"Where's Simon?"..."Is he okay? Why isn't he here?" She glared at Derek. "Where'd you leave him?" Passed out in an alley." Derek frowned in thought. "Not sure where, though."

Previous Quote

Most of our platitudes notwithstanding, self-deception remains the most difficult deception. The tricks that work on others count for nothing in that very well-lit back alley where one keeps assignation with oneself: no winning smiles will do here, no prettily drawn lists of good intentions. One shuffles flashily but in vain through one's marked cards- the kindness done for the wrong reason, the apparent triumph which involved no real effort, the seemingly heroic act into which one had been shamed.

— Joan Didion