer? He thought it might.

            She shook her head again.

            “I’m sorry I just don’t feel right about leaving you out here. It’s no trouble. If you even just used my phone

            “It’s fine. I think if you were going to kidnap me you would have either forcibly shoved me into your car by now or just given up when you saw what I looked like.”

            The corner of his mouth turned up. “You don’t look that bad.”

            “Gee thanks,” she said.

            “You really look like you need a ride,” he tried once more.

            “I do…” she chewed on her lip while she looked at him, debating what to do.

            Hunter reached into his pocket and fished out his wallet, sliding his license out of the leather. “I know it doesn’t mean much but you could look at my license. I’m Hunter by the way. Or you could text someone my name if it would make you feel better.”

            He mentally hit himself. If she texted a friend his name… He could see the headline now. ‘Country singer Hunter Hayes picks up girls on the street,’ yeah that’d be just great.

            “I can’t text someone, I don’t have my phone.” She smiled slightly as his face tinged pink for the second time in their short acquaintance.

            “Right,” he said, running his hand through his hair, making it flop in front of his face slightly.

            She scanned his license again and handed it back to him through the window. “I am really sorry to put you out but if you don’t mind I could use the ride.”

            No kidding she could use a ride. Her whole body was shaking from the cold as he leaned over his seat to push the passenger door open. She climbed inside but not without a little difficulty at the height of his truck. In hindsight, his truck that seemed about a mile off the ground might not have been the best match for his own height but he still loved it.

            Once she was settled in the leather seat, she pulled the door closed and it abruptly cut off the biting wind that had been flowing into the car. How long had she been out in this?

            “I’m really sorry about this. There’s no way you have nothing better to do tonight of all nights. You don’t have to give me a ride. I was okay walking. I can just get out here it’s no big deal. I was fine walking really.” She said all of this in a rush.

“It’s no trouble at all and there’s no way you were fine walking in this,” he told her. “It’s a blizzard out there.” This statement was punctuated by the flick as he turned on the windshield wipers, attempting to combat the now aggressive snow flying at his car.

            “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t even ask you where I was taking you,” Hunter said.

            “This way is fine,” she told him. He nodded and then reached forward, pressing the button to turn on the radio with his eyes still on the road.

            “You can change it to whatever,” he told her, nodding his head to the radio.

            “No, I love this song!” she told him excitedly as she reached forward to turn it up. That was when he heard the beginning chords and stiffened, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly.

            It was the beginning of I Mean You. He groaned under his breath. Why did he have to turn the stupid radio on. Silence is perfectly fine. Silence is nice. It was even worse when she sang every single word under her breath.

            “He has such a pretty voice, don’t you think?”

            “It’s nice,” is all he said.

            “Sorry, I guess you’re not a country fan,” she responded.

            “No, I do like country,” he told her. If this wasn’t so uncomfortable for him he would laugh. He had picked up this girl off the side of the road, and by some coincidence she knew his music and liked it enough to know the words.

            As the song came to an end, the radio host came back on the air. “And that was I Mean You, the new single from – ” Hunter reached forward quickly and flipped the dial until he found some Christmas music.

            She looked over at Hunter. “I guess I’m just in the mood for Christmas music tonight?” he said it like a question.

            She laughed lightly, “well that’s understandable considering the date and all.”

            He smiled at her, relaxing slightly in his seat. She seemed nice enough. So what if she found out he sang that song. She probably wouldn’t care all that much anyway.

            “I don’t know your name,” he realized suddenly.

            “I guess I never did tell you. You were too busy trying to prove you weren’t threatening me,” she answered jokingly. “My name’s Hailey.”

            “It’s nice to meet you Hailey,” Hunter said.

            “It’s nice to meet you too Hunter.” She glanced out the window. “You can drop me off here,” Hailey told him.

            He looked at the building as he pulled into the parking lot. It was a small café that read “Pete’s” over the front door. There were only two other cars in the parking lot. Hunter hesitated for a moment as Hailey put her hand on the door. “Do you have anywhere to go tonight?” he asked her.

            She worried at her lip. “Well no not exactly. I don’t live around here and I wasn’t the one who was driving so I don’t have a way to get back. I figured I would find a bus stop from here or something.”

            Hunter shook his head and glanced at the clock again. It was already 9:30. “I know we’ve done this already but I can’t leave you here,” Hunter told her.

            “I don’t have anywhere else to go tonight and not much will be open. I’ll be fine waiting here.”

            He almost rolled his eyes at her. “You know, it would make me the worst person ever if I just left you here. And besides if my momma found out she would lock me in the closet without dinner – and she makes really great food.”

            Hailey smiled softly, “I won’t tell your momma Hunter,” she whispered conspiratorially.

            “Yeah but you don’t know her. She’d just know,” Hunter said mock seriously.

            “Come on,” Hunter said, his hands already on the wheel again. “You can come home with me and I can drive you home tomorrow. It’s not a big deal.”

            She looked unsure again as her hand still lingered on the door handle. “We won’t be alone,” Hunter said quickly. “My mom and Dad would love to have you.”

             Hailey sighed and then nodded her head, “I’m really sorry.” She settled back in her seat again.

            “I think we should start a swear jar but instead, every time you apologize you have to put a dollar in,” he said, attempting to make her feel more comfortable.

            “Okay, okay I’ll stop I promise,” Hailey said as she laughed.

            By the time the gravel of Hunter’s parent’s driveway crunched under the wheels of his car it was after 10:00.

            Hunter rang the doorbell once they were both standing on the porch. His mom opened the door after about ten seconds and pulled Hunter into a hug the second the door was halfway open. “Hey Momma,” he said hugging her back tightly. “Sorry I’m late.”

            “I was starting to worry,” she responded. “The roads are getting bad.”

            “I didn’t have much trouble,” he answered, stepping farther into the living room, and then looking back at Hailey who was still standing apprehensively on the porch. She looked like he’d just thrown her to the sharks.

            His mom turned to Hailey. “And who is this?” she asked with a kind smile.

            “It’s very nice to meet you. I don’t mean to put you out. If it’s too much trouble I can just head home,” Hailey said. She still didn’t look very comfortable.

            Hunter was relieved though that he hadn’t had to make the introductions. He wasn’t exactly sure how ‘Momma this is a girl I meant ten minutes ago walking in the freezing snow,’ would have gone over.

            Hailey neglected to mention she didn’t have a car to get home though. His momma would have died if she knew Hailey planned to walk there.

            “Don’t be silly I love to have guests. It’s wonderful to meet you. I’m Lynette,” it was then that she leaned forward and pulled Hailey into a hug as if she was a long-lost friend. Hailey looked flustered at first but then returned the hug just as enthusiastically with a smile curving her lips. She looked like she had needed a hug.

            As Hunter’s momma pulled back a startled expression flitted over her face. “Oh my you’re soaking wet! You must be freezing!”

            “Hunter what did you do, dump her in a snow bank?”  she asked exasperatedly, turning on Hunter.

            He blinked at her sheepishly. “No – I – I’ll go get you some dry clothes,” he said to Hailey.

            “Thank you,” she responded.

            He returned to the living room after digging in his drawers and coming up with some old sweatpants that had a relatively small number of holes, and a large t-shirt that had a picture of a guitar on the front.

            Hailey was standing behind the counter next to his mother, adding sprinkles to Christmas tree shaped sugar cookies.

            “Sorry these were the best I could find,” he told Hailey as he handed her the clothes. He felt like a teenager again, talking to a girl awkwardly in front of his parents.

            Once she was pointed to the bathroom, Hailey went to change.

“Hunter why was this girl soaking wet and freezing? Doesn’t she have family she needs to get to? You know you could offer to drive her home.”

“I know momma but I don’t know if she has anyone she needs to get to. I thought staying here was better than staying by herself.”

Lynette smiled. “That’s my boy. I knew I did something right,” she said as she ruffled his hair.

Hailey came back dressed in Hunter’s old clothes. She had tied her hair up in a knot and the sweatpants dragged on the floor but she looked comfortable and dry.

            “Leo get the pie out of the oven,” Lynette said. “I almost have the first batch of cookies done. You all can sit down at the table.”

             Hunter sat down at the kitchen table beside Hailey and piled mashed potatoes on his plate before passing them to Hailey.

            With the whole family plus one settled around the table, Leo said grace and they began to eat. “You guys didn’t have to wait for me to get here to eat,” Hunter said.

            “Oh we couldn’t have Christmas Eve dinner with only two of us. It wouldn’t feel right. I’m just glad you were able to make it home for Christmas Eve at all this year. You’re always so busy on the road. I guess it’s a good thing but I do miss you,” Lynette responded.

            Hunter looked over to find Hailey looking at him. “I missed you guys too,” Hunter told his parents.

            With the dishes cleared, Hunter asked Hailey if she wanted to watch It’s A Wonderful Life. He was worried as he asked it. He knew it was a cheesy choice but he couldn’t resist it. He loved the movie.

            She agreed with a grin. “I watch it every Christmas and I haven’t watched it yet this year.”

            “Perfect,” Hunter responded. With the movie flickering on the screen in front of them, they piled blankets on top of themselves on the couch.

            “Hey honey it’s getting late. We’re gonna go to bed but you stay up and finish your movie,” Lynette told Hunter.

            He nodded before kissing her on the cheek. “Merry Christmas,” she responded with a nod toward the clock on the mantle that now read 12:03. “Don’t stay up too late or Santa won’t come,” she told them with a smile.

            “I’ll see you in the morning,” she said as she bent down to hug Hailey who was still sitting on the couch. “I made up the guest room for you so you can just head on in there whenever you’re ready.”

            “Thank you so much for everything,” Hailey said. Lynette just smiled as she made her way to her bedroom.

            About halfway through the movie, Hunter looked over and noticed Hailey looking at something peeking out of a drawer in the end table. He saw with a jolt that it was his Through My Eyes album and he cringed. Hunter reached carefully over her and shut the drawer, hiding the cd. His parents loved that album.

            “Was that you?” Hailey asked.

            “Um yeah, it was. That was a really long time ago. I can’t believe they still have that.”

            “I can. It’s adorable,” Hailey said with a smile. When Hunter looked away she sighed slightly. “Hunter I know that was you. On the radio, in the car.”

            He looked back at her, shocked. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

            “I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

            Hunter nodded like he understood but he was still surprised that she hadn’t said anything. “Okay well now that you know who I am, can I ask you a question?”

            “Yeah of course. You’re letting me stay in your house, the least I could do is answer a question.”

            “It’s my parent’s house and I keep telling you it’s no trouble. Why were you walking on the road alone? I mean, it’s Christmas Eve.”

            “Well technically it’s Christmas now,” she said, trying to break the tension. She sighed heavily. “We were taking a drive to see all the Christmas lights. Me and my boyfriend Evan I mean. Long story short he kicked me out of the car and left. But, I guess in hindsight, it wasn’t smart of me to break up with him in the car, two hours from home on Christmas Eve. Needless to say, he was not happy with me and I ended up trudging through the snow and I guess that’s where you found me.”

            “I’m really sorry. That’s awful,” was all Hunter could think to say.

            “Hah!” Hailey said, poking him in the arm. “You apologized to me! You owe a dollar to the apology jar!”

            Hunter let out a loud laugh. “Yeah, yeah.”

            Hailey moved closer to Hunter as she snuggled farther beneath the blankets. After a moment she said softly, “thank you for stopping to make sure I was okay. And for giving me a ride. And for letting me stay here. You have no idea how much it means to me.

            “Anytime,” he responded with a small smile.

      Hunter was uncomfortable.  His mother had insisted that he wear a tie, and it felt like it was too tight, and try as he might to loosen it discreetly, his mother always seemed to catch him and swatted his hands away before putting it back in its place.  He gave up on being able to breathe properly for the rest of the afternoon and hoped he wouldn’t pass out.  After all, that would only add more of a black cloud to the already gloomy day ahead of him – and almost everyone else he knew.

     He had never been to a wake before, at least not one he could remember with clarity.  He slowly walked into the room.  Everyone was either in black, or dark purples and blues.  The only bright things were the flowers and the pictures of man who had passed away that decorated boards by the casket.  The pictures were mostly of the man who had passed away with his children and grandchildren.  He looked happy if not a little serious sometimes in the pictures, with his nearly white hair and big smile.

     Hunter felt his mom pull him along and give hugs to the grieving family.  He mumbled his condolences, uncomfortable being close to people he barely knew, but somehow ended up caring in a distant kind of way.  His didn’t want to understand their pain, but he felt it all the same.

     “I don’t know where my other daughter is,” one of the women said thickly, though she was trying to smile.  “She’s around here somewhere.”

     He looked at the woman in front of him.  She had to have been crying most of the day, and a tissue that looked strained was being clenched in her hands. His mom replied, “She’s taking it hard?”

     She gave slight nod, her lip trembling as new tears fell down her face. “Yeah, she takes a lot of things pretty hard.”

     Hunter didn’t pay much attention to anything after that.  He followed his parents around the room, looking at pictures and barely hearing the stories people were telling, but what did catch his attention, the sight of a girl, no older than him, perhaps even younger, sliding into a side room.  He trailed after her, and peeked into the room. 

     The girl’s hands were shaking, and her long hair was down, past her shoulders and her elbows.  She held a Rosary in her hands, her fingers going over the little beads one by one, her lips barely moving in silent prayer.  Tears escaped her eyes as she tried to blink them back, and she occasionally took a shaky breath that seemed to rattle her whole body before continuing.  If she hadn’t looked so broken, she might have been pretty, but Hunter never found beauty in pain.

     He didn’t walk up to her, though part of him wished he would have.  She seemed too alone for her own good, and maybe she needed a friend.  He heard the beginnings of some prayers being said by a group of people, and he watched as the girl’s eyes looked up from her Rosary.  Someone quickly came over to her, brushing past him, and told her to come pray with the group. She slowly rose, taking a tissue and wiping away her tears before going back into the main room.  She didn’t say much, except to another girl who looked like she could be a sister.

     The air in the funeral home started to feel less and less real and more like it was suffocating him by the minute.  He found himself gazing at the pictures again, and realized the man in the closed casket in the room, had been in the army.  His heart panged with double the pain and he took a shaky breath.

     “He was a Sargent,” a quiet voice said.  “A paratrooper.  He’d jump from planes.  He always said he used to be six feet tall, but the landings made him shorter.”

     Hunter looked at the girl who was standing next to him.  It was the same girl he’d seen in the side room. He gave a small smile, “Really?”

     She nodded, looking sadly at one of the pictures. “Yeah.  He was in an Abbott and Costello movie, I think – you couldn’t see him, but he was one of the paratroopers jumping in the distance.” She gave a weak chuckle. “I always thought that was really cool.”

     “That is really cool,” He said. “He sounds like a really nice guy.”

     “He was one of the best,” she blinked back tears. “You …” She looked at him.  Her brown eyes held pain beyond what he ever wanted to feel. “You didn’t know him, did you?”

     He shook his head, “No, I didn’t.”

     “His name was Louis. He liked coffee, and had the best laugh – his face would get so red-“ her voice pinched off, and she looked away for a moment, taking a deep breath. “He always got my favorite donuts for me.  He called me … He called me Miss Perfect.  He told great stories and always asked how school was going.  He loved Elvis, and country music.  He loved grandma a lot, and always liked to tease her.  It was pretty funny watching them sometimes.”  She sighed deeply. “W-Will you be here for the funeral tomorrow?”

     “I … I don’t know.”

     “Okay,” was all she said before she walked away, most likely to cry again, because she sounded like she was on the verge of breaking.

     Hunter bit his lip and watched her walk away until she was lost in the midst of other people.  He gazed at the pictures again, now with some knowledge of the man, Louis, in them, who looked so happy, and if a little silly, too.  He knew now how loved this man had been, and how much he had loved the ones around him.  He was probably tough, from having been in the army and Hunter wondered if Louis had known how much his family loved him, and how much they undoubtedly missed him now.