Rachel

“I want to text him. I want to call him. I want to take the elevator and go downstairs to smell him. But I’m not going to. I’m not that weird. Overtly, at least.”
― Ali Hazelwood, Stuck with You

“Okay, I know you can’t see it, but I’m holding up the fetishisation card.” “What does that card even look like?” “It looks like two adorable men in sweaters holding hands under a rainbow.” “I thought you wanted to hold hands with an adorable man under a rainbow.” “I do, but the fact you want it almost as much as I do is what makes it creepy.”
― Alexis Hall, Boyfriend Material

“Sometimes, you can half believe you’ve been hurt so much you’ve basically been vaccinated. Rendered immune. And then someone says something like that to you.”
― Alexis Hall, Boyfriend Material

“We are vulnerable even when we are not. We are vulnerable even when we have not chosen to be. The existence of Black women is always under assault. Our hair is an insult and our bodies are violated. Our Black brothers, sons, fathers, daughters, mothers, sisters, grandmothers, aunties are all vulnerable. We can disappear, be assaulted, be murdered under the color of law without recourse. Despite our credentials and accolades, we can be the first to be laid off. We know this and we are reminded of this. We are always vulnerable—living without certainty and at risk.”
― Tarana Burke, You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and the Black Experience