Conclusion

Pages 178-204: Finny is dead.

After the accident he was taken to the infirmary. I went there hoping to talk to him. Opening the window to his room, I tried to apologize. He was so upset I could only repeat how sorry I was over and over. I left without going into his room. I walked to the stadium and slept there all night outside.

The next morning I packed up some things Finny would need and brought them to the infirmary. In the room with him, I reminded him how I had tried to confess the truth to him when I visited him in his home in Boston. Finny said he understood and believed I hadn't caused the accident because of hate I felt toward him or any other personal reason. He said he realized I had done it on impulse. I left after Dr. Stanpole told me to come back around 5:00. When I returned he told me Finny's heart had stopped during the surgery.

Afer Finny's funeral, I enlisted in the Navy and will go to Pensacola for training. I feel as if I've already fought a war, a war which never really existed between Finny and myself. I killed my enemy at school. I'll never cry over Finny. I'll never talk about Finny because I can't use the past tense when talking about him. It seems as if he still lives on with me.