A Simple Date.

I accompanied Abigail to the photo studio after she returned. John planned to propose to her, and we picked a Niagara Falls backdrop for our portrait. Afterward, we walked over to the Imperial Theater to enjoy a short moving picture show together, spending a quiet, pleasant evening in town.

I was initially guessing that something bad had happened when Abigail went off on her own, but she eventually returned safely. We decided to head over to the local photo studio in town.

John was acting a bit funny, just as Abigail had mentioned earlier. I knew that John was planning to propose to his lady on that day, hoping she would agree to marry him.

When we finally arrived at the photo studio, the goal was to take some good photographs. I thought John might take the opportunity to propose to Abigail inside while they were posing. The photographer seemed a bit absent-minded and kept forgetting things, even though John clearly explained that they were there to get a picture taken.

The owner pointed out that they needed to pick a backdrop first.

The studio had several options available, including a night sky, a mountain scene, an open prairie, and Niagara Falls. The shop owner allowed me to select the background by pulling a lever to cycle through the choices.

I pulled the lever, but Abigail did not really like the first backdrop and asked me to try something else.

The next option was a starry night wallpaper, which John thought looked fine, but Abigail found it a bit too spooky. She suggested that we should look at all the available options before making a final decision.

Since Abigail mentioned that the choice was ultimately up to me, I scrolled back through the options to find the best one.

I went all the way back to the Niagara Falls backdrop because I really liked how it looked.

The photographer mentioned that the chosen backdrop was simply perfect. He noted that he used to have a real picture of the Congo River, but it required real grass cards that he could not afford to keep.

He then instructed the couple to stand in place and adopt a pose they felt comfortable with.

With the camera ready, I selected a nice pose for them. I picked a cozy, romantic pose, and the photographer captured the picture.

While he went to the back to develop the frame, Abigail smiled and laughed at John, teasing him about how a tough gunslinger like him was now posing for romantic portraits.

The photographer returned shortly with the finished photograph, and it turned out beautifully. The portrait cost five dollars, which felt like a significant amount of money for that time period.

After paying the fee, we stepped outside the studio. I expected John to propose right there, but he held off.

Abigail then mentioned that she wanted to see the moving pictures at the local cinema, as she had never experienced one before.

John agreed to take her, so we walked across the street toward the Imperial Theater.

I bought two tickets from the attendant at the entrance for fifty cents total. We went inside the quiet hall and sat down to watch the simple animated show, where I placed an arm around Abigail. The couple had a short lived quality time till the show ended.