A Thousand Broken Pieces (A Thousand Boy Kisses #2)

by Tillie Cole

“I have come to understand that death, for the sick, is not so hard to endure. For us, eventually our pain ends, we go to a better place. But for those left behind, their pain only magnifies.”

grief never left us. Instead we adapted, like it was a new appendage we had to learn to use. That at any moment, pain and heartache could strike and break us. But eventually we would develop the tools to cope with it and find a way to move on.

I wanted to hurt. It was the only time I was reminded that I was still alive.

loved one’s death wasn’t a onetime thing that you had to endure. It was an endless cycle.

“I want you to inhale through your nose for eight seconds,” Leo instructed and counted out loud. “Now, hold that breath for four seconds. Listen to your heart beat. Hear its rhythm in your ears. Then, breathe out for four seconds.”

“Some people are only in our lives for a short time, but the mark they leave on us is a cherished tattoo.”

Two broken pieces searching for a way to feel whole.

We are nothing without love.

“If someone judges you for how long it’s taking you to move past a loved one’s death, be happy for them, because it means they’ve never experienced it.”

I can live in the darkness if you are one of the stars.

Laughter is the medicine that heals the soul.

Nothing would make me leave her…not even death.”

Love didn’t die; it was eternal. It was a tattoo on our souls.