SUMMARY
We Are Okay by Nina LaCour opens with Marin, a college freshman, alone in her tiny New York apartment. She’s just come back from winter break, though she didn’t actually go home. Instead, she moved to the city to escape memories of her life in California. Marin keeps odd hours, wandering through empty rooms, haunted by a letter that never arrived.
Every day starts the same way: a long, quiet morning spent scrolling through messages she never answers. Marin’s only company seems to be the books stacked in her living room. She recites passages she’s read before as if they might crack open a memory or soothe a pain she can’t name. But the apartment stays silent.
Flashbacks carry us back to the summer before college, when Marin and her best friend, Mabel, shared a room at Fletcher House. They’d arrived as eager college freshmen, planning to stay close forever. Their days shimmered with laughter as they cooked pasta at midnight and whispered dreams of the future.
Then Marin’s grandfather fell ill. He’d been raising her after her parents died, a quiet man with gentle eyes who taught her to spin stories. On the night he died, Marin found herself staring at her own reflection, wondering if anything would ever feel solid again. She never told Mabel how lost she felt.
After the funeral, Marin couldn’t face going home. She told Mabel she’d stay behind, pack slowly. But she didn’t pack. Instead, she booked a one-way ticket to New York, where nobody knew her scars. She left without saying goodbye and let the city swallow her.
Back in the present, Marin survives off instant coffee and library wifi. She tells herself she’s fine. She even writes to her closest friend, but she signs the letter with someone else’s name. That small lie soon grows out of control.
Mabel shows up unannounced one evening. Marin has barely unpacked a toothbrush by the door. Seeing Mabel on her doorstep jolts something loose—guilt, maybe, or relief. They hug as if they could stitch together what time and secrets tore apart.
Mabel won’t leave without an explanation. She demands to know why Marin never came home, why she stopped answering texts. Marin recoils, searching for words that won’t come. She lies again, saying her grandfather never asked for her to come back.
The next morning, they recreate an old ritual: they walk to a frozen pond under a cold sky. Mabel throws stones into the ice, breaking its smooth face. Marin watches cracks spider out. She remembers throwing stones with her grandfather in that same spot, how he’d wink when she missed the bull’s-eye.
When Mabel confronts her, Marin admits she never got a final letter from her grandfather. He’d said good-bye in postcards, full of his hopes for her. But Marin never saw the last one. It got lost in the mail—so she told herself it never existed.
Mabel pulls Marin back to the pond’s edge. She reminds her that grief doesn’t disappear when you run away. It waits, like water under thin ice. Mabel tells her she’d traded honesty for a cheap escape.
Marin finally breaks. She confesses the lie about signing Adina’s name to her letter. She’d claimed someone else got a heart transplant—an attempt to create a happier ending. But the lie pushed Mabel away, and left Marin more alone than ever.
They spend that night talking until their voices drop to whispers. Marin stitches the missing pieces: she admits her fear that the world without her grandfather wouldn’t hold any meaning. Mabel admits her hurt at being shut out. Together, they cry until the first light of dawn.
In the last hours before Mabel leaves, Marin packs her small bag. She tucks in the letter she wrote but almost never sent. This time, she signs her own name. The apartment no longer feels empty when she closes the door behind Mabel.
By morning, Marin stands at the window. The city hums below, and she can’t tell if it’s her heart racing—or hope. She steps into the day ready to rebuild, piece by piece. And for the first time in a long while, she believes she will be okay.
DETAILED SUMMARY
Plot Summary
1. Solitude in New York
Marin lives alone in her college dorm over winter break. She fills the empty rooms with music and meals she cooks for one. Yet her solitude isn't peaceful. It hums with memory and loss.
She drifts through guided reflections on what brought her here. A silent phone and an empty bed remind her of someone missing in her life. She holds her breath when she recalls his laughter echoing through these halls.
Night descends and with it a swirl of regret and longing. Marin wonders if she can face the truth waiting back home. Then she sees her reflection in the window, wavering between past and present.
2. Arrival of Letters
A yellow envelope appears under her door. Inside she finds unsent letters written to her grandfather. Their words spill over the page in raw emotion. Each note holds fragments of a friendship she’s tried to bury.
Marin re-reads them in the hush of her room. She traces her grandfather’s name and face through her handwriting. The letters pulse with sorrow, love, and the weight of things she should have said.
As dawn breaks, she folds them carefully and hides them away. But she knows the past has stirred. Nothing will ever be quite the same again.
3. Flashbacks to Santa Cruz
Memories pull Marin back to a winter on the coast. She and her friend, Mabel, caught in a storm, found refuge in her grandfather’s house. Snow drifted against the windows. Inside, warmth bloomed in the kitchen and their laughter.
They built snowmen on the lawn and drank cocoa by candlelight. Marin, buoyed by hope, believed tomorrow could always be as bright. Her grandfather told stories of resilience. His voice was soft yet steady.
Then one morning, Marin awoke to a silent house. Her grandfather had passed in the night. Mabel held her hand as the world tilted sideways. Grief became a language they both had to learn.
4. Call from Marin’s Mother
Marin receives a phone call that pulls her back to the present. Her mother’s voice trembles as she asks why Marin never called. The words sting with accusation and love. They dredge up all the things unsaid.
Marin struggles for words. She tells only half the truth. Guilt coils in her chest at each pause. She wishes she could explain why she fled.
When the call ends, Marin sits in silence. The walls around her feel too small. Yet she knows she must decide whether to stay or return home.
5. Return to Marin’s Childhood Home
Marin boards a bus bound for Santa Cruz. Cold air bites her face as she steps off. The familiar streets feel different now—quieter, more brittle.
Her mother meets her with cautious hope. They share a hug stiff with distance. Marin notices her mother’s hollow eyes and the echo of loss in her silence.
Inside the house, ghosts linger. Marin touches the living-room mantel where her grandfather once left his keys. She realizes her grief shaped her flight. But now she might begin to heal.
6. Reconciliation and Hope
That evening Marin and her mother sit by the fire. They share old photos of Marin as a child. Laughter flickers between them, fragile but real.
Marin writes one final unsent letter. This time she addresses it to herself. She writes about forgiveness and the courage to stay. She folds it into an envelope marked "Begin Again."
In the morning, she places it on her nightstand. A new day has dawned—one where she is no longer entirely alone.
Characters
1. Marin (Protagonist)
“I want to stop drifting. I want to land somewhere real.”
Marin is a college student grappling with grief and isolation. She left Santa Cruz to escape the pain of her grandfather’s death. In New York, she fills her days with quiet routines, yet memories follow her like shadows.
Through the novel, Marin learns to face her loss. She slowly reconnects with her family and her own heart. Her journey shows how healing begins when we stop running away.
2. Mabel (Best Friend)
“You don’t have to prove anything to anyone. Especially not to yourself.”
Mabel is Marin’s closest companion from back home. She spent that last winter with Marin and the grandfather she both adored. Mabel held Marin up when the world collapsed around them.
Her steady presence contrasts Marin’s loneliness. Mabel’s memories spark hope in Marin’s darkest hours. She represents the power of friendship to carry us through grief.
3. Grandfather (Mr. Wells) (Mentor and Loved One)
“Grief is love we’re forced to carry alone.”
Mr. Wells is the pillar of Marin’s childhood. He taught her to see beauty in small things—a fossil on the beach, a star in winter sky. His warmth shaped her sense of wonder.
His sudden death leaves a void in both Marin and Mabel. Though he never speaks in the novel, his memory guides Marin’s healing. He remains a gentle presence in her thoughts.
4. Marin’s Mother (Supporting Character)
“I’ve missed your voice every morning and every night.”
Marin’s mother struggles with her own grief and fear. She reaches out to Marin with a mix of guilt and longing. Her voice trembles as she tries to bridge the silence between them.
She represents the complexity of family ties. Though she made mistakes, her love endures. Her reunion with Marin shows that forgiveness can heal old wounds.
5. Bridger (Friend and Confidant)
“You can talk or you can sit in silence. Either way, I’ll stay.”
Bridger meets Marin in New York and becomes a friend of sorts. He listens without judgment as she unpacks her grief. His quiet support gives her space to breathe.
Though he appears briefly, his kindness leaves a lasting mark. He reminds Marin that strangers can become lifelines in lonely times.
Themes Analysis
1. Grief and Healing
Grief shapes every page of the novel. Marin’s journey shows how loss can drive us into isolation. She hides from the world, hoping distance will dull the ache.
Healing begins when she revisits the places and people she fled. The act of writing letters allows her to speak the unspoken. In the end, she learns that acknowledging sorrow opens the door to renewal.
2. Memory and Identity
Marin’s memories tether her to both pain and joy. Recalling her grandfather’s wisdom reveals who she once was—and who she might become. Memories serve as guideposts on her path.
Yet clinging too tightly to the past can trap us in regret. Marin discovers that memory must be balanced with presence. By facing her history, she regains control of her own story.
3. Friendship and Connection
Isolation weighs heavily on Marin until friends reach across the distance. Mabel’s unwavering loyalty reminds her of belonging. Brief acts of kindness—like Bridger’s company—shift her perspective.
These connections prove vital in her recovery. The novel shows that human bonds heal wounds that solitude only deepens. Ultimately, Marin finds strength in shared experience.
Key Plot Devices
1. Unsent Letters
The stack of yellow letters anchors the narrative. They surface buried feelings and force Marin to confront her grief. Each letter peels back a layer of her reluctance to face loss.
By reading them, Marin relives crucial moments with her grandfather. She also sees the gap between what she felt and what she expressed. These unsent letters become a mirror for her healing.
2. Flashbacks
Flashbacks transport readers to Marin’s winter with her grandfather and Mabel. They provide context for her current pain. The vivid scenes of snow, cocoa, and laughter contrast sharply with her silent dorm room.
These memories show why Marin fled and why she must return. They also reveal the grandfather’s gentle teachings. Flashbacks weave past and present into a cohesive emotional tapestry.
3. Final Self-Addressed Letter
Marin’s decision to write one last letter to herself marks her turning point. Unlike the unsent notes, this letter is meant to be received. It bridges the gap between flight and homecoming.
Sealing it under the title “Begin Again” symbolizes her readiness to embrace the future. The act affirms her choice to stay and rebuild her life. It closes her journey from grief toward hope.