Pages 33-60: I've changed my mind about Finny saving my life in the tree. It's his fault I was there in the first place.
The Suicide Society is meeting every night. I still climb the tree and jump off, but Finny has come up with something else for us to do. His new idea is a game called blitzball. He made up the rules as we went along and just like any sport he tries, he's the best at it.
Just when I think I'm beginning to understand Finny's character he does something that amazes me. He and I were in the pool area and he broke an official school swimming record without practicing. The part that amazed me was he didn't want anyone else to know and he wouldn't do it again. It was important only to him. We ended up going to the beach because Finny believed the only place to do real swimming is the ocean. I went along with him even though I should have stayed at school and studied for my next day's test. We rode our bikes for hours just to get there, swam in the ocean, and slept on the beach. Before we had fallen asleep, Finny told me I was his best friend but I didn't answer that he was mine. The next day we made it back to school in time for my test. It was the first test I flunked.
In our room one night, Finny tells me I want to be class valedictorian and I realized he didn't want me to get that award. He tried to keep me from my schoolwork with the Suicide Society, blitzball, and even going to the beach. I decided to work harder in my classes. Summer went on.
In August, when I should have been studying for my French exam, Finny wanted me to go to the tree to watch Leper Lepeiller jump from it into the river even though we both knew he wouldn't. We discussed my study habits and I have to admit to myself that Finny is not and probably never was jealous of me or thought of me as a rival. He seemed to be perfect. When we got to the tree, Finny suggested we jump from it together. I did something terrible then to my friend. I treated him as an enemy. I bounced on the tree limb making Finny lose his balance. He fell from the branch onto the bank. I jumped into the river. It was the first time I wasn't afraid to do it.
The Suicide Society is meeting every night. I still climb the tree and jump off, but Finny has come up with something else for us to do. His new idea is a game called blitzball. He made up the rules as we went along and just like any sport he tries, he's the best at it.
Just when I think I'm beginning to understand Finny's character he does something that amazes me. He and I were in the pool area and he broke an official school swimming record without practicing. The part that amazed me was he didn't want anyone else to know and he wouldn't do it again. It was important only to him. We ended up going to the beach because Finny believed the only place to do real swimming is the ocean. I went along with him even though I should have stayed at school and studied for my next day's test. We rode our bikes for hours just to get there, swam in the ocean, and slept on the beach. Before we had fallen asleep, Finny told me I was his best friend but I didn't answer that he was mine. The next day we made it back to school in time for my test. It was the first test I flunked.
In our room one night, Finny tells me I want to be class valedictorian and I realized he didn't want me to get that award. He tried to keep me from my schoolwork with the Suicide Society, blitzball, and even going to the beach. I decided to work harder in my classes. Summer went on.
In August, when I should have been studying for my French exam, Finny wanted me to go to the tree to watch Leper Lepeiller jump from it into the river even though we both knew he wouldn't. We discussed my study habits and I have to admit to myself that Finny is not and probably never was jealous of me or thought of me as a rival. He seemed to be perfect. When we got to the tree, Finny suggested we jump from it together. I did something terrible then to my friend. I treated him as an enemy. I bounced on the tree limb making Finny lose his balance. He fell from the branch onto the bank. I jumped into the river. It was the first time I wasn't afraid to do it.
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