Now I felt like I was drifting, sucked down by an undertow, and too far out to swim back to the shore.

Looking back, it seemed like it should have been harder to lose someone, or have them lose you, especially when they were in the same state, only a few towns over.

The way I see it," she continued, "is that some things are just meant to be the way they are.

Failing sucks. But it's better than the alternative." "Which is?" "Not even trying." Now he did look at me, straight on. "Life's short, you know?

You get what you give, but also what you're willing to take.

I didn't want to talk about what happened, so it seemed safest not to talk at all.

After all with me & Marshall, it had never been about words or conversation, where there was too much to be risked or lost. Here, though, in the quiet pressed against each other, this felt familiar to me. And it was nice to let someone get close again, even if it was just for a little while.