She's Come Undone

In 1984, Dolores gets her job back with the Buchbinders and starts attending community college. Mr. Buchbinder compliments her recent hard work and the business she brings into his store and helps pay for her college. Roberta moves in with Dolores, and soon after, the ceiling collapses, leaving Dolores with a large bill for repairs. Roberta solves the issue by getting herself and Dolores a part-time job as delivery drivers for a Chinese restaurant.

For her English class, Dolores writes a paper about painting Roberta’s toenails as her legs shake from the Parkinson’s, and the professor decides to read it aloud to the class. He also reads another paper by a student, Thayer, whom Dolores judges at first due to his size. She approaches him after class the next day to compliment his paper, and he attempts to ask her out, but she declines.

On one of their deliveries at Christmas, Dolores stops at Mr. Pucci’s house and finds his partner sickly and rapidly aged. She is happy to see Mr. Pucci but sad to see the state of his health. Soon after, Mr. Pucci’s partner dies of AIDS, and Dolores can’t bring herself to go see him until one night when she finally shows up at his door. They begin going for rides together at night, Dolores playing a tape of whale sounds and the two of them talking or sharing silence together. Eventually, Mr. Pucci reveals that he has HIV and could develop AIDS any time.

Dolores also starts hanging out with Thayer, who keeps asking her out, but she continues to create reasons why she can’t date him. One night, he and his teenage son show up at her house and perform a breakdance and rap for her, convincing her to finally say yes to a dinner. When she arrives at Thayer’s house, she is greeted by a pet turkey that chases her around the yard. Dolores throws some homemade cookies at it to fend it off as Thayer opens the door, laughing. He invites her inside and feeds her a delicious meal, proving himself to be clever and kind, but Dolores can’t help noticing the clutter and cat fur all over his house. Still, she lets him kiss her at the end of the date. On their second date, they take a walk and talk about their pasts. Thayer explains that he dated a Black woman who became his son’s mother and that their marriage was seen as shameful by his family. When she left him, it was to pursue her career, and his son was left behind. Thayer embraces his role as a father but admits it can be challenging. Dolores tells Thayer about her past, from the time she was a child until the present, and when she is through, Thayer only wants to see her again. On their third date, Dolores asks Thayer to help her have a baby, but not to be part of its life. Thayer is confused by the sudden and harsh request, wondering why Dolores doesn’t want to try having a relationship and baby the traditional way. Dolores feels as though she will ruin it if they try and tells him to forget the whole thing.

Mr. Pucci becomes more and more ill, leaves his job at the school, and moves in with his sister. He keeps in close contact with Dolores, as do his friends and family, and they all become close with Roberta, as well. Mr. Pucci puts his house up for sale and painfully watches as the real estate agent removes anything that might reveal him as gay, fearing that nobody will buy his house if they know.

Dolores continues seeing Thayer, who agrees to try to help her have a child, but soon becomes perturbed by the arrangement and pressures Dolores into marriage. Dolores explains that her past is still holding her back and that she doesn’t believe she could create a happy life with a man. Dolores tells Thayer their relationship is over, and they don’t talk for two weeks.

The last time Dolores visits Mr. Pucci, he is frail and close to death. He expresses his sadness at “the way people wasted their lives, squandered their chances like paychecks” (460). He tells Dolores to marry Thayer and stop worrying about the possibility of finding happiness. Six months later, Dolores receives a gift from Mr. Pucci, long after his death: the jukebox from his house that she loved. Dolores fills it with old records and invites Thayer over. She tells him that she drew him on her Etch-a-Sketch years before and has known ever since then that he was out there. She proposes to him, and he says yes.

Thayer and Dolores sit in a doctor’s office three years into their marriage, waiting to see if a recent fertility procedure worked. They do not get the results they hoped for, and Dolores feels ready to give up on the idea of having a child, exhausted from the efforts. Thayer suggests taking a small road trip to clear their minds, and on the way, a song called “She’s Come Undone” by The Guess Who plays on the radio. Dolores thinks about how she was nearly undone by the men who abused her, but that she also nearly undid herself, as well. At the same time, she was able to undo most of the pain of her life and find a source of happiness.

Thayer surprises Dolores by taking her to Cape Cod, and after a night’s sleep, they awake in the morning to a storm. Thayer is determined to wait it out, and they head out on a boat to whale watch. After a couple hours of no sightings, the crew of the ship is ready to give up, but Dolores steps outside one last time. She stands and looks out at the water, feeling grateful for what good life has brought her, and suddenly sees a large humpback breach through the water and into the air. She calls out to Thayer, crying with joy and wonder.