Summary

In Chapter 32, "Mukesh," Mukesh started reading Beloved, searching for a clue "to what Aleisha was going through" (301). Aleisha's call interrupted his reading. She wanted to meet "at the park . . . near the library" (302).

At the park, Aleisha was "sitting on a bench," clutching The Time Traveler's Wife (303). Aleisha told him what had happened. Mukesh wished there was something "he could do" (303). He decided he must "say something real" (304, Adams's italics). He encouraged her to be with her mother and to read, insisting the distraction might help. Aleisha got upset. She felt guilty for missing so much already because of books.

In Chapter 33, "Aleisha," Aleisha’s uncle and cousin promised to come to Wembley as soon as possible.

Aleisha could not "bear being in [the] house" (309). After walking past lampposts covered in flowers for her brother's memorial, she went home. She hugged Leilah, and...