“I just want to be normal, like everybody else." "Are you sure that being like everybody else will make you happy?”

“Lena: I just want to be happy. I just want to be normal, like everybody else.Alex: Are you sure that being like everybody else will make you happy?”

“Are you sure that being like everybody else will make you happy?""I don't know any other way.""Let me show you."And then we're kissing. Or at least, I think we're kissing—I've only seen it done a couple of times, quick closed-mouth pecks at weddings or on formal occasions. But this isn't like anything I've ever seen, or imagined, or even dreamed: this is like music or dancing but better than both.”

“Most people don't want to be saved. Besides, if you keep bailing everybody out, they'll never learn to paddle on their own.”

“I've learned to get really good at this - say one thing when I'm thinking about something else, act like I'm listening when I'm not, pretend to be calm and happy when I'm really freaking out. It's one of the skills you perfect as you get older”

“If you want something, if you take it for your own, you'll always be taking it from someone else.”

“That’s a funny thing: you think, when awful things happen, everything else just stops, like you would forget to pee and eat and get thirsty, but it’s not really true. It’s like you and your body are two separate things, like your body is betraying you, chugging on, idiotic and animal, craving water and sandwiches and bathroom breaks while your world falls apart.”