Inside Out Quotes
"A vibration rippled through my body. I awoke in semi-darkness, unsure of my location."
"Someday, Trella. You’ll screw up and there will be bits of you raining out of the showers."
"Life in the lower two levels teemed with scrubs at all hours of the week."
"If I drew a square with two lines across and two lines down inside it, I would end up with nine smaller squares."
"The hot, musty smell of people packed together greeted me at the cafeteria’s door as the noise of them slammed into me."
"The scrubs shoved. They frowned. They complained. I hated every one of them. Except Cog."
"No one hated Cog. He listened. Empathized with tales of misery. Made people smile."
"The only time I could take enough food from the kitchen to stock Broken Man’s refrigerator was when everyone was at the hundred-hour assembly."
"I realized I was just about to slip past him when the LC grabbed my arm."
"Imagine every space in this room filled with people. Moving from one end to the other is like swimming in a thick human tank."
"The Travas want the scrubs to believe that, and they’re hoping eventually, with enough generations born, the uppers will forget they ever had a say in the running of Inside."
"With a gnarled finger, the old scrub tapped the man who had hushed him. "Laugh all you want, but the millionth week isn’t the end. It’s the beginning."
"A moment of weakness and an excellent lesson on what not to do in the future. Provided I even have a future."
"Was being alive enough for me? Could I really walk away without trying?"
"Contemplating the theft of his port from the lieutenant commander, I crossed over from rational to insane."
"The only way I could enter Karla’s office would be to find the wires for the motion detectors and disable them without setting them off."
"I knew they were related. They wore the drab-gray and shapeless overalls of the recycling-plant workers."
"This is intolerable. I’d rather be recycled than to continue to live as livestock."
"The end result would probably be exposing the whole endeavor as a hoax."
"Stick with the plan, I chanted under my breath."
"There’s an interesting connection. Arrest them both."
"No one knows. Not even the Travas. But I’ve overheard them speculating, and they believe the Controllers live Outside and send instructions through the computer."
"He waved me toward the heating vent. 'Won’t help my story if you’re found in here with me.'"
"Life in the pipes was preferable to being taunted by everyone."
"The scrubs would be the least of my worries."
"I always say the wrong thing around you. Look, can we start over?"
"I don’t care who they are or why they abandoned me in the lower levels."
"You need to listen to your doctor. Now hold still."
"It's amazing, but that bulb has never burned out since I found this place."
"If you move, you might pull your stitches out and I'll have to sew you up again."
"You called my bluff. Good thing your young man is a friend of mine."
"I stabbed my needle-nose pliers into his left forearm. He yelled and let go."
"Just make it to the bend, I willed, and I celebrated each one with a rest before setting the next."
"Enjoy being able to recover quickly. When you get past thirty-five centiweeks old, it's harder to heal."
"And you need to listen to your doctor. Now hold still."
"You should have seen her. Bright red, sputtering with rage and I swear I saw fire coming out of her nostrils."
"I'm about to show you a place only I know about. You can't tell anyone. Not even Anne-Jade. Promise me?"
"Don’t worry about it. You just need to hold out for a little longer."
"I’m trying to understand how you’re responsible. Is the blame all yours?"
"Think about my suggestion, Ella. Riley knows where to find me."
"No. I’m going to follow you. Yes, even through those vents until I know the whole story."
"I don’t care what the final terms are for me as long as Cogon stays alive and no one else is arrested. I’m trusting you."
"Maybe they don’t want you to help them. Did you ever think of that? Did you think about how your decision impacts others? Those you leave behind to deal with the gaping hole in their existence?"
"Of course I do. The scrubs are my family. I have a Care Mother. I shared her with nine brothers and sisters, but she loves us all. And I have Cog, who I will give myself to Karla in order to save."
"It’s too easy to report a name. Or to give up when you don’t know who you’re letting down."
"I know where it is, but opening it is going to be difficult, hence the need for help. Are you willing?"
"I’ve no desire to hear her pathetic excuses."
"I don’t know anymore. I guess those who don’t get arrested are in on it."
"Your eyes can see, but mine don’t work, yet I see what you can’t. What am I?"
"So we can coordinate our efforts in opening Gateway."
"You’re not going to be able to resist Vinco much longer."
"I wish I could have met him. He sounded like a great guy."
"All you need to do is free yourself from those cuffs."
"You act like I can just saunter out of here."
"We all thought the crowding in the lower levels was your own fault."
"I’m not amused. You should be offering your assistance to find this scrub. Remember your history, Doctor. Cooperation saves lives."
"Why should I cooperate? I don’t have a child for you to hold over me anymore. You’ve seen to that."
"Get out." Lamont’s icy voice sliced as sharp as a scalpel.
"I’ve hit a nerve. Kiana, you’re way too caring of others. No one will miss a few of them. We have plenty more below."
"It wasn’t a coincidence. Domotor had sought me out, claiming my reputation as Queen of the Pipes drew his notice. It had been a setup from the start."
"Karla and her cops are gone. How long have you been awake?"
"Interesting how the Pop Cops generated more problems when they clamped down harder on the scrubs."
"The scrubs also stopped working and cleaning. Dirty laundry spilled over bins in Sector B1, piles of fertilizer and items to be recycled grew into large mounds."
"I’m not going to tell you—ow! Let go of my ear, I’ll tell you."
"We can take it slow. We have plenty of time."
"If I can take advantage of Karla’s incompetence, then it’s only a matter of time before others do the same."
"You can try and weed out the troublemakers, Admiral, but you’ll miss one or two and they’ll multiply."
"Go ahead and be sarcastic." He swiveled back to the screen. "I’m not going to tell you—ow! Let go of my ear, I’ll tell you."
"Riley, bring reinforcements, we’re going to need them."