Nothing Like Being in Love
Falling in love, especially the first time it happens, is an experience that cannot be compared with anything else. Somehow it manages to impact every aspect of life; every element of one’s being. The worst possible circumstances can transform into a mere annoyance. Pitch blackness becomes mere twilight. It is a feeling worth all the risk in the world to recreate at will:
“Usually March is a slow month. There aren't any school holidays, the weather is still cold and dreary, the teachers get after you to work harder, and I can't believe that it will ever be spring. This March was different. I felt on top of the world.”
Still Just Kids
In the beginning of the story, before they become sexually active with each other, Kate and Michael are presented in far more immature terms. The early days of their burgeoning romance are characterized by comparative similes designed expressly to remind readers that both are that far removed from childhood:
“Do you by any chance like spinach?"
"Ugh, no … why, do you?"
"It's only my favorite food."
"Like Popeye?"
"Like Popeye."
Kissing
Kissing is usually the first step in that transformation from childhood to maturity relative to the biological impulses of sexuality. It is notable, therefore, that one of the first kisses shared by the couple also shares a referential treatment to childlike innocence:
But after a short kiss he said, "You brushed your teeth?"
"Yes."
"You taste like toothpaste."
Psychology 101, Actually
Forever turns out not to be so much forever once distance is enforced upon Katherine and Michael. True love, so they say, has the power to overcome such difficulties by tamping down temptation. Katherine and Michael—at least from Katherine’s side from things—are clearly not one of the great unbreakable romances of all time. It takes a little while to get over her fantasy with spending forever with the love of her life, Michael: almost an entire month! At least Theo isn’t actively making it easier for her even to the point of trying to limited best to explain the deeper foundation of her desires:
“Sex is an antidote to death … did you know that?"
"No."
"Psychology Two…it's a very common reaction…somebody dies…you need to prove you're alive…and what better way is there?"
What Lagoon, Now?
It’s kind of weird when a metaphorical image is almost an allusion, but not quite. One has to wonder whether the not-quite part is intentional or a mistake. In this case, however, it seems pretty strongly to be intention as the color change is reflective of the common metaphorical description associated with suffering from sickliness like the flu which is being described here. For the record, however, the correct reference is to a movie about a black lagoon, not a green one:
"You wouldn't if you could see me…I look like the creature from the green lagoon."
