Although Jamie is inexperienced when it comes to boys, Landon feels that “she was playing me like a harp” (123) because she resists his “slick” talk of love in favor of a more honest declaration. Noticing that Jamie often appears fragile and melancholy, Landon takes his mother’s advice about making her feel special, and takes her to Flauvin’s restaurant. When Landon asks Hegbert for permission, Hegbert accepts. As Landon is leaving, after telling Hegbert that he loves his daughter, he notices that the minister has his head in his hands, as though in tears.

As the relationship progresses, Landon notices that Jamie is becoming thinner, more lethargic, and feverish. While walking her home from Cecil’s diner one night, Landon tells her that he loves her. She bursts into tears and begs him not to say that. Her reason is that she is sick and dying.

Jamie tells Landon that she has an incurable form of leukemia. She and Hegbert have known for seven months, but they told no one because they wanted Jamie’s last months to be as normal as possible. Landon is devastated, as is Hegbert’s congregation. He feels that “only a miracle could save her” (138) and begins to pray for one.