Malia Rose > Quotes

“It’s like these few moments of realizing that you were going to drown, that the water was going to fill your body soon and there’s nothing you could do about it. Perhaps he could also say it was like standing face to face with a foe and knowing before the tip of the sword reached its target that you were going to be struck down.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“Layla pursed her lips with doubt. She knew she wasn’t someone who was easy to love.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“A care burnout was when he spent a lot of time taking care of other people only to realize that not only did no one do the same for him, but that even if they tried, he wouldn’t let them.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“She tried to catch her breath; she tried to find an anchor, but she had nothing. Her thoughts spiral.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“It was up to her to make sure her sister was showered with the love she couldn’t bring herself to accept. They were all very affectionate, but never to her. It was hard to allow it; too dangerous. She couldn’t afford to get used to gentle touches. It’s best if I don’t know what they feel like, she thought.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“He didn’t like to think about the walls that he had accidentally built over the years because of it. He didn’t like to think about how much anxiety it gave him to accept help, to let someone else see him in a position of vulnerability.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“He was feeling loneliness in bigger waves these days. He wished he had someone who could see right through him and sometimes, he hated himself a little for it. It felt like a weakness.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“Tenderness often felt like a cruel mocking to her; the safest reaction was always anger.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known

“She had brown eyes—he had a soft spot for big brown eyes—they were the kind that had the power to make a person’s heart melt.”
― Malia Rose, The Ordeal of Being Known