Goodbye Stranger

Sherm and Bridge walk to his house to retrieve an American flag for part of the Apollo 11 talent show set decoration. When they arrive, Bridge loves the coziness of Sherm’s house and the smell of freshly baked cookies in the air. Sherm leads her to his grandmother’s room to find the flag. It is filled with her belongings, including photos of her in her youth and books she is translating from English to Italian. Staring at the photos, Bridge tells Sherm he resembles his grandfather, but he has his grandmother’s eyes.

Sherm finds the flag and yells “Bingo!” (209), an expression he learned from his Nonno, and grabs Bridge’s hand as they walk downstairs. Sherm’s grandmother sends them away with delicious cookies. After tech crew, Bridge stands in her apartment and tries to see Sherm’s house, wondering what handholding means: Bridge enjoyed it, but she does not want it to ruin their friendship. Bridge’s mom returns from another work trip and promises she is not traveling for a while so she can spend time with her kids, who are growing up too fast.

Sherm writes that right before Nonno left, Sherm’s dad begged Nonno to take Sherm’s grandmother back to Italy. He accused Nonno of becoming a stranger to everyone in the house, including himself. Sherm relates the story of holding Bridge’s hand and says some days he also does not feel like himself.

At Tab’s house, Celeste grabs Tab and Em as soon as they arrive and shows them a picture of Patrick in his underwear on his social media page. It’s the same photo he sent Em, but Bridge wonders why he would post it. Celeste says someone else did it, but she can’t understand why he hasn’t taken it down. Em calls to see if they have seen it, and she worries people will think she posted the picture. Everyone agrees they are happy Patrick will get a taste of the cruelty Em has experienced.

On the way, home Bridge sees Alex, who reveals if Jamie loses the bet, he must sing to Adrienne in the café in his underwear. Bridge is disgusted and tells Alex no one would do such a thing to their good friend, but Alex claims it is all voluntary. Bridge pushes all the buttons in the elevator except Alex’s floor and steps out of the elevator.

The narrator misses Vinny even though she knows she is not a kind person anymore. Vinny knows Patrick, and she tags all her high school friends on the underwear photo, ensuring everyone sees it. The next day, Patrick deletes his account. The narrator recalls seeing Vinny at school one day when Vinny said she missed her. They skipped class and reconnected, telling stories from their childhood. Just as they were about to leave, Vinny told the narrator she is the only person who truly knows her. Wanting to endear herself to her friend, the narrator told Vinny Gina’s secret. Vinny walked straight to the Valentine’s flower table and purchased a card, and, posing as Gina, wrote to Marco telling him she loved him. The narrator instantly felt awful for betraying Gina’s trust and forgetting about Vinny’s cruel streak.

Patrick’s mother makes him take down his social media account and watch a documentary on cyberbullying. Everyone thinks Em posted the photo, but she was at soccer practice when it went live. Despite her alibi, Mr. Ramos has called a meeting with Em and her parents. Before the meeting, Em, Tab, and Bridge go to the playground to swing. Tab is glad that Patrick and his friends know what it feels like to be embarrassed online, but Em says she feels worse now than before. Patrick calls, and Em steps away to talk while Tab and Bridge swing. Out of the blue, Bridge asks Tab if she remembers the day of the accident, and Tab says it was the worst day of her life. Bridge asks her to describe it because she has no memory of that day. Tab remembers the yellow Bug and the way Bridge yelled, “Bug-buggy, zoo-buggy” (225) right before the collision. Bridge says that means she still owes Tab two punches, and they chase each other around the playground.

Bridge has another mummy nightmare, but her mom is out of town, so Jamie comes to comfort her. Bridge realizes it isn’t midnight and Jamie ruined his daily step count to be with her, but Jamie says he no longer cares about the bet. Bridge asks Jamie if he thinks she survived the accident for a reason; she feels different inside, but Jamie says everyone feels like that sometimes. Jamie tells Bridge the real reason she lived is that the doctors restarted her heart three times. Jamie stays with Bridge, and they joke about Rudolph until she falls back asleep.

The narrator watches a street vendor selling flowers for $3. By now, the Valentine’s Day flowers have been given out at school, and the narrator wonders what will happen when Marco receives his. The narrator wants to tell her mom about everything but worries she will say that it’s not so bad. She wonders if her mom remembers how awful high school can be. The narrator asks Adrienne where Mr. Barsamian is, and she says he is helping a friend look for a lost kid. Finally, Adrienne suddenly realizes what is going on. The narrator begs her not to turn her in and asks to borrow $3.

Bridge plays cards backstage with Sherm, whose bread smell is slightly sweet that day, and Tab arrives to tell them Mr. Ramos cleared Em but now he wants to talk with Sherm. After Sherm leaves, Bridge thinks about how much she enjoys spending time with him, but she is still not certain how to define their relationship. She remembers when she was little how she did not understand that the borders between states didn’t have black lines around them, and she thinks this is what it’s like to define the lines between friendship and love. Bridge asks Tab how a person knows what to do in life, and Tab quotes the Berperson saying, “[T]he most important thing is to be true to yourself” (235). Bridge appreciates the advice but wonders how she is supposed to know herself. Tab doesn’t have all the answers and advises Bridge to wait to decide about Sherm until she feels more certain.

Five months after he unexplainably left, Nonno Gio returns and meets Sherm at school, but Sherm just says hi and walks away. He tells Nonno in a letter that he was glad to see him, but it felt good to leave knowing Nonno knows how it feels to be abandoned. It is 18 days until Nonno’s birthday.

Sherm and Bridge walk to school together, and she carries a box of Stove Top stuffing for Tab, who is having her dental procedure. Sherm makes a silly joke about dentists advertising for stuffing and is delighted when Bridge laughs at his bad joke. After school, Bridge notices she has voicemail messages but instead goes straight to sit with Tab at the dentist while she recovers. A woozy Tab confesses that she posted Patrick’s photo and has sent voicemail confessions to Bridge and Em. Tab claims she did it as an act of civil disobedience, a term they learned from the Berperson in the Human Rights Club. Earlier, when Tab told the Berperson what she did, her teacher was disappointed and told her she must confess to Mr. Ramos.

Later at Tab’s house, Tab and Bridge are eating marshmallows when Em calls and says she is coming over to confront Tab. Em arrives and tosses her a pile of mean notes classmates have left in her locker. She says the bullying has intensified since the photo of Patrick went viral, and she blames Tab. Through tears, Tab apologizes and explains that she never meant to hurt Em and that she will likely be suspended for her actions. Celeste arrives home, and the three friends tell her the entire story. Celeste realizes that it was Julie Hopper who sent Em’s photo to all the boys, and Em texts Patrick to confirm the truth. Tab is worried she has lost her friend since they broke their no-fighting pact, but Em suggests they should learn how to argue properly, and they all swear on the marshmallows to amend the Twinkie promise. Overwhelmed by all the drama, Celeste begins crying, claiming she’s had an awful week.

Following Tab’s confession, Mr. Ramos suspends Tab for three days and removes her from the talent show lineup. Tab and Em agree to attend the show together, but Tab says they should probably sit in the back and keep a low profile for the rest of the year. Em says, “Who are we, Bonnie and Clyde?” (247). Tab tells the friends about Valentine’s flower delivery at Celeste’s high school. She finds the tradition disgusting since it favors the popular kids who get all the flowers. When she gets to high school, Tab plans to eliminate the tradition. Bridge arrives home from tech crew to see a flyer in the lobby advertising Jamie’s upcoming performance at the Bean Bar.

Bridge races to the Bean Bar, where she finds Jamie already removing his shoes. She begs him to stop, but he insists on holding his end of the bet. Alex watches smugly as Jamie removes his clothes, revealing a pair of long underwear that covers his body. He bends on one knee and sings “Happy Birthday” to Adrienne. Feeling duped, Alex becomes angry but still tries to flirt with Adrienne. She knows he is a creep and gives Jamie a kiss on the cheek, thanking him for the song. Jamie gives her his Hermey figurine and tells Alex he quits the bet.

As they walk home together, Jamie thanks Bridge for being there for him. She wonders why he did not explain to Adrienne about the bet, but Jamie said it was a violation of the contract. He explains how someone once said, “It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than it is to get permission” (253). Then, he gives Bridge a rock to add to the collection she and Sherm have for the talent show decorations. In exchange, Bridge gives Jamie a tech crew shirt, and they quote their favorite line from the movie about being independent together. Later, Bridge overhears Jamie talking and laughing with her parents, and she is glad the bet is over, and he is more like himself. Bridge texts Em and tells her to start practicing for Friday and then texts Sherm asking if he’s ever heard of asking for forgiveness instead of permission.

Sherm writes to Nonno Gio two days before his birthday to respond to the questions he sent him in his texts. Nonno Gio told him his heart is broken and that he misses Sherm.

The mystery narrator wonders if a person can be two types of people at once: the person who made a bad choice and the person who regrets making a bad choice. She walks away from the café, hoping she can forgive herself, with $3 from Adrienne, who is watching her from the window.