How It All Goes Down
Amy Elliott Dunne—September 15, 2010
- Amy and Nick are in a motel in Pennsylvania, and clearly things aren't going well. For one thing, they're in a motel in Pennsylvania. For another, Nick is mad at Amy for being mad about what they're doing. Basically, this is a textbook Amy diary entry: she teases us with the situation, then delves into the gory details. And in this case, they're particularly bad.
- We are now getting the move from New York to Missouri from Amy's perspective. We see Nick get the news we already know is coming: His mom has stage four cancer and is dying, and he's decided that he and Amy will be moving back. On top of dealing with their dad's Alzheimer's, this is all too much for Go to handle alone.
- Amy claims she'd be more enthusiastic about helping Nick's parents if he would treat her like his wife instead of his arch nemesis. Instead he seems to see her as part of the problem rather than someone to walk through the problem alongside him.
- They pack up a U-Haul, give away or sell their furniture, and hit the road in just two weeks. While packing the truck, Amy and Nick have a squabble over whether to take their bed or leave it behind. Amy wants Nick to make the loving insistence that they take it so she can sleep in her own bed in a strange place, but instead he coldly tells her it's up to her. Amy says to leave it behind. Amy is even denied one last look at New York as they leave—the U-Haul has no back window.