“None of us offered to shake hands. There was no advantage to letting somebody get hold of you.”
“Time to set forth alone and find out what sort of man I was, instead of being a mirror to somebody else. Swearing a blood oath, even as I clung to this ghost embrace, that I would never hold another man who wouldn't hold me back.”
“Somebody like you taught somebody like me.”
“Somebody needs to pet me, and I guess that somebody is me. My cat is busy sleeping.”
“I need someone. I need to hold somebody close. And I need more than this holding. I need someone to understand how I feel at a time like now. And the understanding must be part of the holding.”