“The truth, she found, felt smooth, like a skipping stone in the palm of your hand.”

“she thought about being held to the woman's chest, and lying there hair-smoothed and quiet until she felt she'd found home. ”

“Away from the bright motion of the party, she carried her sadness like a dark stone clenched in her palm.”

“We want you gone. Your presence is obviously upsetting for her.""Oh, aye, the poor, wee lass -- who tossed me like a skipping stone.”

“He felt like a man in a small boat under which a huge sea creature has passed, causing the boat to pitch gently. Like a man in a boat, he could chase it or run from it, and he picked chase. If he felt it on her lips, he put his mouth on her lips. If he found it on the palm of her hand, he opened her hand and licked it up. Her soul darted here and there, sensitive as any creature, tipping her center of balance back and forth as it oscillated. She liked this, and if she had any fear, she did not take it seriously. He liked it, too, so much that he could barely concentrate on the chase.”

“I ultimately decided to hold my tongue and settle instead for the comfort of ignorance. Not knowing the truth, I retained hope, and that hope I held like a smooth warm stone against my heart.”