* searching for x starters
searching for x is a novel by deborah ellis. tw: violence and blood.
‘ are you hurt anywhere else? ’
‘ i’m not leaving you alone here at night. it’s too dangerous. ’
‘ put your pajamas on. you’re going right to bed after you do the dishes. ’
‘ it’s time for you to bring a little sunshine into the world. ’
‘ living without you? not tucking you into bed at night, all warm from your bath? ’
‘ i deal with a lot of jerks now. ’
‘ you just say it over and over until it becomes as much a part of you as your name. ’
‘ i’ve told you and told you and told you that i don’t want you fighting. ’
‘ the streets aren’t safe for you. ’
‘ you would take me onto your lap, rock me, let me cry it out, then dry my tears and say, ‘ it’s time for you to bring a little sunshine into the world ’. ’
‘ what have you got there, sport? ’
‘ you come home covered in mud, and you disobeyed me by being out in the first place. ’
‘ if i’m screwed up when i’m an adult, it will be my own fault. ’
‘ you have the afternoon to yourself. ’
‘ if i hadn’t been tired, hungry, worried and scared, i could have stayed up there for hours, watching what happened on the street. ’
‘ you’re in some kind of trouble, aren’t you? ’
‘ i’ll only eat half of it. ’
‘ it was a very lonely, very sad feeling. ’
‘ go and get washed for supper. ’
‘ clean up first, lecture second. ’
‘ blood doesn’t wash out. ’
‘ it was nice to be in my bed with a book and a bowl of soup. ’
‘ but i was tired, hungry, worried and scared, and being those things tends to take the fun out of whatever else you’re doing. ’
‘ sometimes my hunger is so big i feel i can eat anything. ’
‘ i know i was being kicked, punched and shoved, and i also know that i got a few good kicks and punches of my own. ’
‘ that’s why i’m all dirty. ’
