The In Between Quotes

“Tessa’s final photo was different from the rest. It was a close-up of her face. In color. She had taken it at the Empyrean Hotel, on the night she first saw Skylar’s spirit. But of the hundreds of people looking at this photo, only Tessa knew the tiny glint in her eyes was the reflection of a ghost—the ghost of a boy who loved her so much that he had crossed the boundary of life and death to be with her one last time.”
― Marc Klein

“Skylar?”
Dr. Nagash’s expression, honed by years of delivering bad news, turned
grave. “Skylar was in the accident, too. He was injured severely.”
“Is he here?” Tessa asked, her voice faint and hoarse. “In the…
hospital?”
“Tessa, he didn’t make it to the hospital. Skylar died at the scene of the
accident. I’m terribly sorry.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Dr. Nagash tried to comfort Tessa. He assured her they had people in the
hospital who would help her get over the grief. That she was still young and
had her whole life ahead of her. But how could the rest of her life ever
match the 211 days she loved a green-eyed boy named Skylar?”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“It was a sensory phantasmagoria. The coldness of the setting moon, the
warmth of the rising sun, and the sky above an explosion of pinks, yellows,
and reds. From behind, Tessa felt Skylar scoop up her hair and lift it away
from her neck. He pressed his lips to her exposed skin and she trembled, his
touch rushing through every nerve in her body. Then she heard him whisper
softly, “I’m still here, Tess.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Her iPhone, like Skylar, was dead.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Locking the door, Tessa sat on the cold tile floor and slumped against
the wall. Tears fell down her face, over her chin, and down her neck. She
began to communicate with Skylar’s hat, silently asking it to cheer her up.
Share some memories with me, she pleaded. Make the pain go away.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Skylar? Are you here…?”
She sat in silence for a few moments, then tried again. “Please, Skylar. If
you’re here, give me a sign….”
Tessa waited, hoping that one of her posters would fall to the floor or a
windowpane would spontaneously splinter like they did in horror movies.
She would accept anything as a sign. Even if her door flew open on its own
or it started hailing golf balls outside.
But her posters held still, her windows didn’t shatter, and not a single
hailstone fell from the night sky.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Seeing her friend’s distress, Shannon swerved to the side of the road and
parked. She wrapped Tessa in her arms. “It’s gonna be okay,” she insisted.
“We’ll get through this. I swear.”
Tessa choked back tears. “I never got to say goodbye.”
“I know.”
“I don’t even remember the last thing I said to him…. What if it was
something bitchy?”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Tess, you need to forget what you don’t remember and focus on what
you do. You guys had, like, the epic summer. You’ll never forget it. Hell, I
won’t forget it and I was just a jealous bystander.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“I just wish I could have
one more day with him… one more hour.”
“I’m sure he feels the same way,” Shannon assured her. “Wherever he
is.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Do you think
Skylar would have wanted this?”
“I don’t know, Mel. Why don’t you ask him?”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Tessa caught her breath when the final string of letters appeared,
sandwiching around the others, forming the words:
YOU
ARE
ENTERING
THE
LAND
OF
LOVE”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Tessa decided there were two possibilities to explain what had just
happened:
1. Skylar was reaching out from the afterlife.
2. She was imagining Skylar was reaching out from the afterlife.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Tessa didn’t realize she was crying until she tasted tears on her lips. He’s
here. Watching me. Trying to touch me. So why can’t I see him? Or hear
him?”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“Tess? I love you like a
sister. But I don’t think this is about color photos or waiting rooms or
bardos.”
“Okay, fine. Then what’s it about?”
Shannon handed Doris’s book back to Tessa. “A girl who doesn’t want
to let go.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“I just
realized something,” he said. “Something that’s missing from every single
one of your photos.”
Tessa sighed. “Yeah, I know. Color.”
“No,” he replied. “You.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between

“e, Tessa lifted her eyes from Doris and looked up to the
ceiling. “I’ll get to you, Skylar. No matter what it takes, I’ll find a way.”
Tessa pushed the oxygen mask back onto Doris’s face, then stroked her
hair tenderly. “There’s nothing to be afraid of, Doris. Everyone you’ve ever
lost will be waiting for you in the tunnel of light. It’s the most beautiful
place you’ve ever seen.”
There was a blissful expression on Doris’s face. “Yes. I know.”
― Marc Klein, The In Between