Don't be afraid," I said, "We belong together." I was immediatly overcome by the truth of my own words.

I'm trying to keep"― he huffed, shifting his weight as the treetop bounced him―"my promise!" I blinked my wet blurry eyes, suddenly sure that I was dreaming. "When did you ever promise to kill yourself falling out of Charlie's tree?

Here's to responsibility," he toasted. "Twice a week." "And recklessness every day in between," I emphasized. He grinned and touched his can to mine.

After a few decades, everyone you know will be dead. Problem solved.

When you live for the fight, for the blood, the relationships you form are tenuous and easily broken.

I kept pushing against the black, though, almost a reflex. I wasn't trying to lift it. I was just resisting. Not allowing it to crush me completely. I wasn't Atlas, and the black felt as heavy as a planet; I couldn't shoulder it. All I could do was not be entirely obliterated.

Whoa, whoa! Hold up, there, kid. She lives in Forks, remember? So she gets rained on.