“There is nothing like love. You should try it.”Thibault shrugged. “Maybe one day.”

“I think they've met before," she finally said."Who? Thibault and the loser?”

“she felt a sudden, unexpected surge of hope. Despite the tragedy they'd all gone through, this was what a happy family looked like; this, she thought, is what a loving family did when they were together. For them, it was nothing but an ordinary day on an ordinary weekend, but for her, there was something revelatory about the notion that wonderful moments like these existed. And that maybe, just maybe, it would be possible for her to experience similar days in the future.”

“It was inevitable for people to try to create a sense of normalcy in a place where nothing was normal. It helped one get through the day, to add predictability to a life that was inherently unpredictable.”

“Because it protects you. And when I jumped from the Humvee, I believed it would save me, too, in the same way you believe it will always save you.” “No, I don’t,” Thibault began.“Then why, my friend, do you still carry it with you?”

“As Confucius once said, 'He who does nothing is the one who does nothing.'"Gabby pondered the words, the furrowed her brow. "did Confucius really say that?"Sunglasses in place, Stephanie managed the tiniest of shrugs. "No, but who cared? The point is, they handled, and most likely they found some sort of self-satisfaction in their industrious-ness. Who am I to deprive them of that?”

“For them, it was nothing but an ordinary day on an ordinary day on an ordinary weekend, but for her, there was something revelatory about the notion that wonderful moments like these existed.”