That's Not What Happened

Content Warning: This section includes discussion of school shootings, death by gun violence trauma, mental and emotional health concerns, substance use disorder, and grief.

Lee is the protagonist and the primary force behind clarifying and purporting the truth about the shooting at Virgil County High School three years ago. She does this by collecting letters from the other survivors and compiling them along with written victim portraits. When Lee finally writes her own letter, she includes flashback-style scenes of the past and scenes of recent events, actions, and conflicts.

Lee is a senior planning to study theater at college in Los Angeles. She lives with her mother. Lee’s father left the family when Lee was young, then passed away. Her mother sometimes works extra shifts to support them.

Lee was a freshman when the shooting occurred; she hid in a bathroom stall with her best friend, Sarah McHale. The shooter found them and fired two bullets over the top of the door. Sarah was killed, but the bullet intended for Lee missed. Lee, like the other survivors, experiences lasting trauma, anxiety, fear of public places, and dark and intrusive thoughts. Physical contact and loud noises startle Lee.