Birthday Girl

Two months pass. Pike misses Jordan—whom he is not in touch with—and distracts himself with endless home renovation projects. One afternoon, his neighbor Kyle spots him in the yad and tells him that he knows about Pike and Jordan. Kyle saw them together one night. Kyle feels that he has never seen Pike as happy as he was with Jordan. He tells Pike that when one gets a woman as young and beautiful as Jordan, it is a huge mistake to let her go.

Just then, Pike notices Cole standing at the doorway. Cole is dressed in a green camouflage uniform and sports a buzz cut. Cole has graduated from bootcamp and is officially a part of the Navy. He thanks Pike for sending him letters during the past couple of months. Pike and Cole hang out and drink beer. Cole tells Pike that he likes the sense of purpose the military has given him. He confesses that being away at camp helped him gain perspective. Cole now realizes that Pike was always there for him when he was young. He tells Pike that he loves him and asks him about Jordan. Pike tells Cole that he loves Jordan but that she is better off without him. Cole says that that cannot be true.

Cole and Pike finally get the tattoos they planned. Pike has a birthday candle etched on the inside of his right arm as a tribute to Jordan, while Cole gets an anchor in the middle of his back. That night, Pike dreams that he lives with Jordan and that they are expecting a baby together. He wakes up and admits that he misses Jordan more than he has ever missed anyone. Jordan’s home improvement magazines and her left-behind music tracks all remind Pike of her. He goes to her room and spots a jar labelled “Dreams.” In it are scrolls in her handwriting. The scrolls are her wishes and plans, many of them referring to Pike, such as “Fill Pike’s truck with blankets […] and go star-gazing” (343). Pike begins to cry.

Pike goes to Grounders to get information about Jordan. He finds Cam at the bar covering Jordan’s shifts. Pike asks Cam to tell Jordan that he loves her. He asks for Jordan’s whereabouts. Cam tells him that she doesn’t know where Jordan is, but Jordan calls periodically to say that she is safe. A friend has been trying to get Jordan to come work for her at her family motel in Virginia, so Jordan is possibly there. Cam does not tell Pike the name of the motel.

For the last nine weeks, Jordan has been working at the front desk of The Blue Palms, the motel owned by her friend Danni’s family. One day, Jordan is at reception when a man books five room under the obviously fake name of Tyler Durden, a character in Fight Club. Danni and Jordan joke about the name, but the name also reminds Jordan of watching the movie with Pike. She steps out. Just then, she hears Pike’s voice asking Danni for Jordan Hadley. Pike has been searching all the motels in the area for Jordan. Jordan goes back in, determined to confront Pike.

Danni leaves to give the two privacy. Pike tells Jordan that he misses her terribly. He says that the house feels empty without her and that life will never be the same for him. He also says that he wanted to do the right thing by staying away but realizes that that was foolish. Pike loves her and wants her for the rest of his life. Jordan begins to cry, hating Pike for breaking through her defenses. Pike hugs her, and she tells him that he took too long to come for her. Danni pops in and gives them a room key. Inside the room, Pike gives Jordan a set of cassette tapes of 1980s music featuring bands like Metallica and AC/DC. They then make love.

A year later, Pike has converted Jordan’s old room into a library for her to study in. It is Jordan’s birthday. Her finals have recently concluded, and Pike is teaching her how to ride an all-terrain vehicle. Jordan and Pike are very happy together, though some people around town still give them dirty looks. Shel, Cam, and even Cole have accepted their relationship, and that is all that matters to Jordan. Pike brings Jordan a surprise gift—a ring shaped like a rose, with platinum petals encircling a large diamond. Jordan realizes that Pike is proposing to her and begins to weep with joy. She says yes and wants to get married immediately, but Pike wants a wedding. Jordan asks Pike if he wants kids, and he says that he is okay with that but cannot wait too long because of his age. Pike promises to give the birthday girl whatever she wants.

Nine years have passed. It is Jordan’s birthday. Jordan and Pike are married, with a six-year-old son called Jake and another baby on the way. Cole is married to Kotori, whom he met when stationed at Okinawa. They have a son called Parker, close to Jake in age. Parker is staying over with Jordan and Pike so that Cole and Kotori can attend Kotori’s work convention in Las Vegas. As Pike looks at Jake and Parker sleeping together, he feels unbelievably lucky. He finally has the life he always wanted. People may judge him and Jordan, but the couple is blissful together. Jordan recently started her own landscaping firm. For her first project, she designed the botanical gardens for a museum. The work was admired and has brought her many new projects.

Jordan and Pike take Jake and Parker to a lake house in Minnesota, where Cam is holidaying with her son, Kilian, and her boyfriend. Later that night, Pike and Jordan make love. Jordan blows out a birthday candle. Pike asks her what she wished for, and she says that she always wishes for the same thing, and “every day it comes true” (368)—this implies that she wishes for a love-filled, happy life with Pike.