They Both Die at the End

Back of Book Summary:

On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day.

*Spoilers ahead as I am unable to avoid them as I will be discussing the relationship development between the two main characters and how their relational closeness changes throughout their last day on earth. But, I will not give everything away so if you would like to read you can! To look at their relationship closeness I will be looking at major turning points.*

1. Connected on last friend app

   1. This is the first turning point within their relationship and they went from strangers to friends, this would be a “formal” turning point. Formal turning points are things living together or a wedding (Mashiach & Hanson & Shulman 2015). I personally considered this a turning point in their relationship closeness because this is the place that their friendship/ romantic relationship starts. Without this they would not be where they are at the end of the book.

2. Visiting Mateo’s Dad

   1. This is what I feel like is the next turning point in their relational development, as it is the first area in which other than the fact that they are both dying Rufus first sees Mateo in a personal and vulnerable situation. Mateo is saying goodbye to his father who is currently in a coma and will wake up to the news that his son died.

3. Starting Instagram

   1. The next turning point in which Rufus is pushed out of his comfort zone. Mateo learns of Rufus losing his family and going into foster care, and how he did not get to have a proper goodbye so he encourages Rufus to document his day for his friends so they know how it went. Like I said I see this as a turning point of relational closeness as it is the first time Rufus shows vulnerability in their relationship.

4. Visiting Mateo’s mother's grave

   1. The next turning point is similar to when they visited Mateo’s dad in the hospital but this time it is his mothers grave who just recently passed away.

5. Travel around the world

   1. Traveling around the world is an experience for deckers so they can experience the world safely. This is a turning point in their relationship as it is the first time they both truly acknowledge the fate of the day. Up until this point they understood but it never really sank in. This makes them appreciate each other's company even more.

6. Graveyard- Kiss

   1. This I feel is very obvious when it comes to relational closeness. In this stage they attend a bar that is meant just for deckers as it is open all night, they go there together to meet up with friends, and in this time Rufus finally works up the courage to kiss Mateo. Making his feelings known.

7. Confess love

   1. This next turning point is what I would consider to be the peck of their relational closeness and they confess their feelings for eachother and spoke about how even in just one day they have changed each other's lives for the better.

8. Death

   1. This is the only negative turning point in the book as it is a physical turning point in the book. Mateo sadly passes before Rufus, thus there is no more relational closeness, but, in the chart down below you will see I didn’t place it back to the start because the bond between the two was still formed and will have an impact on Rufus until he dies later in the book.

In this book the relationship did not have very many negative turning points. I feel like this is due to the fact that they were spending their last day on earth and there is really no time for arguing, or a decrease in closeness. It was only one day and a lot happened that brought them closer together. I feel like if they had a moment that had a negative impact on the relationship that they would not have ended in the same relationship the book currently ends with.

Reference:

Tuval-Mashiach, R., Hanson, J., & Shulman, S. (2015). Turning points in the romantic history of emerging adults. Journal of Youth Studies, 18(4), 434–450. https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2014.963533