this is "nightline." tonight, the slender man survivor, the 12-year-old girl stabbed 19 times, in the crime that left people asking, who is slender man? and her alleged friends, plotting for months. tonight, david muir meets her for the first time. how did she crawl to safety. and also tonight, the story we never thought we would tell. george clooney married. >> i can't wait to be your husband. >> the man who thought to be a permanent bachelor, tied the knot. who is invited and who are they

playing in on this private jet. first -- >> ♪ i think it's going to go my way ♪ ♪ now is my chance, now is the time ♪

good evening and tonight, we begin with an abc news exclusive. you're going to meet a young woman with an extraordinary story of survival. she was the victim of a crime that shocked parents everywhere. stabbed 19 times, allegedly by

two of her friends who said they were trying to impress a fictional internet character called slernd man. >> she appears to be stabbed? >> what. >> reporter: in wisconsin, and a horrific steal is about to emerge. >> is there any bleeding? >> her clothing hayes blood on it. >> reporter: a birthday sleepover with three 12-year-old girls and now two others are missing. and payton crawled out of the woods and she has stab wounds, 19 of them. she is in the operator room. >> we just knew that payton teld her that morgan stabbed her.

and the police haven't been able to find the girls. >> reporter: and police believe the girls were walking. they were going to find a mansion in the woods. >> they were going to the forest. they believed there was a mansion there that slender man lived in. >> reporter: incredibly, these girls were not headed to find a mansion, where they believed a fictitious internet character truly lived. a man named slender man they were hoping to impress. outside the hospital, in the town -- >> these are the woods -- >> reporter: the frantic search for the two missing. morgan and anissa. >> two 12-year-old girls stabbing a friend nearly to death is unimaginable any time but in a small city like this. >> reporter: now, the surgeon is

about to discover how much damage is done. >> the knife came down at this point where the large branch is comes off the major artery. and cut through the tissue so the vessel is exposed. >> the knife cut through the tissue but not the wall. >> exactly. and it happened at the artery. >> had it not? >> she would have had a major heart attack from the leading and probably died win a minute or two. >> reporter: that close to death, the two other girls are found. they were here on interstate 94 headed out of wauchacha. >> both suspected it is blood on their clothes. the knife from the stabbing was in the backpack. >> reporter: police say they

were carrying granona bottles, water bottles. and one of the girls carrying a picture of her family and siblings. nights girl puts up a fight. two parents about to ask their daughter what happened too. at first, payton couldn't talk. writing to communicate. do you remember the first message she wrote? >> i want to go home. >> i want to go home. >> when can i go home? >> reporter: has payton talked about the horror of the moment? >> she said she was scared. and i asked what she remembered what happened. and she said the pain. >> reporter: how well do you remember the girls? >> they were best friends. >> they were best friends. fourth grade is when we met morgan for the first time. >> reporter: they said that payton would talk to morgan

every night on the phone. >> reporter: where there signs? >> they had arguments but everyone has arguments. >> reporter: a journey from the journal followed the closely. >> it was planned out. you can't believe this is actually 12-year-olds, speshlsly 12-year-old girls. >> reporter: they tell police they committed the crime in part of their devotion to a character they discovered on the internet. slender man. she is a character in the background, peering over children. and help from behind the world, adding to the story online. giving him character.

>> he is the thing that we fear that we don't encounter. we check under our beds for the slender man. but he is not there. >> reporter: not there because he doesn't exist. listen to what the girls telling the police. anissa saying it was morgan's idea to kill payton, proving herself worthy of slender man. >> the girls were very clear they were trying to victim. they wantned to do it as a sacrifice to slender man. >> reporter: in detail, thag describe multiple plots. >> they had originally planned to kill that friend in morgan's house. >> reporter: for some many, at that moment, the girls change their minds. >> they brought her here to the park saturday morning to kill her in the bathroom.

the big concern was finding a drain for the blood go down. >> reporter: but smipgs happens to the girls now hatching a second plot. >> there was a back and forth with morgan and anissa, who is going to stab the girl? and both chickened out and told please, they couldn't do it. >> reporter: but there would be one more plan. the girls leave that bathroom and walk down the road to the woods. payton's parents take me there, revealing what their girl told them. >> they wanted to play hide and seek in the woods. >> she sensed it. >> she said she was forced to go. >> reporter: they tell police about the game of high and seek. >> she was told to lay down in

the dirt. >> reporter: she said, i didn't breathe. she said f i sat on her, morgan can stab here. she just goes crazy. >> yeah. >> reporter: she takes the knife, turns to her friend and says, i'm not going to until you tell me to. anissa says she told morgan to go ballistic, go crazy. she is stabbed 19 times. where do you think she got the strength to crawl out of the woods? >> we asked her and she wanted to live. and tonight, for the first time, payton. in the one place that now makes her smile the most, the animal shoulder not far from her home. this is the place to come. kittens needing a home. she shows me her fave sbrit there are too many to count.

her parents wants know see her smile again. >> she has the most beautiful smile. >> reporter: did that disappear? >> for a little while. >> reporter: do you feel your daughter has been stolen from you? >> for a little bit. >> you will get her back. >> reporter: the smiles we saw, the notebooks. with the kittens on stop. some people say she is doing remarkably well, doing what happened to her. >> i would say, way beyond expectation, i'm astonished how she was able to recover. and tonight, her walk down the driveway to the car. mom, driving her back to school. >> she is an amazing child. >> she is meant to do something special. she is here for a reason. >> reporter: and we have an update on the two young suspects tonight.

morgan has been found not not competent to stand trial. and anissa will be determined if she is fit to stand trial. and up next here on "nightline," we switch gears to a story straight out of hollywood. george clooney who said he would never get married and tying the knot in venice and we are right there. i can't go, it's like bricks piling up. i wish i could find some relief. (announcer) ask your doctor about linzess-- a once-daily capsule for adults with ibs with constipation or chronic idiopathic constipation. linzess is thought to help calm pain-sensing nerves and accelerate bowel movements. it helps you proactively manage your symptoms. do not give linzess to children under 6, and it should not be given to children 6 to 17. it may harm them. don't take linzess if you have a bowel blockage. get immediate help if you develop unusual or severe stomach pain especially with bloody or black stools the most common side effect is diarrhea, sometimes severe.

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happen. george clooney said he would also be a bachelor but he fell in love with a beautiful lawyer. and tomorrow in venice they will reportedly get married.

the party list is filled with "a" listers and the paparazzi in full force. and we are in the middle of it all. >> reporter: the wedding of the year. we have just approached the hotel where the bride and groom are reported by staying. and i feel bad, like a bit of a stalker. but it's not every day that george clooney gets married. and amal alamuddin, today, the latest photos of the bride in a gorgeous red gown. three days of parties. >> she is marrying a big slesht. not surp prizing she will v has 12 dressing ready. i'm sure there will be plenty of outfit changes. >> reporter: guest willing be escorted to the hotel by private

taxis. and paparazzi have taken over the city for a star studded wedding party. spotted, matt damon and his wife, cindy crawford and her husband, randy gerber. and brad and angelina, sandra bullock and amal's sisters. and venice's city hall will shut down the roads around the building, for at least two hours, giving the couple time to enjoy their moment together privately. it's expected the guest rg staying here at the hotel cipriani. and now with a cocktail. with all that hollywood glamour

in venice, it's like victim e filming on a film set. we headed straight to the hotel to investigate. it's pretty suck v sesecluded. and it was pretty much business as nushl. take a look now, windows are covered. something is about to happen. >> it's no surprise they are getting going married in italy. george has close ties to the country and he has a close friend, the former mayor of venice that is going to marry them. >> clooney, the sexiest man

alive twice. said he was never going to get married again. >> i'm never going to get married again. because i wasn't very good at it. >> he has preached over the years that he wants to stay a bachelor. we have seen him not only fall in love but publicly declare his adoration for amal. >> reporter: clooney and his bride have had a whirlwind romance. educated at oxford and nyu, clooney net october. they got engaged. clooney seems smitten with his fiancee. >> i would like to say to my bride to be, amal, that i love you very much and i can't 2008 be your husband. >> reporter: their wedding will cost $13 million. rooifrling kim kardashian and

kanye west's affair. the couple choosing a white and yellow combination. >> they are considering a merged menu of lebanese and italian cuisine. >> reporter: there will be plenty of booze. randy gerber loading up his private plane with 50 cases of tequila. >> it's being shipped directly to venice, 100 cases, plenty for everyone. >> reporter: george clooney, smiling for the paparazzi today in venice. >> it's the most hyped up celebrity wedding of 2014 and puts the end to the summer of celebrity weddings. >> reporter: in recent years,

weddings kept top secret. no one knew that brad pit and angelina got married until after it was over. the 36-year-old blushing bride arrived in milan yesterday, carrying a big garment box. she is reportedly wearing alexander mcqueen. what will george clooney be wearing? >> we will see her in a traditional silhouette. we will see her in white or ivory, because it's her first wedding. >> reporter: george clooney is wearing a giorgio armani.

they sold the wedding pictures for $10 million. donating the money. and the sun sets on a romantic backdrop for a wedding, the world's most eligible bachelor will say good-bye to singledom. >> our thanks to lama hassan. it's not a tough assignment. we will be right back. keep it here. fuel-efficient, that's fun, and affordable, there's only the volkswagen jetta. like this one, 36 highway mpg. well, except for the 42 highway mpg jetta tdi clean diesel. oh, right, and the 48 highway mpg jetta hybrid. and if you want all that variety in another compact sedan there's... huh. nothing.

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i want to thank you for watching abc news tonight. tune in to "gma" first thing in the morning, i will see you

then. we are live on abcnews.com. once again, thanks for watching and good night.

♪ >> welcome to inside the eagles i'm your host john darn was, in this episode we will go out to arizona to hang out with evan mathis and he start zone athletic performance and gave cameras, as to be a renaissance man lets see what he puts together. we just came off a great game with the great owe even if. we have our top five list to highlight top five offensive players in eagles history and because we're sitting here talking about offense johnny long ball take ate way with the guy who had a star performance, jordan matthews. >> what's up, everybody. we're here with rookie wide out, number 81, from vanderbilt university, jordan matthews. >> thanks, sir. >> thanks for joining