I Could Live Here Forever

by Hanna Halperin

“I could live here forever,” he said, his voice morning-soft.

My prettiness wasn’t straightforward or consistent and it was something I felt more when I was by myself. I was never the prettiest girl in the room, and never would be.

wondered if he was lying to me or if it was possible that he saw me how I saw myself in my most private, most generous moments.

The professor had validated her. I wanted to somehow

indicate that this was what I had been thinking, too. But doing that would only make me look desperate and foolish. I turned the pages of David’s story and tried to come up with something smart to say. Nothing came to mind.

It seemed important, before I told the others about my meeting, that I wash away this evidence of my hope. It was my vanity, more than anything else, that humiliated me.

But after she left, I’d look at photos of my mother and I began to like her nose, its distinct topography. How her face looked different depending on the angle. I’d look at my own reflection and instantly see my mother.

It wasn’t that I spent much time thinking about our country. It was

only when injustice brushed up against my life in a visceral way that I really started paying attention.

relationship isn’t supposed to make you happy. You find happiness on your own. A partner is there to support you and build with you. It seems as though you’re looking for some magic person who’s going to solve all your problems, but you have to do that yourself.