Quotessence
Home / Topics / Standing Up For Yourself Quotes

Standing Up For Yourself Quotes

Browse 31 quotes about Standing Up For Yourself.

Standing Up For Yourself Quotes

“Some of us know that looks aren't everything, Con Man." Because that's what he was--- a perfect con, tricking others into believing he should be adored. "Beauty fades, and the ugliness inside you will eventually show." He straightened then, looming over me with a sneer. "I suppose you're one those people who sees past beauty and only loves someone for their personality?" I felt the setup. I just didn't know where it was going or how to avoid it. I thrust my chin high and played it cool. "I am." He nodded as if confirming something only he knew before leaning in close. When most boys back then smelled of an overabundance of supermarket body spray, Macon smelled of cedar soap and do-me pheromones. "Tell me, Tater Tot, is it a beautiful soul you're looking at when you moon over the half-naked-firefighters calendar you have pinned in your room?" All the blood rushed from my face, leaving painful prickles in its wake. Macon's smile was cutting. "I don't believe for a second that you like Hayes for his riveting personality. You act all high and mighty while you're as susceptible to good looks as the rest of us. At least I have the guts to admit it.”

Inner BeautyStanding Up For YourselfScent Of A ManHypocrisy In EveryoneLooks Are DeceivingCalled Out OnesVerbal Attacks
Book:Dear Enemy
Create image

“You don't belong in Jack's world, and he doesn't belong in yours. My advice is to get out while you can." I glared at him with a mixture of disbelief and annoyance. "You think you know everything about me, but I'm not a nice girl. I've done bad things. I've been arrested, handcuffed, and interrogated in the police station as an accessory to crime. I've broken laws. I've been threatened, kidnapped, tied up, and was an active participant in a high-speed car chase. I know who Jack is. I have a good idea about what he does. And I can make my own decision about whether we're good together or not, which, by the way, we are, subject to smoothing out a few wrinkles." George chuckled. "So, you're saying that what you see isn't what you get. You're no lightweight." "Damn right.”

Main CharacterStanding Up For YourselfGirl BossUndercover RomanceMore Than Appearance
Book:'Til Heist Do Us Part
Create image

“Berto." Voice like ice. "Maggie, cara mia!" Voice like fire. He leapt forward to embrace her, but she held up her hand, her face grave. I noticed she'd freshened her lipstick, though. No dummy, that one. "Back off! I am not going to forgive you, so don't fritter your charm. You broke my heart and sent me flying home like a kicked dog." Maggie was just warming up. "I fled my home, my work, my friends. Every single person we know, our colleagues, our neighbors, knew I had been thrown over for a younger woman and pitied me. I am not to be pitied, Berto. I am a proud and beautiful woman, and I am the one who should be pitying you. But I don't pity you, because you made your own bed. Now go back to Italy and lie in it. Alone.”

JustificationCatharsisStanding Up For Yourself
Book:The Garden of Small Beginnings
Create image

“You haven't been yourself lately." Nikhil shook his head and sighed. "You've gone off the rails. We just want you to go back to being who you were--- sweet, good, quiet, respectful. Listen to the people who know what's best for you." "Shut up, Nikhil." I was sick of him and his officious, condescending attitude, sick of him thinking he knew anything about me. Where was he when I was struggling at school? Where was he when I needed a big brother, or even a friend? "Why are you here anyway?" "To make sure you do the right thing." "And that would be what? Telling the head of a Mafia family I'm going to bail on his daughter's wedding? Do you know how much money he's paying me to see it through? You can't even count that high." Nikhil swallowed hard. He couldn't stand being bested in any way. "We've found a perfect match for you. He's a dermatologist and he's looking for a wife. The family all agrees this is the best thing for you." "Single and has a job. That's a pretty low bar." I said. "Personality. Interests. Political views. Sense of humor. Pets. Hobbies. Character. Intelligence. Values. None of those matter?" "Not when you've lost all sense of who you are." Nikhil leaned forward. "Not when the family honor is at stake." "Oh, I'm sorry." My voice dripped with sarcasm. "Did I go to sleep and wake up in the wrong century? The family honor? Since when does our family have honor? And in what universe did you ever think I would agree to something like this?”

Family IssuesStanding Up For YourselfFamily Expectations
Book:To Have and to Heist
Create image

“Mamá. I have spent my entire life doing what is right. I went to church every Sunday, I worked in the fields, I got straight A's in school, I went to college and commuted home to save on bills and preserve my reputation, and I even raised enough money to buy the farm so I could take care of the family. But now, I want some freedom because I've earned it. I don't want to be courted and married to some man I don't even know if I'm compatible with. I don't even know if I want to get married. Ever. It's fine if Blanca feels comfortable preserving this tradition--- but I don't. Not even if it makes you happy." Mamá's eyes bugged, and she yelled at her eldest daughter. "You will not disrespect me in my house!" Carolina laughed. "Well, it's my house, actually. But that's fine. I don't need it." Blanca's jaw dropped. "Cari! Stop." "No. I should've done this years ago." Carolina turned and walked toward the living room. "Carolina! Get back here at once!" her mom called out, but she didn't respond. Enrique was sitting at the dining room table, wringing his hands, his forehead wrinkled, his fists clenched. Her father had him cornered. "So, Enrique, do you see yourself married in the next year?" Being interrogated by Papá was something Carolina wouldn't wish on her worst enemy. "Enrique, let's go." Enrique's brows raised as he stood. "Where?" Carolina looked at her father, then back to Enrique, then back to her father. She had created this fake relationship as a ruse to keep her family happy. What she was about to do would instead possibly tear them apart--- but it had to be done. Enrique had made her want things she hadn't really wanted with another man before. There was no going back. The time was now. "Out on a real date.”

Standing Up For YourselfIndependent WomanParent Issues
Book:Kiss Me, Mi Amor
Create image

“I am sure you understand," Father began, looking past Violet at the wall, "that I cannot allow you back into my house after what you have done. I have arranged for you to be taken to a finishing school in Scotland. You will stay there for two years, and after that I will decide what is to be done with you." Violet heard Graham clear his throat. "No," she said, before her brother could open his mouth to speak. "That won't be acceptable, I'm afraid, Father." His jowls slackened with shock. He looked as if she had slapped him. "I beg your pardon?" "I won't be going to Scotland. In fact, I won't be going anywhere. I'm staying right here." As she spoke, Violet became aware of a strange simmering sensation, as though electricity was humming beneath her skin. Images flashed in her mind---a crow cutting through the air, wings glittered with snow; the spokes of a wheel spinning. Briefly, she closed her eyes, focusing on the feeling until she could almost see it, glinting gold inside her. "That is not for you to decide," said Father. The window was open, and a bee flitted about the room, wings a silver blur. It flew near Father's cheek and he jerked away from it. "It's been decided." She stood up straight, her dark eyes boring into Father's watery ones. He blinked. The bee hovered about his face, dancing away from his hands, and she saw sweat break out on his nose. Soon it was joined by another, and then another and another, until it seemed like Father---shouting and swearing---had been engulfed in a cloud of tawny, glistening bodies. "I think it would be best if you left now, Father," said Violet softly. "After all, as you said, I'm my mother's daughter.”

BeesFemale PowerStanding Up For YourselfSupportive Actions
Book:Weyward
Create image

“And then someone asks if Callum is as skilled in the bedroom as he is in the kitchen. That's when my blood turns to magma. I slam my hand on top of the metal countertop. "Listen the hell up!" My shout silences every last one of the vloggers. The high schooler looks on with a shocked expression and mutters, "Yes, ma'am." "My personal life isn't up for discussion. I'm also not interested in name-dropping any of you in a commercial when you've been harassing me and my customers every day since the festival. I'm here to cook and serve food, and you goddamn piranhas are crowding around my truck, making it impossible for my mother and me to serve our customers. Either get the hell out of the way so my customers can order, or else." There's silence, followed by soft mutters. A scrawny, white guy in the back of the crowd tucks his phone into his pocket and crosses his arms, stubborn written across his frown. "Or else what?" Leaning my head back, I puff out all the hot air pent up in my body. He's the pissant who asked about Callum's bedroom performance. I swipe a bottle of lemon-lime soda from the counter and give it a dozen of the most violent shakes I can manage. I stomp out of the truck and up to the offending vlogger. Even when I'm standing two inches from him, he has the audacity to smirk. But when I twist off the cap, a stream of soda smashes him square in the face. My frustration dissipates with each violent burst of carbonated liquid.”

SatisfyingVengeanceFired UpStanding Up For YourselfPent Up Rage
Book:Simmer Down
Create image

“Your restaurant never would have survived in that area. Where it is now, over there in Tremé, is much more suited for your type of establishment." She straightened her shoulders. "Forgive me for being so bold, Mr. Fenner, but I happen to disagree. I think my restaurant would thrive no matter where it's located. And I haven't given up on the riverfront. Me and my daddy are gonna eventually open an even bigger restaurant one day. In fact, we plan to open several." She gave him a sweet smile as she hefted her basket of vegetables up higher on her forearm. "Now, if you would excuse me, I have a very big night ahead. If you would like some good food and good jazz music, might I suggest you come over to Tremé and give T&J's Supper Club a try? The doors are always open to anyone.”

TianaStanding Up For Yourself
Book:Almost There
Create image

“As I turned around to head back to the outdoor patio, my elbow poked the guy next to me. Unlike Daniel, this guy had a higher squish-to-muscle ratio. "I'm sorry," I squeaked as I maneuvered around him. "Watch where you're going," he grumbled while looking me up and down. As I walked away, he muttered, "Stuck-up bitch." My mouth fell open, searching for words. The alcohol clouded my brain, making it hard to know how to respond. "The only stuck-up bitch here is you," Daniel said and walked closer to the aggressor. "She said she was sorry. I believe you owe her an apology." "I don't owe her shit. You and your girlfriend can get the fuck outta my face." He turned to his entourage and made a face that made them laugh. Why that seemed like the best time to jump into the conversation, I don't know, but it did. "Look, you walking Dockers pants model, I said I was sorry. And you're a fucking asshole to talk to someone that way----ANY human that way---in the holiest, Dolly-est place on earth, well, second to Dollywood." I wagged my index finger in his face. "I have another apology for you. I'm sorry you took an innocent bump of an elbow into your beer pooch and tried to turn it into a personal attack. And I'm sorry to your friends for having a loser who drags down their social circle.”

Standing Up For YourselfHot TakesBallbuster
Book:So We Meet Again
Create image

“Don't pay any mind to Delilah. Our grandma Belle calls her ornery." Which is why I liked Grandma Maeve better. Sam's cute nose wrinkled then. "I think that just means grumpy." The nasty boy looked at me from under the inky fringe of his bangs when he answered her. "It does." I blew a raspberry. "Stating an opinion contrary to others isn't being ornery; it's called having a working brain. Sorry you two don't know anything about that.”

Verbal SaltStanding Up For YourselfFirst Met
Book:Dear Enemy
Create image

“You can say whatever you want about me, but none of it's true. You just can't stand the fact that your career is stagnant and you don't have enough talent to climb your way up on your own. If calling me names and threatening me makes you feel like more of a man, fine. Knock yourself out." Eden yanks her hand away and jabs her forefinger against his chest hard enough that it makes him wince. "You have a problem with me? You tell me. I'll cook circles around you, you snake. You think you can get away with it because I look like an easy target? I've got news for you, asshole, I've got a lot more fight in me than you think. But don't for a second think you can get away with dragging Alexander's name through the mud. He's twice the man you will ever hope to be. You're nothing but a little boy throwing a tantrum. So go ahead, do your fucking worst. Just don't be surprised when karma comes around to bite you in the ass.”

Verbal SaltStanding Up For YourselfStick It To The Man
Book:Knives, Seasoning, & A Dash of Love
Create image

“Someone needs to be concerned about those girls." "Kara and Kendra know that I am only a phone call away." "Would you even answer the phone if you're laid up under some man?" Line. Crossed. Ashanti closed the distance between them, until she was barely a foot away. "Apparently, you didn't hear me the first time," she said. "Who I fuck is none of your business." Anita gasped, her head snapping back. Her mouth opened and closed but no words came out. "I should petition the courts!" she finally screeched. "Get those girls away from you!" "Try it," Ashanti said. "You shouldn't be raising my brother's children!" "I am tired of your bullshit, Anita. You hadn't talked to your 'beloved' brother for over three years before he died. I know my dad tried to contact you, and you ignored him." "He was not your father!" "Fuck you! He is my father. He loved me and treated me like his own flesh and blood. You, on the other hand, who actually was his flesh and blood, didn't want anything to do with him until he was buried in the ground. And all because he took your mother's dishes." "It was her wedding china and it was mine!" Anita said. "And it has nothing to do with you." "No, it doesn't. I don't care why you cut your own brother out of your life. What I do care about are my sisters. You talk about wanting to raise Kara and Kendra? You live an hour away and saw them five times in the first ten years of their lives. "I know what this is, it's guilt," Ashanti continued. "But you don't get to alleviate the shame and regret you feel at the way you treated your own brother by making my sisters' lives hell.”

IronyHypocrisyVerbal SaltStanding Up For Yourself
Book:Pardon My Frenchie
Create image

“Erina, as she is now, is completely incapable of creating true gourmet. Given how well I know her, I can say that with certainty." "Oh? I wouldn't be so sure about that. I'd like to think I've changed, Father. The dishes I create now will not be what I once made. My apologies, but your "precious daughter" has become a runaway and a delinquent. The good little girl you once knew... ... no longer exists.”

Erina NakiriStanding Up For YourselfFather Issues
Book:食戟のソーマ 29 [Shokugeki no Souma 29]
Create image

“What, it's my fault you can't broker a deal without omitting a major safety clause?" One of his perfect eyebrows lifted. "The Poppy I knew would never be so hasty with the blame." "The Poppy you knew hadn't spent three years in therapy picking through a lifetime of brainwashing." I was almost surprised to hear the words come out of my mouth, but I knew as I said them they were true. "You and Sloan both worked hard to fuck me up, Elan. I'm not about to act like that's just forgiven.”

RomantasyTreacheryStanding Up For YourselfFaerie Bargains
Book:The Tricky Business of Faerie Bargains
Create image

“Don't mistake my politeness for weakness. Despite your wealth, you are not more important than I am, and you don't have more rights to decent treatment than I do. You know what I'm here to tell you and you must be able to figure out that it's not easy. But you are this baby's blood family, which entitles me to invite you into his life or not. It doesn't entitle you to bully me.”

PregnancyStanding Up For YourselfParental Rights
Book:The Cookbook Club: A Novel of Food and Friendship
Create image