“I was sixteen and equipped with the appropriate genitalia, so I cleared that hurdle nicely.”

“I couldn't fault her for believing, because I had to imagine i was nice to have that illusion still intact.”

“I no longer think she's just being nice. She's being kind. Which is much more a sign of character than mere niceness. Kindness connects to who you are, while niceness connects to how you want to be seen.”

“I have become very good at clearing histories.”

“I wake up feverish, sore, uncomfortable.Is it sickness or is it heartbreak?I can't tell.The thermometer says I'm normal, but I'm clearly not.”

“No," he finally said. "I don't think you're boring. I think there are times you don't allow yourself to be interesting...but clearly that can change.”

“So there we were. Once upon a time, during the storybook version of dating we'd gone through, I'd pretended that it was possible to love her when I only mildly liked her. Now I had no desire to pretend we'd ever be in love, and I liked her madly. 'Can we try to be wise with each other for a very long time?' I asked her.She laughed. 'You mean, can we share our fuckups and see if we can get any wisdom out of them?''Yeah,' I said. 'That would be nice.”