Burying Water Quotes
"This can’t be real . . . This can’t be real . . . This can’t be real . . ."
"The snowy tire tracks framed by my headlights might not even be the right ones, but they’re wide like Viktor’s Hummer and they’re sure as hell the only ones down this old, deserted logging road."
"My gut clenches as my car skids around another turn, the cone shape of Black Butte looming like a monstrous shadow ahead of me in the pre-dawn light."
"Raw fear numbs my senses, the Pacific Northwest winter numbs my body, but I push forward because if . . ."
"You were intubated to help you breathe. That hoarseness will go away soon, I promise."
"You’re at St. Charles in Bend, Oregon, with the very best doctors that we have."
"You were found in the parking lot of an abandoned building nine days ago."
"The urge to curl my arms around my body and squeeze my legs tight swarms me, but I’m too sore to act on it."
"What about . . . I mean, could I be pregnant?"
"Because you were already pregnant when you were brought in."
"I wasn’t ready for deep, thought-provoking questions."
"I’m sorry to tell you that we found evidence of sexual assault."
"I buy one, two drinks max. Rust always picks up the tab. I’m his favorite nephew."
"How can you afford coming to places like this? Drinking this."
"Not much to tell. I just love working on engines is all."
"You complain that I don’t spend enough time with you, and then when I ask you to meet me somewhere, you make me wait and accuse me of being demanding."
"And, I’ll admit, Viktor’s wife is definitely beautiful."
"I used to sit on the bench in the garage and watch my dad work on his ’67 Mustang."
"My face screws up. 'Really? ‘Boone’ is Russian?'"
"Maybe that’s why I hazard another glance at his wife."
"I’m also guessing Viktor’s already been up her alley."
"I finally venture, 'It sounds like you know Dr. Alwood well.'"
"Noise at the door distracts us before I have a chance to speak."
"I’m definitely staring now, and rather rudely."
"Don’t wish that, silly girl. You should be happy."
"Surviving and thriving. Maybe this town is perfect for a person like me."
"The warmth of a smile stretches across her face as she squeezes my shoulders. 'Open some windows and enjoy the fresh air. Everything will be just fine. You were meant to survive. I firmly believe that.'"
"It took me a night of contemplation, lying in my dark, lonely hospital room, to realize that this is actually a great thing."
"Will I find comfort in the locks and chains, will I wish for bars across my windows?"
"The mention of teeth has me running my tongue along the new wall in my mouth, where dentures have filled the gap."
"I struggle to keep the burn in my eyes from developing into full-blown tears. 'This is perfect. Thank you.'"
"It will be difficult. You will wish you didn’t remember that part. You may never remember that part, depending on how lucid you were at the time."
"But Dr. Weimer also reiterated that I am not alone and I do not have to live like I am."
"A blue canopy hangs over me, the clouds fleecy and white. I imagine that it’s a dome, enclosing me in this peace, separating me from my turmoil, which continues to swirl outside."
"I can’t help myself. I burst out laughing. It’s the first time I’ve ever heard my laugh that I can remember."
"I make a silent promise to learn how to laugh freely because that little burst felt like a release."
"Count your blessings, girl. You get to be whoever you want to be, without the burden of your past."
"I don’t just want a new name. I want my name."
"I’d really like this limp to go away, and the only way that’s going to happen is by strengthening it."
"What neither of us knows—what no one knows—is why I have a tattoo of 'water' on my pelvis. Was it an arbitrary choice?"
"As long as the guy thinks you’re dead, he has no reason to come back. So let’s keep it quiet. The people in Sisters don’t need to know the truth."
"Listen, you can't drive that truck off this property until you have a license. I don't care what Ginny tells you. I'm still the sheriff."
"That you don't take care of yourself? Lucky guess."
"I hope so. Because I love a girl who can do that."
"When you marry a woman, Jesse, make sure she has some common sense."
"I feel like I've been living in the wrong life all these years."
"Your husband's an asshole. You should leave him."
"She sighs. 'I’ve never seen a real horse up close.'"
"What do you think, Water? They're beautiful."
"What's it like, living with that old nut, anyway?"
"I may not remember ever cooking, but it turns out I’m pretty good at it."
"That was almost three weeks ago. We’ve since fallen into this routine..."
"No, better. Her eyes lights up. 'A couple of my girlfriends are coming back into town for the Memorial Day long weekend. We’ll all go out, okay?'"
"I think somewhere deep inside, I knew that the first moment I saw him."
"I keep hearing that. What do you know about him?"
"And now I know what kind of music I definitely don’t like. Not at all."
"I wake up at some point in the middle of the night, facedown on the floor beside my bed, having pushed myself to exhaustion."
"You’re in Sisters, Oregon. You’re perfectly safe."
"I hazard a slight wave. Not really a wave. More a tentative hand held in the air."
"It’s okay, Water," I coach myself through slow breaths—like Dr. Weimer told me to do whenever I feel panicked.
"Because something tells me Jesse is the kind of guy that I can always count on."
"He steps out of the doorway, pulling the door closed behind him. Though I know I should, I don’t step back."
"With a shrug, I open it and pop one into my mouth, puckering against the pleasant tangy flavor."
"My pen curls around the letters of his name as I write down my one-word response."
"And I decide that blueberries are my favorite fruit, too."
"The smell of cigarette smoke lingers in the air."
"I mean, drive your car out front and then come in to sign all the ownership papers."
"Viktor actually kept his end of the deal. He bought me my dream car."
"I still despise the guy but at the same time, how can I not thank him for this?"
"My favorite place in the world. I haven’t been back in months."
"I’m not sure if he meant it as an apology or a compliment, or if it was really just a dumbass comment."
"It’s just a scar, right? A blemish on the outside."
"And a confused girl with no past on the inside."
"I don’t think I’ll ever judge another person based on a first impression again, thanks to Alex."
"I think I may hurt more today than yesterday, but I can't remember the last time I slept this well."
"I want to be like water, too. I want to be resilient, to go where I'm meant to go."
"I'm going to leave him, Jesse. I'm going to tell him that I know about the cheating and it's not working out."
"He said the truth is like that water: it doesn't matter how hard you try to bury it; it'll always find some way back to the surface. It's resilient."
"I wasn’t really paying attention to the TV before. Now, though, all three of us are glued to the screen."
"We’ll figure it out. We’ll get you away from him. I promise."
"I have to repeat my order three times before Lauren gives up."
"Ginny could use a friend. One that doesn’t walk on all fours and harbor fleas."
"And yet you know each other. Your spirits are . . . entwined."
"Maybe we’re both lucky to have found each other."
"It’s a constant reminder to me." He pauses as he hangs another shoe. "That someone hurt you like that."
"I haven’t forgotten anything that he’s done to me. I wish I could. I wish I could forget every lie, every slap, every insult."
"I won’t give him a reason to. I’ll be fine, Jesse. Don’t worry."
"Smart, if he has some idiot to do the work for him."
"I begged for the darkness to swallow up the pain and it listened, wrapping me in a cold embrace."
"You wouldn't believe how much of a fight that stubborn mule put up over the gallbladder surgery."
"Nothing but hours feeling like I've fallen and somehow landed in my own private heaven."
"I'm not crying. I'm not talking. I'm barely breathing."
"You’re lucky you have a father like that. It’s better than indifference. Or nonexistence."
"Stop talking about my parents and eat this. Welcome to Western culture."
"In all honesty, I’ve been terrified these past two weeks."
"You’ll never be able to trust any of them again if you don’t just face this."
"Because it is a dead tree, Water. It will always be bare."
"If you wait long enough, the truth always finds its way. Just like that stream. Just like water."