“And yeah, it got better. My stomach eventually went back to normal. I didn’t cry every day. But my heart. My heart will always be broken.”

“If I’d stopped believing that my life would eventually get better, I don’t think I would have survived high school.”

“Somehow, I manage to open the door. And smile at the enormous bunch of balloons Erin has for me. And act like my normal self (or at least what I think my normal self acts like).”

“I'm so excited that my stomach is in a jiggle-jaggle of nerves.There they go again.Jiggle.Jaggle.I'm a mess.”

“We had algebra together, right?” “Yeah.” That was two years ago. I only vaguely remember him. Something about circles. “Didn’t you draw perfect circles?”“That’s what I’m known for.” “Really?” Erin goes, all excited about the circles. Jason says, “No, it’s just this one time I went up to the board and I had to draw a circle and it came out really . . . round.” “Which is always a good thing, when you’re drawing a circle,” I say. “Exactly.” Jason smiles at me. “It was more than one time,” I remind him. For some reason, it’s all coming back to me now. “It was more like three or four times.” “What can I say?” Jason goes. “You got me.”Now we’re both smiling.”

“Tell me about it. It’s so hard to deal with a single parent. They take out all their anxiety on you. It’s like,she’s so angry all the time. And I didn’t even do anything!”“That’s so wrong.”“Yeah.”“Where’s your dad?”“I don’t know. My mom had me when she was still in high school, so . . .”“You don’t see him at all?”“No, and I don’t want to. I have no interest in maintaining a relationship with someone who didn’t loveme enough to stick around.”

“Physical attraction that strong is addictive. And knowing that kind of magic isn’t just a fantasy makes me want to find it again. But what about being with someone who makes me a better person? What about sharing my life with someone who adores me as much as I adore him, whom I can always count on, who helps me find my way when I’m lost?”