This Is Where It Ends

by Marieke Nijkamp

but those rare moments when she talks about her mother are like the dawn, and when she opens up, she is the sun.

“He says music should have heartbreak and happiness, storm clouds and stars, as long as there’s emotion. I think that’s true for dance too.”

“Claire, I don’t think anything happened to Tyler. I think Tyler is happening to us.”

Fear and survival are two sides of the same coin.

It’s easier to know who I’m not than to know who I am. When everyone expects me to fail, it’s easier to give up than to try.

The only two people who matter now are in front of me—the boy who broke me and the girl who put me back together. I will not let him take her away from me again.

If she dies, I will never be able to tell her that she is the one who keeps me standing. That her lips taste like a promise. That she makes me want to be a better version of myself. If she dies, I will believe every ugly word Dad ever said about me.

I stare at Tomás’s name as my vision swims with tears. For a few precious seconds, I’m alone with my lantern and my brother.