The Party Quotes

“Raging storm. The universe booms around me. She approaches. Frightfully, I stand. Yes. Stuck. Stuck in wonderment. Something so strong, so beautiful. Swirling around me. Will it absorb me? Maybe. Or might it pass by? It could. Rolling waves of rage and chaos. Cracks of thunder echo in my chest. I am in the storm now. How? Dancing in the wind. In her chaos. Can I become a part of her forever? I must be able to. This feeling, so wonderful. Maybe she will only pass me by. Leave me to fall from the sky? I hope not. This raging storm around me. So dangerous. So pure. Nothing but nature in her utter glory. Pushing me into motion. I spin in the midst of her, taking in the power. The walls of motion. Confusion surrounds me. Particles forcing together and cracking apart. I’m frightful again, the noise overpowering me. I hunch into a ball, scared of what will become of me. Still suspended in the air. But she silences. The sky clears around me. It must be the eye of the storm. The center of everything. The center of her. Yes. The sunshine blinds me. I raise my hand to shield my face. The silence a melody in my ear. Ah, finally soothed. How extraordinary this is, floating and rising. It overcomes me. This space. Joy? But then I feel the air shift. The power making my hair rise. And suddenly, I’m moving again. She moves along. This raging, rolling storm. The air sucking me up and down. Ripping me apart. Spinning. Spinning. Spinning. Fear consumes me again as the storm takes hold. Confusion. So much confusion. I cry, thinking I might die. But it’s over. I look at my hands. My feet. Back on the ground. She rolls away. Spinning beautifully onward. My, the power. But the question. Always the question. Do I love? Do I hate? Her beautiful, frightening glory. My dear raging storm. I drop the note into my lap. My hand comes up, covering my mouth in shock. I blink down at the note, trying to slow down my heart rate. Because Noah wrote this. He wrote all of this. And he wrote it about me. About how I make him feel. I think back to his project. How he told me it was about me. The eye of the storm. Chaos. Confusion. Awe.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“I did one better. Got us food,” he says, holding up a bag of takeout.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“There isn’t anything complicated about the way he looks at you,” she counters, pushing me ahead of her in line.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“I’m not asking you to break his heart. I’m asking you not to break mine.” Noah’s voice cracks.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“I feel like I’m under a microscope,” I admit, looking up at Harry. Harry brings his attention to me, stepping in front of me and lacing both of our hands together. “Can you blame them for staring? You’re the most stunning girl in the room.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“That’s what siblings are for, right? Teasing you?” “Teasing you. Annoying you. Reminding you how lame you are. Sometimes, they even come into your bedroom and steal the girl right out of your bed. It’s mad,” Noah says, dramatically shaking his head in disappointment. “I wasn’t thrilled when Mia came in your room yesterday.” I laugh, agreeing. “Oh yeah?” Noah asks, his voice rising.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“Maybe family is who we make it to be,”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“We need to appreciate the little things. Like friendship.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“Nothing. It’s just your optimism. It’s refreshing. You really are an angel, you know.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“I like getting lost in you,” I whisper.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“I feel like I’m standing under a rainbow, and all I can think about are the storm clouds I can see.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“I set the book down on the cart, thinking. “So, beauty. Love. It’s worth the risk?” “You tell me,” Noah replies, his hand coming up to gently caress my cheek. I bring my eyes to his. “Probably.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“Come here,” Noah says, lying all the way down on the grass. I scoot closer to him. I put my head on his firm chest as he wraps his arm around me, his hand coming to my waist. I grab on to him, feeling myself relax in the sun. It feels good to be here. To be tucked against him. He doesn’t smell clean anymore, like he does in the mornings. He finally smells like him. Like grass and sweat and sun. “You’re warm,” I comment, feeling the heat rising from his chest. “Are you cold?” Noah asks. “Mmhmm.” Noah pulls me closer until my knees are touching his leg. I close my eyes, shutting everything out, except for the warmth. From Noah. From the sun. I listen to his heartbeat, trying to match my breathing to it.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“Miss America! Are you telling me that you’ve thought about getting it on with our little English rose?” “Are you calling Noah an English rose?” I ask, furrowing my brows. “Obviously. And the title’s fitting since he’s never been with anyone.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party

“It’s like I’ve had an equation floating through my mind, and just when I think I have solved it, I realize that I underestimated some variables and their impact.”
― Jillian Dodd, The Party