We teared up together over the tawny frogmouths, who mate for life and let themselves starve by the body of their dead partner.

Correlation does not equal causation.”

I don’t even know if I have the capacity to like sex. I never wondered, because me enjoying something was never a priority.

You’re so pretty, Elsie, so interesting to talk to, so funny, so extroverted, so introverted, so kind, so understanding, so pleasant, so thoughtful, so levelheaded, so insightful, so crazy, so carefree, so disciplined, so intense, so laid-back—is made up. A product of fog machines and carefully angled mirrors that reflect what others want me to be.

He’s looking down at my body like it’s a beautiful space oddity, something belonging to a minor goddess, to be investigated in filthy, methodical, obscene ways.

“I did know, however, that there is something about you. That you tirelessly study people. Figure out who they are, what they want, and then mold yourself into whatever shape you think will fit them. I’ve seen you play half a dozen different roles for half a dozen different situations, switching personalities like you’re channel surfing, and I

The Dirac equation. The electron cloud. Beta decay. The Fibonacci spiral. Kinematic models, astral planes, Drake’s formula, the molecular structure of MBBA.

“You could be my entire world,” he whispers in my ear before moving to my collarbone. “If you let me.”

Solidly nowhere, vanishingly everywhere.