Izu

“I had spent my adolescence trying to blend in with my peers in suburban America, and had come of age feeling like my belonging was something to prove. Something that was always in the hands of other people to be given and never my own to take, to decide which side I was on, whom I was allowed to align with. I could never be of both worlds, only half in and half out, waiting to be ejected at will by someone with greater claim than me. Someone whole.”
― Michelle Zauner, Crying in H Mart

“This is where he struck the earth, Annabeth said, where he made a saltwater spring appear when he had the contest with my mom to sponsor Athens.
So this is where the rivalry started, Percy said.
Yeah
Percy pulled Annabeth close and kissed her.
The rivalry ends here, Percy said. I love you Wise Girl.”
― Rick Riordan, The Blood of Olympus

“She's far happier thinking her sister is normal, even if she has a lot of problems, than she is having an abnormal sister for whom everything is fine.”
― Sayaka Murata, コンビニ人間 [Konbini ningen]

“I think there’s a natural goodness built into human beings. You know when you’ve stepped across the line into evil, and it’s your life’s challenge to try and stay on the right side of that line.”
― Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes