Claire

“I’m standing for … me. For you. For us, I guess.”

It doesn’t seem like much. But sometimes just being yourself—really, truly yourself—can be the most difficult thing to be”
― Adiba Jaigirdar, The Henna Wars

“What I want more than anything else in the world is to feel like being myself isn't something that should be hidden and a secret. What I want is for my parents to be outraged that someone betrayed me, not ashamed of my identity.”
― Adiba Jaigirdar, The Henna Wars

“I am trapped inside this fragile body. I could be run off the road. I could be crushed by a van. I could choke on a grape. I could be allergic to bees; I am so impermanent that a measly bug could hop from a daisy to my arm, sting me, and I could be erased. Black. Nothing.”
― Emily Austin, Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead

“Learn to want something for yourself, Ma Xiuying. Not what someone says you should want. Not what you think you should want. Don’t go through life thinking only of duty. When all we have are these brief spans between our nonexistences, why not make the most of the life you’re living now? The price is worth it.”
― Shelley Parker-Chan, She Who Became the Sun