Roger had never seen anything like Las Vegas. The neon lights, the endless hum of slot machines, and the parade of strangers, all chasing something they couldn’t quite name.

He came from a small town in North Texas, where folks lived slow, honest lives, and the biggest excitement was the Friday night football game. But here he was, just twenty-two, standing under the glaring lights of the Strip, his cowboy boots scuffed from walking all day, his wide-brim hat tipped low as he took in the world around him.

It was in a club off the Strip, hidden just enough to seem exclusive but flashy enough to be found, where Roger first laid eyes on her. The sign outside said “Devon” in big, red letters, and for reasons he couldn’t explain, something pulled him inside. The air was thick with smoke, perfume, and desire. Music thumped low and slow, and there she was, like a siren in the dim light.

ENGINE LIGHT | Beer & Skittles (youtube.com)

Devon was tall, confident, her long legs moving with a grace that Roger had only seen in dreams. She had a smile that could make a man forget where he came from, and eyes that made him want to get lost. She wasn’t the kind of woman you could take home to meet your mother—Roger knew that much—but there was something about her that made him feel like he was the only one in the room.

“Hey there, cowboy,” she said, sliding up next to him at the bar after her set. Her voice was smooth, like a shot of whiskey, and it went straight to his head.

Roger, always a gentleman, tipped his hat and introduced himself, “Name’s Roger. I’m new in town.”

Devon smiled, her red lipstick glowing under the low lights. “I figured. You’re too sweet to be from around here.” She leaned in closer. “What brings a country boy like you to Sin City?”

Roger told her about his life back in North Texas. About his family, his values, how he’d come to Vegas chasing dreams bigger than his little town could hold. As he talked, Devon listened, really listened, which wasn’t something she often did. She’d heard it all before—men telling their stories, thinking they were different, thinking they could save her. But Roger was different. He wasn’t trying to save anyone. He was just… good.

As the weeks passed, Roger kept coming back to the club. Not because of the show, but because of Devon. He’d sit and wait for her to finish her shift, and they’d walk the Strip together, her arm linked with his. Devon had been around the block more times than she cared to admit. Brooklyn born and raised, she had seen the world chew people up and spit them out. But with Roger, everything felt different. He made her laugh, made her feel young, made her believe, if only for a moment, that she was someone else. Someone better.

But deep down, she knew better.

“You ever think about leaving this place?” Roger asked one night as they stood by the fountain at the Bellagio, the water reflecting in her eyes.

Devon looked at him, her heart heavy. She had tried to escape once—tried to build a life where no one knew her as ‘Devon,’ where she was just a girl with dreams. But the past had a way of finding you, no matter how fast you ran. “I don’t know if someone like me can just leave,” she said softly.

Roger looked at her with that same innocence, that hope she found both intoxicating and terrifying. “Come back to Texas with me,” he said suddenly. “I’ve got land, a family, and there’s no one else I’d rather share it with.”

Her heart stammered. For a moment, she could see it—her, standing on a porch overlooking a quiet field, a dog at her feet, Roger by her side. It was everything she didn’t deserve but everything she suddenly wanted.

But Devon was Devon, and she knew how this story would end.

One night, after one of their long walks, she looked at him, really looked at him. “Roger, you know I’m not who you think I am, right? I’ve done things, been places… I’m not good for you.”

Roger smiled, brushing a strand of her hair away from her face. “I don’t care about all that. I care about you.”

Tears welled up in her eyes, and for the first time in a long time, Devon felt vulnerable. But she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t let this boy give up his world for her. She was a bad girl, from the start, and she would only break his heart. It was what she was best at.

“I love you, Roger,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “But I’m no good for you. I’ll just hurt you. I know it.”

He shook his head, refusing to believe it. “It doesn’t have to be that way.”

But it did. She knew it did.

And so, the next day, Roger went to the club, like he always did. But Devon wasn’t there. Her name was gone from the marquee, and no one seemed to know where she’d gone. Just like that, she had disappeared, leaving behind nothing but the memory of a woman who had tried to be more than she was.

Roger sat in his truck that night, staring at the “engine light” blinking on the dashboard, a warning he hadn’t noticed until now. Maybe it had been there all along—telling him to turn back, to stop before it was too late.

But by then, it already was.

LYRICS

My brand new car was still in park
When you came to my town
With your short skirt and fancy smile
Spinning round and round

Oh I didn’t know what hit me
I was knocked down on the floor
A car crash was no accident
Got me begging you for more

Baby I wasn’t ready
I know I stole your heart
No airbag to save you now
I was a bad girl from the start

Every time I think of you
My engine light goes on
Every time I see your face
I know I can’t go on

My engine light goes on and on
Searching for your love
Tried every greaser fix in town
Even from the man above

Oh I can’t seem to shut it off
so what can one man do?
My engine light keeps flashing strong
Flashing strong for you

Baby I wasn’t ready
I know I stole your heart
No airbag to save you now
I was a bad girl from the start

Every time I think of you
My engine light goes on
Every time I see your face
I know I can’t go on

With this charade
Thumper’s not my name
Get off the street boy
You’re gonna burn in flames
Just give me 50
And tell your friends
You’re my bad boyfriend

Baby I wasn’t ready
I know I stole your heart
No airbag to save you now
I was a bad girl from the start

Whoa every time I think of you
My engine light goes on
Every time I see your face
I know I can’t go on

Every time I think of you
I know I can’t go on
Every time I see your face
My engine light goes on
I see your face
Your face
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Written by Johnny Punish
Produced by Punish Studios enhanced by A.I.