Listen for the Lie

Some people will never believe you no matter how hard you explain yourself. Trust me, there's no pleasing people. If they're determined to think the worst of you, they will.

People don’t believe women who fight back. When a man lashes out, people say he’s lost control of his temper or made a terrible mistake. When a woman does it, she’s a psychopath.

You don't owe anyone your whole story.

I am not responsible for the fake version of me you created in your head.

And people hate that quality in a young woman, don’t they? They don’t know what to do with a girl who isn’t looking for their approval. They feel like they have to bring her down a peg.

My life vastly improved once both those men were gone. Men don’t protect us, not really. They only protect themselves, or each other. The only thing men ever protected me from was happiness.

It’s better to be interesting than likable.

An insult doesn’t have the intended impact when spelled incorrectly.

Would people say she had a temper if she was a man? They’d say she stood up for herself when it was needed.

She wasn’t interested in making other people comfortable, which I really liked about her.

Men don't protect us, not really. They only protect themselves, or each other. The only thing men ever protected me from was happiness.

The truth doesn't matter if you fight back.

Make Today So Awesome That Yesterday Gets Jealous.

But sometimes you meet a girl who is just, like, your soulmate. Not in a romantic way, but in a friend way. Which can almost be more intense. You could tell that Savvy and Lucy were in one of those intense friend-soulmate relationships.

I’m finding it harder to hold a grudge. And I’m usually so good at holding grudges. It’s one of my best talents.

In the end, life is just sweatpants and children who resent you and all your choices.

She was a real no-nonsense girl. Just didn’t have time for any shit, you know? I’ve always admired that about her. I was so concerned with whether or not everyone liked me at that age. And people hate that quality in a young woman, don’t they? They don’t know what to do with a girl who isn’t looking for their approval. They feel like they have to bring her down a peg.

It was a real dick move on Grandma’s part to be born in August.

People your age are usually so proud of being busy.

Sometimes I think about the fact that the twenty-two-year-old version of me would be absolutely horrified by almost-thirty me.

I would have liked to replay that smug little smile of Ben’s. That wasn’t a superhero smile. That was the grin of a man who liked to watch shit burn.

She shrugs once, a shrug that would make Arya Stark proud.

Texans are nothing if not polite (to your face).

I’m showing up unannounced, which is a real dick move, especially since she has kids, but I’ve lost all my fucks. I have no more to give.

I’ve had an IUD for years, so there are no smug babies in my immediate future,...

I could explain all day and these people will never believe me. Most of us don’t change our minds once we’ve settled on a version of events.

again. “I should have controlled my temper,” I said softly. I should have just cried. Taken the hits and crawled away to show my scars. I should have been a better victim. The truth doesn’t matter if you fight back.

He’d said the lie so many times he’d started to believe it himself.