The Crush Quotes

“He once told me not to cry over him, that he wasn’t worth it. That he wasn’t worth being cared about by anyone else. That he was replaceable. Discardable. Trash.
That’s what the world decided he was, but the world never knew Sawyer Alston quite like I did. Despite my love of a lifetime allotting me only ten months’ time, despite Sawyer taking to heart all the wrong things in life, he only ended up being wrong about one thing.
He was worth it to me.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“I made it my mission to help him see the light, to reveal life has meaning. And in the process, he helped recover the meaning of mine.
My world thrived with him in it. I rediscovered my love for music, as he did his appreciation for love songs. We cultivated joy together, God by our sides, learning to combat small town politics and judgment by sticking together. We were Bama Boy and Grandma Emmie, following in the footsteps of my grandparents, playing parts in one of the greatest love stories Grahamwood has ever known.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“All I want is my own love story, and all I get are fake chances with guys who don’t understand what love is.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“A closet musician losing her music is like a baby losing its favorite blanket; when it's lost, comfort is shattered.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“More than anything?” I lay back on my bed, closing my eyes. “I want a love like Grandma Adeline and Grandpa Amos had. I want to build a family from love. I want my future kids to have as strong of a relationship with their siblings as I have with Rider and Auden. I don’t want them to ever have to wonder if their parents love each other, because it’ll be obvious. I want future generations to look up to my future husband and me as much as I’ve looked up to my grandparents.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“Though I’m often complimented on my appearance and told I will someday break many a heart, I prefer a fictional man to the cat-calling scoundrels around town. I, for one, have no time for a boy who is interested in just anyone.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“I try to shake the thought away. “I don’t know what she’s talking about. He’s not nearly handsome enough to tempt me.” No one catches my Pride and Prejudice reference, of course.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“Mr. Darcy regains my interest. As if he ever lost it.
“Mmhmm, thanks.” The phone clicks back in its charger. My sister springs up from the floor mummy-style. “That traitor!”
Okay, Darcy, see you later. I close the book. “Who was that?”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“God, please help me,” I say into the empty restroom, words echoing off the walls. “Please help me live out Proverbs 4:23. Please help me guard my heart. Please help me to never settle for anything less than what You have planned for me.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“All I want is a love like she and Grandpa had. How is that ever gonna happen if everyone sees me this way?”
“The ones who truly know you don’t, Em.” Ryanne says, making her way back to the door. “The right guy’s gonna memorize you like a favorite song. He’s gonna play it over and over again in his mind until it’s the only song he can sing. Don’t even worry about the ones who can’t match your beat.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“And I know, despite what may have happened at the end, he loved you. And you still love him. Love him enough to say goodbye.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“There will always be trials where we have to make a choice: we can take these hardships as blows to our lives, holes in the ship that will render us sinking forever, or we can allow God to patch those holes, to lift us out of the beating waves, and help us float again.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“Look, I don’t know what all went down that night, but whatever it was, whatever weight you’re carrying, God will carry it for you, Em.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“No one cares until something bad happens. Shoot, most people don’t even care then.
Oh, how much further from the truth could he have been? 
People care, my dear Sawyer. People care. But they often care too late.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“What about the life you worked for over the past year and a half?” I demand, regaining traction. “Remember how much God worked in you to heal the hurt from your past? Remember how hard you worked to overcome what they did to you? You are loved, Sawyer, even if you can’t see it. God still chooses you.” My voice falters. “I still choose you”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“The boy who hates love songs called me his favorite one, and all I want is for him to play it again.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“You’re like a favorite song, Emery.”
I squint at him, a smile pulling on my lips. “What do you mean?”
He cups my chin, running his thumb across my cheek. “You’re familiar, yet an adventure all at once. You’re forgiving, yet haunting.” His gaze falls on my lips. “You’re stuck in my head 24/7 and I don’t want you to get out.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“I remind myself of the reason we’re doing this in the first place. We can’t stand together, stably, unless we can first stand on our own, with God as our foundation.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“By doing a complete 180 and acting like you have a thing for me? Do you expect me to believe you’re Mr. Knightley all of a sudden”
― Allyson Kennedy , The Crush

“My heart has weathered through these past feelings for Sawyer Alston like a beaten, bloodied soldier, and now the true battle stands: he needs a friend. Can I be that for him? Can I will myself to be only that for him?”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“Please don’t cry over me, Emery.” He runs his thumb over my knuckles. “I’m not worth that.”
“Don’t ever say that again.” My voice comes out weak, desperate. “You are. God kept you alive for a reason. That’s your worth.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“As I’m sitting down, a spark flashes from the corner of my eye. She lights an unscented candle, the coy smile that Ryanne inherited appearing on her face. 
Scratch that again. I’m going to go make a new life for myself in the woods, away from people forever”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“He was just looking for acceptance. A better offer came along, and he hit the ground running. I can’t allow my hopes to work up again, to tarnish my dream for a love like my grandparents’ by pathetically pining after someone who not only is too blind to recognize true affection, but who has never believed in love at all.
That’s one glaring difference between Grandma’s and my quests: Grandpa’s faith in love never wavered. And I deserve more than an unsure heart.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“My memories of Grandma are already fading, and I fear these changes will scrub Grandpa’s lasting impression from the house. Yet, as I hold this box in my hand, the one he specifically set aside for me, I relish that I’ll always have this tangible history to remind me of the greatest force on earth: love.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“And now the best couple I’ve ever known... they’re reunited. They’re together again, celebrating with Jesus. They’re both looking down on us, waiting for us to join them in the eternal joy Heaven offers.
But right now, I’m here. I’m stuck navigating the dark and treacherous road that is life, now without the two greatest role models I’ve ever had. A sob escapes my throat, my palms failing to soak the spilling tears.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“Oh my Lanta. He heard your bad Emma Woodhouse accent.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“Whatever. I’m going to class.”
“No, Harriet! You mustn’t flee the premises! Mr. Elton will soon admire thee!” She’s been poking fun at my Austen obsession since she read Emma in English. 
I roll my eyes, not bothering to look back at her as I speed walk to Geometry. “Dude, spoiler alert. She doesn’t end up with Elton.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“There you go. Start making music again.”
“See, that’s where the problem is.” He lets go of my hand and faces me square on. “I think I’ve forgotten how. I need a lighthouse.” His lips pull into a small smile again, and it’s all I can do not to cry.
“Alright then,” I manage. “If music makes you happy, let’s make music.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush

“What makes you happy?”
His throat constricts, barely visible in the parking lot lights. “That ship sailed a long time ago.”
“Ships can always find their way back through the dark. They just need a lighthouse”
― Allyson Kennedy , The Crush

“My hand flies across the first blank page, chicken-scratched lines I can barely decipher wielding the dark tale of my heart. At 5:15 a.m., the pen falls from my grasp and I tuck the notebook away.
I wrote my first love song, with his name in a heart to prove it. I wrote my first love song for the boy who knows no love at all.”
― Allyson Kennedy, The Crush