“I wanted this to be easy. I wanted to know for sure who I loved and why. I wanted to be in love without a hint of doubt.But I realised that I could want as hard as I liked; the reality was already messier than I liked. I was in over my head … and I had a panicked feeling that I wasn’t going to be able to manoeuvre this without screwing up big time.”

“There are things I want, too. Things I want to change. I’m tired of only being there for a good time, Brenna. I’m tired of being a corrupter of the people I love. I no one wants to be the perpetual fuck up.”

“That I love her, that I want her, that I'm never going anywhere, that she and I are going to last. That this is real. That it’s forever.”

“And then I save up for a ring and ask you to marry me. And then, if everything goes the way I want, you agree. And then whatever you want. As long as you're with me, I know things will be alright”

“Just you and me. That's all, Jake. I know it might not be perfect. I don't want or expect perfect. I just want you.”

“I wanted to call you. See you. You have no idea how bad I wanted to”

“To hold you. To smell your hair and hope you don’t notice and think I’m some sort of psychotic. To watch the way the light moves over your skin. I want you to get chilly and sleepy and need to press your body tight to mine, and I want to wrap my arms around you. I want whatever you write in that secret book of yours about me to be worth all the other rotten shit you’re going to wind up accepting down the line.”