The Memory of Things

In the novel’s climactic moment, Kyle’s father reveals that Hannah’s father is alive. He was injured as he escaped the Tower but checked out of the hospital Friday morning. He looked all day for Hannah, and he wants to pick her up that night. Hannah is shocked, then filled with relief and joy.

Kyle’s dad explains that police officers he knows from the Westchester precinct will drive Hannah’s father to Brooklyn to get her and take them back home. It hits Kyle hard that Hannah lives in distant Westchester, but he knows it is time for her to go home.

After Kyle’s father leaves Kyle’s room, Hannah and Kyle sit close together on the bed. Thoughts about dating at a distance fill his head; he does not want to lose the unique quality of their relationship by trying to sustain it once their usual school schedules are reestablished, and realistically, because he doesn’t have a license or car, getting together would be difficult. The subway doesn’t even go that far; he guesses it would be a two-hour commute. So instead of trying to make definite plans, Kyle opts to share the good news about Uncle Matt feeding himself a bite of food.