" We’re always all alone,” he said, his voice cracked and worn.
Tamsin shook her head. She knew that wasn’t true. She had years of proof to the contrary. “No,” she said. “Not always. Not
even often.”
“Oh,” the old man said, with a sigh that seemed to come from the depths of his being. “I forget you’re still young yet.” He
coughed then, a dry, rattling sound. “Sometimes we get a little bit of a facade. We think we have people. Family, friends . . . but
in the end, it’s just you and the darkness. Everyone leaves eventually, my young friend. It’s better, really, to learn it early. This
way, you can save yourself some disappointment.” He sighed then and slumped back against the wall once more. “Because
believing you’re not alone is the cruelest trick of all. "

― Morgan Matson , The Unexpected Everything