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I laugh and it hurts. That’s been happening to me a lot lately. When something is good and painful all at once.
A secret is only a secret if no one knows about it. What’s a secret that everyone knows but no one talks about? It’s shame.
He’s so sweet, so warm, that he makes everything blurry.
“Because you being comfortable in my house is pretty much the only criteria I’m currently using for picking a place.”
The train pulls away and it feels wrong. I’m not supposed to be speeding away from Shep.
It’s her celebration of courage and failure and letting life beat you up because you decide to really try.
You see the grown-ups who push them on the swings and you realize that each kid is someone’s whole entire heart. Soon it was the middle schoolers. And then it was the high schoolers. And then, eventually, it was the middle-aged people and the older people too. Once I started seeing the web, I couldn’t stop seeing it, all the people who love all the people.”
“That’s what it means to be other-centered? To see the web? To treat everyone like they’re somebody’s favorite person on earth?”
“It hurts to realize that the world is so much bigger and more complicated than you thought it was. It’ll always hurt.”
He was telling me, all those months ago, that he wanted me. Infinitely kind words in a dark moment. I’ll never leave you whispered in a secret code that he was content for me to never solve. That’s what wanting without taking looks like.
Other-centered as he is, maybe he’s been waiting for me to do the taking.
Is there any compliment higher than someone dropping everything for you?
The sun is in my eyes and everything is opening, blooming, starting new, my heart is growing petals.
“Eve, for as long as I can remember I have always wanted to be as close as possible to you.”
You’re like the nicest, most generous, lovable guy on the planet and you’re with the mother of my child. Do you have any idea how insufferable that is?” Shep laughs and it’s the first sound he’s made that’s not exceedingly kind. “Ethan, are you kidding me?” “What?” “Of course I know how you feel. You’re a handsome, successful guy who is usually very nice, and you got the love of my life pregnant. You wanna talk about insufferable?”
