“I can accept that all I’ve ever wanted is not very special—all I’ve ever wanted, like most people, is proof of love.”

“I think if you tell someone that you love him or her, (especially a person that once screamed, “I’m not gonna love you ever!”) and that person says “duh,” then I think that means you have done something right.”

“My mother wanted to be Betty Boop. Betty Boop was independent. Betty Boop was sexy. Betty Boop really had her shit together, you know?”

“And do you agree that the mornings when we appreciated each other might have been better than the mornings we loved each other?”

“You’ve always called me irreverent. You’ve branded me irreverent. In my mind you invented irreverent.”

“I wanted what most people wanted—love, companionship.I wanted someone to touch. I wanted someone to touch me back.I wanted someone to laugh with, someone who would laugh with me, laugh at me.I wanted someone who looked and sawme . Not my power, not my position.I wanted someone to say my name. To call out, “Merit,” when it was time to go, or when we arrived.Someone who wanted to say to someone else, with pride, “I’m here with her. With Merit.”I wanted all those things. Indivisibly.But I didn’t want them from Morgan.”

“The only things people can ever know about you are the ones that you let them see”