Robin

“There’s something I forgot to do. I know I left something I didn’t mean to.But when I look back in the rear-view mirror, no one’s there. There’s nothing at all. Nothing.”
― Alexandra Bracken, The Rising Dark: A Darkest Minds Collection

“The new car’s a lot prettier than Lucy, my Sweet Caroline—she’s a newer sedan, and, if I’m being perfectly honest, is actually a little bit of a risk. She’s flashier than what I’d usually pick. I just couldn’t resist her gorgeous shade of ruby red.”
― Alexandra Bracken, The Rising Dark: A Darkest Minds Collection

“I've never been to the ocean, never heard the waves lick the sand in that quiet shushing you read about in books. I've never been to the zoo, smelled the elephant piss, and heard the cries of the monkeys. I've never had frozen yogurt from one of those places where you pull on the handle and fill your own cup with whatever you like. I've never eaten dinner at a restaurant with napkins that you set on your lap and silverware that isn't plastic. I've never painted my nails like the other girls at school, in bright neons and decadent reds. I've never been more than ten miles from home. Ten miles. It's like I live in the forever ago, not where buses rumble and trains have racks. I've never had a birthday cake, though I've wanted one very much. I've never owned a bra that is new, and had to cut the tags off with the scissors from the kitchen drawer. I've never been loved in a way that makes me feel as if I was supposed to be born, if only to feel loved. I've never, I've never, I've never. And it's my own fault. The things that we never do because someone makes us fearful of them, or makes us believe we don't deserve them. I want to do all my nevers-- alone or with someone who matters. I don't care. I just want to live.”
― Tarryn Fisher, Marrow

“Cellophane flowers of yellow and green…
And I can’t even help myself, I start laughing—I’m laughing and laughing and
laughing like an absolute crazy person, until the tears track down my face, because it has
to be a sign. I can’t believe it’s anything less. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. Of course.
Look for the girl with the sun in her eyes
And she’s gone
The words echo in my mind, making it ache all over again. She’s gone.
Don’t go, don’t go, don’t go—I hate those words, I hate the magnetic pull of whatever it is I’ve forgotten, the regret waiting to make itself known.”
― Alexandra Bracken, The Rising Dark: A Darkest Minds Collection