Aunt Ini is an important mentor and anchor for Sage, embodying the archetype of the wise elder. As the woman who raised Sage’s father after her own sister’s death, Sage describes her as “more like my grandmother than my aunt” (16). She possesses a strong, lived-in understanding of loss that she shares with a blend of directness and compassion. She is a static, round character whose wisdom remains a constant source of guidance throughout the narrative. She resists offering easy platitudes about grief, instead providing honest and grounding truths. When Sage expresses her sorrow, Aunt Ini validates it, saying, “You will miss her every day of your life” (40)—a statement that normalizes lasting grief rather than promising its eradication. This honesty allows Sage to feel seen and understood in a way that generalized condolences from others do not.

Aunt Ini’s character is defined by her resilience and her philosophy of active living in the face of sorrow. She challenges Sage, encouraging her to get out of bed by telling her, “You still got a lot of living to do” (37). She also refuses to excuse Sage’s hurtful behavior simply because she is grieving. After Sage’s outburst in group, Aunt Ini teaches her an essential lesson in compassion, stating, “Just because everybody’s pain looks different don’t mean it hurts less” (134), and pushing Sage to recognize the validity of experiences unlike her own. This combination of comfort and accountability distinguishes Aunt Ini from a mentor who simply provides reassurance. She helps Sage understand that receiving compassion also requires extending it to others.

Ebony is a member of Ms. Carver’s grief group who becomes one of Sage’s closest new friends. Her father died suddenly of a heart attack, an abrupt loss that mirrors the shock and unpreparedness Sage feels after Angel's death. This shared experience forms the initial foundation of their bond, allowing Sage to feel understood without needing to explain the specific texture of her pain. Sage describes her as a “buoy,” an image that captures the steady support Ebony provides while respecting the grief Sage herself must navigate. Her gentle persistence is evident in her repeated invitations to spend time together outside the group, even while Sage initially lies or keeps her at a distance.

Beyond offering companionship, Ebony holds Sage accountable in ways that push her growth. She is honest with Sage when Sage lashes out at Ana and Zay, telling her, “You should apologize. Maybe not for what you said but how / you said it. And for how you acted” (117). This honesty is a form of love, one that refuses to let Sage's grief become an excuse for cruelty. Ebony also encourages Sage in small but meaningful moments of everyday life, such as urging her to talk to Kofi, reminding Sage that new joys are still possible.

Ebony contributes to the theme of Finding Community After Loss through the gradual change in how Sage defines their friendship. Sage initially resists when her mother calls Ebony and DD her “new friends,” fearing that accepting new friendships somehow diminishes Angel’s importance. Eventually, when Ebony casually refers to them as friends, Sage thinks, “They are not just two girls who sit in a circle with me after / school and cry. […] But just now, Ebony said it so casually, so / sure, I realize we are past becoming friends. / We are friends” (118). Ebony therefore helps Sage discover that relationships formed after a death do not have to compete with the relationship that was lost. Her presence expands Sage’s support system while allowing Angel to remain irreplaceable.

DD is a friend of Sage’s in her grief support group whose loss carries a distinct social and political weight: Her brother was murdered by police. This violent, sudden, and public death shapes her grief in ways that both parallel and diverge from Sage's, adding another dimension to the group's collective understanding of loss. Like Ebony, DD immediately relates to Sage's experience of abrupt bereavement, and her presence affirms that Sage's pain is neither singular nor incomprehensible. Yet DD's grief is also inflected by an awareness of injustice, giving her character a strength and maturity beyond her years.

DD is characterized by a candid, practical approach to grief. She can discuss the circumstances of Nathan’s death directly while also remembering him through ordinary and humorous details, such as his ability to burp the alphabet. At his memorial, the emphasis similarly falls on stories about who Nathan was rather than only on how he died. This approach offers Sage an important example of remembering a person as more than the tragedy that ended their life. DD’s ability to have both painful and joyful memories together contrasts with Sage’s earlier tendency to let the circumstances of Angel’s death dominate how she thinks about their friendship.

DD also has a directness that makes her an important influence on Sage, emphasizing the theme of finding community after loss. Alongside Ebony, she challenges Sage after her outburst toward Ana and Zay rather than automatically taking her side. Later, when Sage complains that grief group is not giving her the answers she needs, DD imitates Ms. Carver, joking that “[g]rief is like hunger. Just because you eat today doesn’t mean you won’t need to eat tomorrow” (120). Although presented humorously, the comparison gives Sage a new way to understand grief as something that may repeatedly require attention rather than a problem she can permanently solve. Through her humor, honesty, and willingness to remember Nathan as a whole person, DD shows a way of living with loss that helps Sage gradually develop her own.

Ms. Carver is a static character who is a mentor and facilitator in her role as the school counselor leading the grief group. Her primary function within the narrative is to provide a safe, structured environment where Sage and the other girls can explore their feelings. She establishes the group’s foundational rules, “Everyone shares openly and everyone listens with compassion” (6), creating the framework for the collective healing that follows. Rather than describing a correct response to loss, Ms. Carver repeatedly normalizes different emotions, including sadness, anger, guilt, joy, and even relief, a concept that is central to the theme of the nonlinear nature of grief. Her calm, nonjudgmental approach gives the girls language for experiences they may otherwise struggle to explain.

Ms. Carver is also willing to challenge Sage without rejecting her. When Sage lashes out at Ana and Zay, Ms. Carver asks her to reconsider how she expresses her feelings yet welcomes her back after she leaves the group. She later provides Sage with practical tools—a rubber ball and a smooth stone—showing that her guidance includes concrete coping strategies. Although Ms. Carver’s personal life remains undeveloped, her consistency is important, as she creates a space where Sage can make mistakes, reveal difficult feelings, and return without being defined by her worst moments.