The Rest of Our Lives

Tom Layward is a middle-aged husband and father of two. He works as a lawyer and lives in Westchester County with his wife, Amy. Twelve years ago, she had an affair with Zach Zirsky, a man from her synagogue. Like Amy, Zach’s partner supported the family, and he got bored easily. When Tom found out about the affair, he threatened to leave Amy. She made him promise not to divorce her until their children, Michael and Miriam (Miri), had left for college.

Tom reflects on his and Amy’s marriage now that Miri is 18 and preparing to leave for Carnegie Mellon. He realizes how much he’s been clinging to Miri’s impending departure all these years.

Shortly before Miri’s departure, the family vacations at Amy’s brother Richard’s Cape Cod house. Tom recalls falling in love with Amy when he was 26, and the first time he met her family (the Naftalis) and vacationed with them. Their money and aesthetic impressed him, and he decided that was the sort of life he wanted.

Miri’s boyfriend, Jim, joins the family on Cape Cod for the trip. When Miri and Jim get into an argument in front of the whole family on the beach, Amy gets upset and demands that Tom intervene. Miri is irritated with Tom, but he’s always been able to communicate with her better than Amy. She explains that she and Jim are fighting about whether or not to stay together once they leave for college. Tom assures her that she doesn’t have to make this decision now and that whatever she chooses is fine.

The family has lunch with the Brinkman family. Tom watches as Amy slowly gets drunk and embarrasses herself. He reflects on how she has changed since college and how he saw her when she and Zach first began flirting. Meanwhile, Tom gets into a conversation with Danny Brinkman, his son, and Miri. They argue about pronouns, which Tom insists is ridiculous. Miri deems him an “[a]ngry white male” (15).

Back at the beach house, the family orders pizza. Amy criticizes Miri for eating too much, warning her that she’ll gain “the freshman” 15 pounds. Tom intercedes, which only upsets Amy. She has been this way with Miri since she was a young girl. Tom, on the other hand, sees himself in Miri and can never really get upset with her. He recalls various times when Amy wanted him to keep Miri from acting or dressing in a certain way, and he was reluctant to get involved. Amy has always hated how easily Miri gives up on things, but Tom has never worried about her quitting habits.

Before Jim leaves for New York the next day, he takes Tom aside. He wants them to stay in touch even if he and Miri break up, because he might need a law school recommendation one day. Then he and Miri say goodbye. Miri is visibly upset afterward, but Tom tells Amy they can do nothing to make it better.

When Tom and the family return home, Michael is waiting for them. He remarks on how sick Tom looks. Though Tom hasn’t been feeling well for several months, he dismisses his son’s concern. Later, he overhears Michael confronting Amy about his well-being. Tom assures Michael that he already visited various doctors and had several tests, but they came back negative.

That afternoon, Tom is glad to see his kids going out together. Tom reflects on Michael’s adolescence and how hard he tried to get him involved in basketball, because he played in college. Later, Tom and Michael hang out at the neighborhood court, shooting hoops and talking. Tom opens up about what’s “going on in [his] professional life” (31). He teaches at the law school, but recently worked on a case involving the Denver Nuggets, which his college friend Brian Palmetto asked him to pick up. Nuggets’ owner Terry Kirkland was accused of sexual harassment and racism at work. The league punished him by suspending him for a year and fining him $15 million. A public backlash ensued because many believed that Kirkland should have been fired. Because of the publicity nightmare and Tom’s involvement in the case, the law school asked him to take a leave of absence this coming term.

Tom admits that he hasn’t told Amy about any of this and doesn’t know what he’s going to do. He also admits that he and Amy aren’t in a good place. Tom thinks Amy is ashamed of his beliefs. Michael suggests that Tom use this work issue as an opportunity to reconsider his opinions.

The following day, Tom’s family has their family friends, the Pritzkers, over for lunch. Although Miri used to be friends with their daughter, Jessica, she goes out instead of visiting with the family. Tom watches Jessica and Amy interact, guessing that Amy wishes Miri were more like Jessica. He notices Amy getting progressively drunker and embarrassing herself. She gets upset when Miri returns home and doesn’t immediately join them. After the Pritzkers leave, Amy goes upstairs to bed. Tom lies next to her for a while, but their conversation quickly turns into another argument about Miri. Amy thinks Miri is squandering her talents because she plans to quit acting when she gets to college. Tom doesn’t think it matters, which bothers Amy. Amy leaves the room, and Tom falls asleep for several hours. When he wakes up, Michael is trying to mediate another fight between Miri and Amy.

In the morning, the family has breakfast together. Amy says she isn’t going to drive Miri to college with Tom after all. Michael promises to stay with her until his flight home.

For the first part of the drive, Tom reflects on his and Amy’s marriage. He recalls the challenging weeks after Amy told him about her affair. Amy told Michael about it, but Tom didn’t tell Miri because she was only six.

Tom and Miri stop for lunch at the Cracker Barrel. Miri tells Tom about hanging out with Michael and about his confused relationship with his close friend (Betty or Betsey). A call from Amy interrupts them. Tom dismisses himself to the bathroom, where he stares at his swollen face in the mirror. For months, he has woken up with a puffy face, which gradually deflates throughout the day. Back at the table, Tom says a quick hello to Amy, who now regrets not coming along.

Back in the car, Tom and Miri talk about her relationship with Jim. She explains that they broke up because he wanted an open relationship so they could each get the full college experience. Miri didn’t want that, so she ended it with Jim. Then she and Tom talk about the future, Tom’s health, and how much Tom will miss Miri.

They arrive at Carnegie Mellon. Tom helps Miri unpack the car and set up her room. After she meets her roommate, Tom invites them out to dinner, but Miri just wants to get settled. Tom heads out to his college buddy Sam Tierney’s house, where he has made plans to spend the night.