“Soon I am seeing the blue-and-yellow flags that line the campus streets, and it makes me feel happy and sad at the same time to be back at La Salle--almost like looking at old pictures of people who have either died or with whom you have lost contact.”

“When I run, I always pretend I am running toward Nikki, and it makes me feel like I am decreasing the amount of time I have to wait until I see her again.”

“Most people lose the ability to see silver linings even though they are always there above us almost every day.”

“She looks sad. She looks angry. She looks different from everyone else I know—she cannot put on that happy face others wear when they know they are being watched. She doesn’t put on a face for me, which makes me trust her somehow.”

“I believe in happy endings," I tell him, "And it feels like this movie has gone on for the right amount of time.”

“I can always look up at the cosmos and marvel, no matter what happens. And when I look up at it, I feel as though my problems are small. I don't know why, but it always makes me feel better.”

“I’m a screwed-up person who no longerknows how to communicate with the people I love. But I meant everything I told you inmy letter. If I were your Nikki, I would have come back to you on Christmas Day, butI’m not Nikki. I know. And I’m sorry.”