More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
He’s worth knowing. He’s worth remembering. And when the world has decayed and all I’ve ever known has disappeared in time, you should know the very best of humankind is him.
1% in and I’m already on the verge of tears
He might be long gone with me, but I hope he’s immortalized in this text. Please, keep him alive.
Donnelly probably wouldn’t be beamed up with me, and I don’t really want to live on a planet where he’s not there.
The bookcase weighs a million times more than I can brace, and as the entire wooden structure teeters forward, I want it to bury me. I want to live underneath the rubble of my childhood. Maybe it’ll be where you find me. In this single solitary moment, I’m not scared of being crushed. That should scare me, I think.
then she’s exploring the Pyramids in Cairo with her sister Margot and ferrying along the Golden Horn in Istanbul. Charlie said it’s one of his favorite ferry rides, and I’m still surprised he answered me when I asked him about the best ferries in the world.
“I know you don’t want to be here…” Xander tells me. “But you have to ignore that voice. Not forever. Just ignore it this minute, this shitty second.” This minute. This second. I inhale slowly. “Small hurdles, you know?” Xander says quietly. “You can do that. I know you can, sis. You’re way stronger than me.”
I think sometimes I’m the weakest of the entire Hale family. Or maybe, I’m just the hardest on myself, but how can I even be certain that’s true?
“But these relationships mean something to the people who love you. And I love you like a son, and I’m…I’m sorry I didn’t take your word beforehand. I’m sorry I’m an ass. I’ve been an ass. You deserved a father-in-law who listened, and I didn’t. But I promise, I’m going to try from now on.”
“It’s Cyclops and Peepers.” “Peepers?” I cringe at the worst X-Men villain ever. He did not just refer to Donnelly as Peepers. His enlarged eyes and bald head make him look like a toad.
😭😭
Like my dad is eating glass, he slowly amends, “Cyclops and whoever you choose.” I don’t know if Donnelly reminds me of anyone but himself, but I’d never cast him as a villain. “Peter Parker,”
Donnelly has made me feel like my galaxy is the happiest, most exhilarating place to be, even if I’m the only one there.” I drop my head and gaze back at our photo. “He treats me like I’m his moon. His stars. Like I’m the person who makes him glad it’s today and there’ll be a tomorrow, and I don’t know if I’ve ever been that for anyone who’s not my family.” I’m important to someone. I’m not a failure. I’m not a fuck-up or future screw-up to Donnelly. I’m someone worth something. And he’s worth everything to me.
Being on Lo’s shitlist, I can handle, but if I’m on Lily’s, I dunno…I think I’d still go fling myself off this planet and sob.
I’d rather be bait and roadkill than let a single soul harm Luna Hale. And I plan to prove it.
Question of the Day: Can I take Luna to the Fanaticon Convention in December? Is a butterfly kiss considered a real kiss? Is Ryke Meadows’ secretly Loren Hale’s hit man?
Love that endures together is the toughest love. The strongest.
See, I always thought our independence was a strength.” He pauses. “But it’s not always one. We’ve just learned how to live without the things we really need.”
Being replaced doesn’t make me feel great. Not even for a day. An hour. It’s just gonna make it easier to replace me for real.
“You want to make a point like that again,” Farrow says heatedly to Charlie, “don’t be surprised when you meet an ending you won’t like.” Charlie opens his stance. “Go ahead. Hit me.” Farrow speaks into his comms mic instead. “Oliveira, come collect your baggage.”
DAMNN
I like thinking that moments carry melodies, and being with Luna is like listening to the exultant hum of my soul. I’ll never get tired of the sound.
As I place the newborn in Jane’s arms, the waterworks hit me too, seeing Jane embrace her baby, kiss her soft cheek, instantly love her. Life is strange and beautiful, and moments like these, I’m grateful to be alive.
“Lo knows I can’t have my family thinking I’m in love with her.” “Love?” Eliot’s grin has exploded. He buttons his slacks with an amused, delighted laugh. Tom is grinning now too. He told my best friends he’s trying to date me. That he loves me. It’s sinking in, and I feel my smile mushroom. Donnelly shares the grin. “You think I would do all of this just for a girl I sort of like?” “This is beautiful,” Eliot says, “and tragic all at the same time.”
I’d usually lose most people at this point. They’d uncomfortably laugh and think the story I made up on the spot is bizarre. Life doesn’t have to be that serious all the time, and sometimes it’s fun to pretend other species exist.
I realize how badly I just want him to want me, but the yearning is even deeper than that. I want him to consume me, grab me, take me, make me his forever.
“How am I looking at you?” I’m trapped in his orbit, not wanting to be set loose. “I’m the hero of your story.” His voice drops to the same hushed sound as mine. “I don’t know if anyone has ever placed me there, but one of the things I’m most scared of is disappointing you.”
“To remind you of our future together,” Donnelly says. “Time is irrelevant when I’m always right here.” He hoists my wrist, the watch secured perfectly.
“In the Star Wars mythos, you’d be a Jedi Knight, but in our universe, you’re something else.” “What am I?” His lips are so close to mine. “Some noble hero of another galaxy? An alien warrior? Or well-traveled bounty hunter?” “You’re human,” I whisper. “You’re my human hero. And there is no one stronger than you.”
“You’re not dying anymore, Luna,” I promise, my voice hoarse with need. “You’re gonna survive with me.”
“Leave her there,” someone says. “Let’s take the other one.” “You sure?” “Yeah. She said his name.” Donnelly. And then they zip-tie my thrashing hands behind my back.
NO FUCKING WAY WHAT IS HAPPENING
I glance at the wall, the memories foggy. Not where I question their existence or anything. I know what they are. I just choose not to go into that haze. What for? These days, the answer is so vibrant, so clear: For everything. For her.
“I can’t lose you,” Lo sobs. “You’re okay. Come on, love. You’re okay. Wake up. Please, wake up. Lily…Lily.”
no this is not happening
She was never supposed to be in this house. She was never supposed to meet my family. She was never supposed to be swept into the darkness of my childhood. I’d left it all behind me, and to think that the one girl, the only girl, I’ve ever loved is hurtled to this place is fucking sickening. I hate it more than I’ve ever hated anything.
Love and light are the powers that’ve guided me. Been racing towards them my whole life. I just never realized all this time I’ve been racing towards her.
In all the fics I’ve ever written, I don’t think I’ve ever penned a story with amnesia. Then again, would I even remember if I did?
this is so wild
“We had family dinner last night,” I say into a confident nod, the words surging out of me. “Mom cooked meatloaf, and Moffy told everyone that Declan is retiring. He’s getting a new bodyguard soon, and he’s completely freaked out about it because Declan has been with him forever.”
NO SHUT THE FUCK UP RN
I try so very hard to remember what happened to me. Another flash. Another picture frame. Another glimpse. Anything. But it’s like grabbing air in a darkened room. There’s nothing to hold on to. Nothing to touch. Nothing to see. It’s all just… Gone.
“They’ll make it out. Luna. Lily. They look small, but they’re tough.”
“I’ve made a bunch of shitty selfish choices in my twenty-nine years, and I can’t say that I regret a single one.” Xander frowns. “How?” “‘Cause it’s okay to put yourself first and chase after the things you want or run away from the things you don’t. Life’s too short to try to be perfect for everyone else.”
“Mom.” Daisy tries to corral her out the door. “Visitors’ hours aren’t for another four hours. You don’t want to be here for that long. We’ll call you—” “Will you?” she snaps. “No, we fucking won’t,” Ryke declares.
GET HER ASS !!!
I see how he’s looking into me. I crave to reach that expression, to understand and know and feel, but it’s like my fingers are pressed to frosted glass and he’s stranded on the other side.
“You and I are the same. We keep our issues to ourselves because letting other people see ‘em makes them bigger than they have to be. Gives power to them. Makes them feel more unbeatable than they are. It’s easier to just keep that stuff here.” He touches his hand to his heart.
And when I look at him, I know—I know he’s good. Why would I give my kyber crystal to someone bad? He is light. He is harmony. He is love. The Force is within him. I saw it. I knew it. I’ve just forgotten it somehow.
“Farrow is a caring bean,” I say, letting out the last anxious breath. “Nah, he’s a kidney bean. Full of piss…” He trails off at my laughter, and his smile matches mine until the noise dies down.
LMAOOO
The girl I’ve given my heart and soul to doesn’t know she even has my heart and soul. But she’s alive. She’s awake. Can I really ask for more?
If she completely feared me, I don’t know what I’d even do. Go sob on a deserted island for a solid millennium. Befriend a volleyball. That’s not too accurate, really. In my heart of hearts, I know I’d use every ounce of self-given, self-accumulated resilience to show her I’m not someone to fear. I wouldn’t give up.
My parents—their souls were intertwined. In my life, their love had always been one-of-a-kind. Stuff of legend and fanfiction, and the fact that it was my reality, that I got to be raised by two soul mates, was a treasure I wouldn’t trade for anything.
He cringed at the Rory and Jess drama on the screen. “That reminds me way too much of your Aunt Willow and Uncle Garrison. Gross.”
“I thought the drawing was very beautiful.” I hesitate to ask, so I say, “Whoever the girl is, you made her look out-of-this-world extraordinary.” His lips begin to rise. “You are, Luna.”
“The world can be shit.” He sits with me, his arms hanging on his knees. “But living in it can also be amazing. Like ate the best ham hoagie of your life amazing, danced your heart out at 3 a.m. amazing, kissed an alien and shot to the moon amazing.”
“You’ve communed with the extraterrestrial?” “Just one.” He’s looking at me. “And she’s the prettiest alien I’ve ever seen.” “Wannabe alien,” I correct. “Sad alien,” he amends, his tone flirty.
Something about Donnelly makes me feel like I’ve known him my whole life, as if we’ve been together millenniums already.
