“I stared at the creased map on my wall, the thin green lineconnecting all the places I had read about. There they were, all thecities of my imaginary future, held together with tape and marker andpins. In six months, a lot had changed. There was no thin green linethat could lead me to my future anymore. Just a girl.”

“Every day was like a day out of someone else's life. Nothing had ever happened to me, and now everything was happening to me -- and by everything, I really meant Lena. An hour was both faster and slower. I felt like I had sucked the air out of a giant balloon, like my brain wasn't getting enough oxygen. Clouds were more interesting, the lunchroom less disgusting, music sounded better, the same old jokes were funnier, and Jackson went from being a clump of grayish-green industrial buildings to a map of times and places where I might run into her. I found myself smiling for no reason, keeping my earphones in and replaying our conversations in my head, just so I could listen to them again. I had seen this kind of thing before. I had just never felt it.”

“Macon EthanI lay my head down on his chest and cried because had livedbecause he had dieda dry ocean, a desert of emotionhappysad darklight sorrowjoy swept over me, under mei could hear the sound but i could not understand the words and then i realized the sound was me, breakingin one moment i was feeling everything and i was feeling nothingi was shattered, i was saved, i lost everthing, i was given everything elsesomething in me died, something in me was born, i only knewthe girl was gonewhoever i was now, i would never be her again this is the waythe world ends not with a bang but a whimperclaim yourself claim yourself claim yourself claimgratitude fury love despair hope hatefirst green is gold but nothing green can staydonttrynothinggreencanstay-Lena Duchannes”

“I held up my glass and stared through it, where things looked as distorted as they really were.”

“I couldn't look at her. I'd been jealous and hurt, and I had dragged Liv into the middle of my own broken mess of a life. All because I thought Lena didn't love me anymore. But I was stupid, and I was wrong. Lena loved me so much, she was willing to risk everything to save me. I had given up on Lena, after she had refused to give up on me. I owed her my life. It was as simple as that.”

“I wish I could print up a sign and tape it on my forehead. I OFFICIALLY DO NOT WANT TO KISS ETHAN WATE. NOW PLEASE LET ME BE FRIENDS WITH HIM.”

“You can read minds, and you didn't tell me?” Link stared at me like he just found out I was the Silver Surfer. He rubbed his head nervously. “Hey, man, all that stuff about Lena? I was yankin’ your chain.” He looked away. “Are you doin’ it now? You're doin’ it, aren't you? Dude, get out of my head.” He backed away from me and into the bookshelf.“I can't read your mind, you idiot.”