“I wanted to like her and I wanted her to like me and that was more want than I had saddled myself with in many a moon.”

“Once I knew that I wanted to be an artist, I had made myself into one. I did not understand that wanting doesn't always lead to action. Many of the women had been raised without the sense that they could mold and shape their own lives, and so, wanting to be an artist (but without the ability to realize their wants) was, for some of them, only an idle fantasy, like wanting to go to the moon.”

“All I can think is that I want her more than anything. I want her more than I've ever wanted anything, ever.”

“I tried to be a better person for her– but it was to impress her, to get her to want me. But when I’m around you, I want to be better because… well, because it feels right. Because I want to. You make me want to become something greater than myself. I want to excel. You inspire me in every act, every word, every glance. I look at you, and you’re like… like light made into flesh. […] You have no clue how beautiful you are or how brightly you shine.”

“I've made love to her -- finally and wholly, I've had her in every way I've wanted and needed. And I want more. I want to own her, and the idea she will someday share this with someone other than me is hard to swallow.”

“Even if I had stayed she wouldn't have ever wanted me. She didn't want me for anything more than a summer fling. I was a way of moving on for her.”