“Together, they would watch everything that was so carefully planned collapse, and they would smile at the beauty of destruction.”

“And they would all smile at the beauty of destruction.”

“I guess humans like to watch a little destruction. Sand castles, houses of cards, that's where they begin. Their great skills is their capacity to escalate.”

“My mouth opened.It happened.Yes, with my head thrown into the sky, I started howling.Arms stretched out next to me, I howled, and everything came out of me. Visions pored up my throat and past voices surrounded me. The sky listened. The city didn't. I didn't care. All I cared about was that I was howling so that I could hear my voice and so I would remember that the boy had intensity and something to offer. I howled, oh, so loud and desperate, telling a world that I was here and I wouldn't lie down.”

“It's not so much that the old friend is a better friend. It's just that you know the person better, and you know they don't really care if you're acting like a poor, grovelling idiot. They know you would do the same for them.”

“I watch the beauty for as long as I can, then turn and face the rest of it.”

“He must have loved her so incredibly hard. So hard that he would never ask for her lips again and would go to his grave without them.”