Chapter 32

Fifteen years have passed. Leo tells of his reactions shortly after the Ocotillo Ball. He ventures to her house but finds it empty except for a For Sale sign in the yard. He goes to visit Archie, who appears to have been expecting him. Leo asks, “Where?” and Archie answers, “Midwest. Minnesota.”

Leo wonders if he will ever see her again, if she was even real. Archie tells him, “Star people are rare. You’ll be lucky to meet another.” He goes on to explain that sometimes a person comes along who is more in touch with who they really are than the rest of us are. Leo is confused and Archie just smiles. He tells Leo he is lucky because she loved him enough to try to be something she could never really be. Though Leo says he understands, Archie knows he does not but one day he will.

Leo continues to be part of the Loyal Order of the Stone Bone, and they never speak of Stargirl again until the next summer. Archie invites Leo to come over and shows him Stargirl’s office in the tool shed behind his house. It looks just like Leo thought it would, full of ribbons and calendars and phone books and file folders and bits of other interesting things. Archie shows him a scrapbook with Peter’s name on it, and Archie explains he is to wait five years before he delivers it. Leo spies a file folder labeled “Borlock” and opens it.

It contains a myriad of information about him, including his likes and dislikes. Leo is stunned into silence. He also sees files for everyone else she knew, including Hillari Kimble and Wayne Parr. He remarks that she was like a spy. Archie smiles and says, “A lovely treason, hm?” Leo is speechless.

Chapter 33

Leo still visits Archie during his college years, though he eventually moves east to pursue his career as a set designer—something he realizes now was born in him the day Stargirl first took him to her enchanted place. Archie looks more and more like the ancient Mr. Saguaro. On Leo’s last visit, Archie hands him the car keys and deposits himself, a pail, and a small paper bag in the front seat.

They discuss Stargirl, but Leo seems no closer to understanding her now than he ever had. They drive to the foothills and Archie directs Leo to stop near an outcropping of rocks not far from the road. He takes a pick from his pail and finds a good spot. After a bit of digging, Archie pulls Barney the Paleocene rodent skull out of the bag. Leo is shocked and watches as Archie places the fossil in the hole, adds a piece of paper, then proceeds to mix some cement to seal the grave. No one would be able to see the spot unless they were very close to it. When Leo asks Archie what was on the paper, all he said was “a word.” Leo knows he will get no more information.

The next time Leo stops to see Archie, someone else is living in his house, and what was once Stargirl’s enchanted place is now an elementary school.

More than Stars

Class reunions are held every five years for Mica Area High School alumni, but Leo has never gone. He is still friends with Kevin, who did not make it to television but is using his speaking talents as an insurance salesman. Kevin has gone to the reunions, and he tells Leo there is much discussion about Stargirl. The most common question they ask one another is whether they were part of the bunny hop. They even tried to re-create it, but it was just not the same.

Wayne Parr’s whereabouts are unknown, but he did not end up with Hillari. A new club on the school campus is called the Sunflower Club. Members do one act of kindness each day for someone else. The Mica High marching band now has a ukulele. The Electrons have not had any great success, but at every game there is a small group of people who stand and cheer the first time the opposing team scores. When Leo drives past her house, he sees a young man strapping skis to his car and wonders if Peter enjoyed receiving his scrapbook.

Leo has changed. He watches for silver lunch trucks, listens for mockingbirds, and drops a coin occasionally. He always reads the paper, especially the fillers. He reads about good deeds and wonders if she is there. He wonders what she looks like and what her name is now. He never feels alone; he hears her laughter and knows she is somehow watching him.

The day before his last birthday, Leo receives a mysterious package in the mail—a porcupine necktie.