The Right Swipe (Modern Love, #1)

by Alisha Rai

But no one would have ever described her as sweet, kind, and loyal. Because the world had decided long ago what a sweet, kind, and loyal woman looked like, and it wasn’t her.

“But trust in relationships is like fragile glass. How can you build on a cracked foundation? How can you be sure you’re getting the truth? You have to protect your own heart. No one else will do it for you.”

“Sometimes, good people make mistakes. It costs you nothing to hear someone out.”

“No. It does cost you something.” Because if you believed that person when you heard them out, and then they betrayed you, you ended up doubly hurt. Easier to give people one shot.

It was so much easier to write people off. Much harder to navigate the gray areas of interpersonal relationships.

Every time you hurt someone, you break off a little piece of them. Not only do they have to live with that broken piece, then the next person who comes along has to figure out a way to spackle that spot. Your behavior has ripple effects.

Nobody spoke enough about how much bodies could be starved for platonic affection. She knew she gave off strong Do Not Touch vibes, but she needed occasional hugs too.

“Being vulnerable is a risk. Love—romantic, platonic, familial, it doesn’t matter what kind of love—is a risk.” She closed her eyes tight, tears leaking out. “Because you’re right. They can leave. They can die or be hurt or simply walk away.” Her eyes opened. “But a moment of that love, child, is worth it. If you have a second, a minute, a month, a year, a decade with that person? You count yourself lucky. You can use that love and the lessons it taught you to plant more seeds for love. You can live off that love for a lifetime.

“It’s not a weakness to take care of yourself. Asking for and taking what you need to function should never be considered a weakness.”

“Trust is the only reason the world ever functions as it should. Sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn’t, and I know that uncertainty is scary, but that’s the only way you figure out who your closest people are.”

“No one’s universally liked. Beyoncé isn’t universally liked. Has that stopped her? No. Be like Beyoncé.”