“In the end everything will be okay. But hurdles have to be jumped through first.”

“Maggie squeezes my hand. It’s a silent message that everything will be okay. Somehow I believe her. In the end everything will be okay. But hurdles have to be jumped through first.”

“I’ll always love you, no matter what happens, okay?”

“Before i was jumped in i remember Lucky telling us how being in a gang was like having a second family... a family who would be there when your own family wasn't. They would offer protection and security. It sounded perfect to a kid who'd lost his father.”

“When Alex leaves a little later, Carlos steps forward. “Need help?”I shake my head.“Are you ever gonna talk to me again? Dammit, Kiara, enough with the silent treatment. I’d rather have you say your little two-word sentences than stop talkin’ altogether. Hell, just flipme off again.”I toss my backpack in the backseat and start the engine.“Where are you goin’?” Carlos asks, stepping in front of my car.I beep.“I’m not movin’,” he says.My response is another beep. It’s not an intimidating, deep beep like most cars, but it’s the best my car can give.He places both hands on the hood.“Move,” I say.He moves all right. With pantherlike quickness, Carlos jumps through the open passenger window, feet first. “You should get the door fixed,” he says.”

“Kiss me to see if we still have it. 'Cause you own my heart,soul,and everything else in between.”

“The urge to jump into his arms and feel the warmth of them surrounding me is so powerful, I wonder if it's medically possible to be addicted to another human being.”