Paper Towns — Chapter no 44

“Let’s play metaphysical I Spy,” Lacey says. “I Spy with my little eye a

hero’s heart, a heart that beats not for itself but for all humanity.”

“I’M NOT BEING MODEST. I JUST DIDN’T WANT TO DIE,” Ben

exclaims.

“Do you guys remember that one time, in the minivan, twenty minutes

ago, that we somehow didn’t die?”

Hour Fourteen

Once the initial shock passes, we clean. We try to shepherd as much glass

from the broken Bluefin bottles as possible onto pieces of paper and then

gather them into a single bag for later disposal. The minivan’s carpet is

soaked with sticky Mountain Dew and Bluefin and Diet Coke, and we try to

sop it up with the few napkins we’ve collected. But this will require a

serious car wash, at the very least, and there’s no time for that before Agloe.

Radar has looked up the side panel replacement I’ll need: $300 plus paint.

The cost of this trip keeps going up, but I’ll make it back this summer

working in my dad’s office, and anyway, it’s a small ransom to pay for

Margo.

The sun is rising to our right. My cheek is still bleeding. The

Confederate flag is stuck to the wound now, so I no longer need to hold it

there.

Hour Fifteen