“I didn't want him to think I was giving up - I wasn't. I simply couldn't put myself together just yet.”

“...no way could I fall in love. I just couldn't go there yet. Settle for less. I didn't want to process through anything. I didn't want to pick up any pieces. Lower my expectations.”

“I didn't want to leave things the way we had, unresolved, ... and tried to tell myself he cared about me enough not to look elsewhere for what I wasn't giving him.”

“I wanted to give him what I never had. What my father took away when he decided I wasn't worth it. What my mother tried to give me, but couldn't do on her own. What Gio's mother didn't even try to give him. Hope. - Javier”

“I really wanted something, giving myself permission to screw up wasn't an option”

“What Alex and I shared was preternaturally right. I couldn't give him up no more than I could give up breathing. Did that mean that I loved Charlie any less? No. It just meant I couldn't be with him.”