Eggs

David finds a television show featuring a man who can read people’s fortunes and commune with the dead. People wait in line to tell the man about their deceased loved ones or pets so that he can channel them. Sometimes he hears a voice, and sometimes, he sees the dead person’s spirit. People always leave feeling better, crying with joy to hear from their loved ones.

When David knows that Primrose will be out scavenging, he goes to visit Madam Dufee. The door is already open. He goes inside and calls for her, and she emerges with no wig, wearing a nightshirt. David can barely recognize her.

Madam Dufee assumes that David is looking for Primrose. He tries to get her to snap into her Madam Dufee persona, but she is too fixated on talking about Primrose. She says that she is fond of her daughter and complains that Primrose won’t sleep with her anymore.

David tries to shift the focus to his mother. When Madam Dufee tells David that his mother will live a long and happy life, he informs her that his mother is dead. At this, Madam Dufee gets serious about providing David with a reading, but she keeps getting distracted and resumes talking about Primrose. In one final effort, David pulls out his secret memento of his mother. It is a plastic turtle that he once gave to her, which she then made into a pin and wore every day. David took it off her body at the funeral. Now, Madam Dufee rocks the turtle in her arms and sings it a lullaby. David grows angry when he realizes that she cannot help him. He snatches the turtle back and flees the house.

David wanders aimlessly into the night, thinking about his mother. Eventually, he falls asleep on the porch of a random house and only wakes up when the morning newspaper hits his face. He realizes that it is morning and the sun will rise soon.

David panics and begins running, trying to get home before the sun comes up, but he doesn’t know where he is and cannot find his street. Instead, he finds Refrigerator John’s place and pounds on the door. When John opens the door, David rushes inside and buries his face in the couch.

John realizes that David has been out all night and knows that his grandmother must be worried. At David’s request, John checks to make sure that the sunrise is over. David relaxes, and John drives him home. David falls asleep in the car.

John is surprised at how young David’s grandmother is, and Margaret is shocked to see a strange man delivering her sleeping grandson to her door so early in the morning. John lies and says that David got up early to visit him. He then puts David to bed.

As John and Margaret sit down over coffee, Margaret tells him many things that he already knows about David, and he begins to worry that he knows more than she does. He wonders if she knows how David talks about her. Margaret hints that she knows. John feels sad for Margaret, knowing that David’s behavior must be painful. John says that David loves his grandmother, but Margaret can tell that he is lying.

John tells Margaret all about David and Primrose’s antics at his house, but he is careful not to divulge David’s late-night wandering or anything else that could hurt Margaret more. Margaret is thankful that David has John and Primrose.

A few days later, David wakes up to find a note from Primrose, demanding that he meet her at her house immediately. David worries that it’s a trick, but he goes anyway. He finds her sunning in her own small yard around the van. It feels as though no time has passed since they last saw each other, even though it’s been two weeks.

Primrose wants David to comment on the work she has done to her van—the flowerboxes, bird bath, and fencing. When he says it’s okay, she goes into a loud, exaggerated rant about his bland comment. David points out that there are eggs on her back window, but Primrose shows him that they’re fake; she put them up to deter the real eggers. It hasn’t worked, though, and Primrose claims that they’re just jealous of her place. She shows David the interior, which is now covered by elaborate wallpaper. David asks if this is why she brought him, but Primrose says they are going somewhere.

David follows Primrose onto the railroad tracks that lead to Philadelphia. He is excited because he has never been there before, but he is also afraid, and he doesn’t feel safe at the idea of going into the city alone. Primrose has walked the tracks before—not all the way, but far enough to see the skyscrapers.

David wants to know why they’re going to Philadelphia, but Primrose will not tell him, and he grows angry that she’s being so mysterious. He says that he doesn’t like her or trust her, then he pushes her. Primrose laughs at him as she stumbles forward, then turns around and pretends to panic at the sight of a train coming up behind him. She tells him to jump. He jumps and rolls as far away from the tracks as he can, and Primrose laughs hysterically.

When Primrose finally calms down, David is gone. She spots him far down the tracks, heading back the way they came. Worrying that he won’t believe her if another train comes for him, she chases him down and scolds him for going off on his own. They both fight back their tears.

When they feel the rumblings of a real train coming, Primrose yanks David off the track and holds him against the wall of the bend. When the train is gone, he breaks away from her. They continue walking, with David far out front. When Primrose loses him around another bend, she speeds up to catch him and crashes into him, as he is now standing still.

David and Primrose admire the sight of the skyscrapers in the distance. Primrose says they’re almost there. She gives David a hoagie that she bought at 7-Eleven. She brought one for each of them, as well as two bottles of Mango Madness and a cupcake. Primrose insists that they eat while they walk so they don’t lose time. She throws her sandwich wrapper on the ground, but David retrieves it. They can no longer see the skyscrapers, and Primrose admits that she doesn’t know how much farther it will be.

As they walk, David asks her silly questions, like whether she’d rather be hit with an egg or a rock. David would prefer the egg because it hurts less, but Primrose disagrees. David practices his yo-yo tricks and shows off. Primrose tries, but she isn’t as good as he is. Soon, she asks if he missed her during their break, but he denies this, and she returns the sentiment. They talk about what they did, trying to boast about how much fun they had in each other’s absence.

They round another bend, and the skyscrapers come into view again. This time, the buildings are glowing gold in the late afternoon sun. It will be dark soon. When David asks if they can make it before dark, Primrose doesn’t answer.

They walk on. David complains, wanting to go home. Primrose becomes agitated and shoves him in that direction. David declares he hates Primrose and picks up a stone to throw at her, but she picks up a larger stone. They remain in a stand-off until David gently lobs the stone to the ground as a show of truce. Primrose throws hers down, too, but it sprays gravel at David’s legs, causing him to become angry again.

David is about to tell Primrose that the guy in the photo is not her father, but she beats him to the reveal, saying that she’s already aware of this. She found out a few years ago that her mother had lied about her father, but she still would rather keep pretending.

David is hungry. Primrose still has the cupcake and a couple of swigs of her Mango Madness left, so she promises to share. She also finds an old pack of malted milk balls. She offers them to David but takes them back before he can eat them, worried that they’ll make him too thirsty. David is even hungrier, having been teased with the candy, and he complains as they walk on.

Primrose is still in good spirits. She doesn’t know how much further they must go or how they’ll get home, but she is unbothered by the idea of walking all night. David begins to hit her, chanting that he hates her, but Primrose laughs, undeterred.