“His eyes looked sad and cautious.  I recognized the grief, but there seemed to be more to it, a depth beyond what even I had experienced, a regret I couldn’t quite grasp.”

“Blue is the most common eye color in Oria Province, but there is something different about his eyes and I'm not sure what it is. More depth? I wonder what he sees when he looks at me. If he seems to have depth to me, do I seem shallow and transparent to him?”

“I lifted my head up once more, noticing the contentment in his eyes as he looked at me. It was similar to the peace I had seen on his face after I lost the bet to stay with him in the apartment, after I told him I loved him for the first time, and the morning after the Valentine’s dance. It was similar, but different. This was absolute—permanent. The cautious hope had vanished from his eyes, unqualified trust taking its place.I recognized it only because his eyes mirrored what I was feeling.”

“The love in his eyes was so powerful, I needed to look away. Seth had an amazing grasp of the English language, but there were days when that skill was nothing compared to what he told me in his looks.”

“Never look back to the past, never regret, even if there is emptiness ahead.' But I couldn't help it. Sometimes I would rather look back if it meant that I could feel something in my heart, even something sad. Sadness was better than emptiness.”

“Oh no…!” Swanilde gasped, a dance of emotions going across her face. I could see sadness, anger, fear, and compassion-as well as so many more emotions that I couldn’t grasp. “My father-he’s dead!”