...a sad sort of vulnerability was wafting from her, making the night smell like maple syrup.

No one should ever compromise the dignity of another human being.

When your cup is empty, you do not mourn what is gone. Because if you do, you will miss the opportunity to fill it again.

If anyone had been paying attention to the signs, they would have realized that air turns white when things are about to change, that paper cuts mean there's more to what's written on the page than meets the eye, and that birds are always out to protect you from things you don't see.

Embarrassment felt a lot like eating chili peppers. It burned in the back of your throat and there was nothing you could do to make it go away. You just had to take it, suffer from it, until it eased off.

Misfits need a place to get away, too. All that trying to fit in is exhausting.

It was early evening when they walked outside, the sky the color of pink lemonade.