The Wish

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of illness and death.

Bryce and Maggie spend every day together, doing schoolwork then taking photographs. She thinks of how “important” he is to her. When a strong storm hits Ocracoke, Bryce spends the day with his family helping people secure their homes. He comes to Maggie’s in the afternoon to help Linda with her windows. Bryce tells Maggie he missed her during the day, and she gets the feeling that he wants to kiss her. He hesitates, then the moment passes. As they work, she takes a photo of Bryce on the ladder securing the window. She then takes the photographs to Bryce’s mother and asks her to develop them for her.

That evening, Bryce’s mother brings the photos back. She praises Maggie’s work, noting how a few of the photos—especially the one of Bryce—are excellent.

As Maggie looks through her photos, she notices the things that she did wrong, as well as how good a few of them turned out. When she gets to the photo of Bryce, she is shocked by how good it looks. She caught him at just the right angle, with him concentrated on his work and looking “naturally graceful” (200).