“You say it like everyone is against the idea just to be jerks. But Mrs. Casnoff, your parents, me...can you blame any of us for not wanting you to die?”

“Do you know anything about the Brannicks?""Irish girls, red hair," I replied, remembering a picture of them from Mrs. Casnoff's "People Who Want to Kill Us All" lecture at Hex Hall last year. I also remembered Mrs. Casnoff saying that if the Brannicks and The Eye ever teamed up, we were screwed.”

“At least if it is an arranged marriage, you can fault your parents, otherwise you will have only yourself to blame. And, believe me, it is always harder to bear something if you cannot blame somebody else for it. -Mr. Ali-”

“Then you can blame it on your parents,' I said, smiling. 'Won't that be a relief?”

“Must be weird for you, having your mom here.""Weird for me, weird for her, probably weird for you since you had to give up your swinging bachelor pad.""Mrs. Casnoff let me install my heart-shaped Jacuzzi in my new dorm room.""Cal," I said with mock astonishment, "did you just make a joke?""Maybe.”

“I’ll tell you what isn’t; why’d they only go for you? I mean me and Steve might as well have not even been there. They just wanted you.Well, can you blame them? I mean, everyone wants a piece of this sweet ass.”