"do you know why i'm always right?" he, nothing but a boy without reason to exist, asked in the depth of their conversation.

"because you're smart," she said, echoing the words of tens, dozens of others in the exact same assured tone.

"no," he replied, his draw of breath done so meticulously as if the words he'll utter were from an overused script, "because i'm a pessimist,"

"because i accept the fact that if anything can go wrong, it will. if even the slightest chance of misfortune exists, the universe will favor it. this is the truth, and people prefer to keep living in the lie because they think it indefinitely can protect them from the pain. but the truth? the truth always prevails."