It’s a Friday night hot and humid, like death. There was a smell of love in the air with a twinge of surprise. But she wanted to dance. Little did she know, it would be dinner, and a dance with the devil.

“But Tyler I wanted to dance, tonight is our date night, you know Friday, a movie in a cool theater then we dance the night away.” Sherry whined.

But I already sent the invitations, the guests will be here in two minutes and…” I paused thinking of the surprise waiting behind the first speech. “you should be ready now we need to get the last minute-” I was cut off by a knock on the door followed by the hush sounds of a muffled crowd. “Get ready” I warned.

I opened the door to warmly welcome the guests “welcome one and all to my house and we will let the true feast begin” I welcomed as the crowd began to muffle inside. I greeted each of my “Ex’s” in a different way, “Hey Stacy.”, “What’s new Charlotte?”, “How’ve you been Becca?” and each responded, a man in their arms with a silent nod and a subtle “Hello.”

All of the men wore their best jet-black or pin-striped suits each with a vermillion carnation. While every girl was wearing a tight a-line dress each in a different color, including my current girlfriend, Sherry, her dress was a fine flowing ruby, like a split river of blood that matched her blonde hair and crystalline eyes perfectly. But at this moment her emotion was the red of the dress, blushing in embarrassment and red hot with fury and I begin to think, damn you’re cute when you’re angry, but I held back.

As the crowd sat around the unending table I began my first speech.

“I have a surprise for you all I have cheated on each of you with each other.” Gasps came from around the crowd. I dropped hints everywhere, I wondered how they could be surprised, but hey you can’t fix stupid. “It may surprise you but I may only pick one. Now I will say why I got together with you and why I broke up. Stacy, you have the gift of cute and the curse of frizz and fizz. Charlotte, you have the gift of provoking and the curse of persuasion” she seemed to smile at that remark and her new boyfriend just giggled next to her. “Becca, you have the gift of dance and the curse of knowledge.” seeing as she knew I was going to say it she popped up in her seat as a laugh came up from her diaphragm. “ And finally Sherry, you have the gift of one liners and the curse…of curves.” at that she plucked her knife up from the table in fury and set it down with the gentle hands I saw on the terrace under that beautiful night sky.