Abigail

“I realize now, the older you get, the harder it is to be impressed because people make you feel ashamed of ever being impressed by anything at all. I kept many glowing remarks to myself because of this.”
― Marlowe Granados, Happy Hour

“Five hundred and fifty-five matches played
without a single loss, Pa said, and we too stared at Pa’s Coke bottle while
we drank from ours.”
― Chetna Maroo, Western Lane

“To be free to communicate without consequence—is that ever a possibility? I want to say, “I don’t want you to have feelings about my feelings.” I want to be heard without consequence because to be heard is such a novelty. If someone asks while looking me straight in the eye, I slither away. Even though we are looking at each other, I am still hiding. My dark eyes are good for that. The feelings on the tip of my tongue have no shape; they’re listless, always trying to sneak up in a moment of poignancy. Sometimes what I want to say is “I want you to be mine!” Sometimes it is “I feel trapped!” Sometimes it is “I resigned myself to a fate I thought I wanted, but now I don’t!”
But I have yearnings, that’s true. I make choices. I take action. That is simply how I navigate. But isn’t it who I am who goes out into the world? Do those few lonely moments when I return inward, away from noise and glamour, really count?”
― Marlowe Granados, Happy Hour

“Khush said, “Aunt Ranjan’s afraid of us because she doesn’t know how
to find out what we’re thinking.”
― Chetna Maroo, Western Lane