Every Last Word

Samantha continues to lie beneath an oak tree on the hill, just outside where her car is parked. The sun begins to set: “I’m not sure how long I’ve been out here, but my chest feels numb, my eyes are puffy, my face is sore, and there’s dirt caked under my fingernails” (290). When she rises from the ground and checks her cell phone, Samantha sees that she has numerous missed calls and texts from her parents, Sue, and friends. Samantha calls Sue, who says she is coming right away to pick Samantha up. Samantha remembers the open mic she was supposed to attend that night, to see AJ and the other members of Poet’s Corner perform. Given everything that has happened, she knows she will miss it.

Thinking over how AJ reacted with fright when she began talking about Caroline, Samantha worries that she has scared him away: “I never wanted him to find out. And now he’s gone” (291). Sue finally comes and collects Samantha on the hill, saying that Samantha’s parents will take care of her car. Together in Sue’s car, they drive to Sue’s home.

They sit outside in Sue’s garden drinking tea.