Denise

“It hurt too much to consider the truth. It was so much easier to pretend; to keep spinning the fantasy for as long as they could.”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel

“She would not cry in front of this man who had torn her world apart. She would wait for an opportunity and kill him.”
― Rati Mehrotra, Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove

“Narcissistic Supply (noun)--

He liked her but was too ashamed to admit it because she was off limits. So he ran her name down in the mud and made sure everyone would believe that he never cared. However, he kept one foot in her life because that is what obsession is like for a narcissist. They can't let you go, but they won't let others know that they are being immoral. If they can't have you then everyone will think your crazy and no one will ever believe your story. Obsession runs in their veins and they will never give you up. You have become their dirty little secret, their narcissistic supply. They like the rivalry and jealousy they created because it means they are desired by everyone. It doesn't matter if they divorced their ex and got a new woman in their life. That person will be told the same lie about you and they will continue with this obsession that you still care about them. When in reality you loathe their very existence. At the very heart of narcissistic supply is obsession and this deep seeded feeling that they are missing out.”
― Shannon L. Alder, The Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Bible: Spiritual Recovery from Narcissistic and Emotional Abuse

“How appropriate to have my tongue cut out, when silence has been my refuge and my cage.”
― Holly Black, The Stolen Heir