Roxie pasted a smile on her face, but inside, she yearned like she stood in a field staring at the distant stars above—longing, longing, longing.

She glanced outside at the sky, filled with clouds and smog. All the pollution, all that hell—even the stars didn’t stand a chance.

The dreams that surfaced upon meeting up with him again winked out of existence, stars darkening for good.

As she’d walked along this street, a million stars stretched across an indigo canvas, holding all the freedom she’d yearned for every night.

Outside, Vegas stretched out with thousands of glittering lights, as if the city waged war on the stars above.