Begin Again

by Emma Lord

Everyone here is so ridiculously talented that it’s not a matter of whether they can succeed in anything, but a matter of choosing which things they feel like succeeding in.

I would never. And Mrs. Whit must know that—heck, anyone who’s ever met me knows that. The idea that she could misunderstand such a fundamental part of me after all this time is the kind of blow that can’t fully land.

I want to love and be loved without ever having to wonder if it’s conditional.

Like I’ve just been waiting to let myself feel it, and now that I do, it’s clear I’ll never be able to unfeel it again.

The kind of moment that forms a tattoo in your heart before you even fully understand how much it means to you, living in it and outside it at the same time, making it a part of your story before you know how the story ends.

this gratitude I have for this boy who understands me in ways nobody else has.