Wonder R. J. Palacio

The Performance 
I watched the rest of the play from the wings just offstage, next to Davenport. Justin 
was amazing, and Via, in that heartbreaking last scene, was awesome. There was one 
line she flubbed a bit, but Justin covered for her, and no one in the audience even 
noticed. I heard Davenport muttering under his breath: "Good, good, good." He was 
more nervous than all of the students put together: the actors, the set decorators, the 
lighting team, the guy handling the curtains. Davenport was a wreck, frankly.
The only time I felt any regret, if you could even call it that, was at the end of the play 
when everyone went out for their curtain calls. Via and Justin were the last of the actors
walking out onstage, and the audience rose to their feet when they took their bows. 
That, I admit, was a little bittersweet for me. But just a few minutes later I saw Nate
and Isabel and Auggie make their way backstage, and they all seemed so happy. 
Everyone was congratulating the actors, patting them on the back. It was that crazy 
backstage theater mayhem where sweaty actors stand euphoric while people come 
worship them for a few seconds. In that crush of people, I noticed Auggie looking kind 
of lost. I cut through the crowd as fast as I could and came up behind him.

---

"Hey!" I said. "Major Tom!"
After the Show 
I can't say why I was so happy to see August again after so long, or how good it felt 
when he hugged me.
"I can't believe how big you've gotten," I said to him.
"I thought you were going to be in the play!" he said.
"I wasn't up to it," I said. "But Via was great, don't you think?"
He nodded. Two seconds later Isabel found us.
"Miranda!" she said happily, giving me a kiss on the cheek. And then to August: "Don't 
ever disappear like that again."
"You're the one who disappeared," Auggie answered back.
"How are you feeling?" Isabel said to me. "Via told us you got sick. . . ."
"Much better," I answered.
"Is your mom here?" said Isabel.
"No, she had work stuff, so it's actually not a big deal for me," I said truthfully. "We have 
two more shows anyway, though I don't think I'll be as good an Emily as Via was
tonight."
Nate came over and we had basically the same exact conversation. Then Isabel said: 
"Look, we're going to have a late-night dinner to celebrate the show. Are you feeling up 
to joining us? We'd love to have you!"
"Oh, no . . . ," I started to say.
"Pleeease?" said Auggie.
"I should go home," I said. 

---

"We insist," said Nate.
By now Via and Justin had come over with Justin's mom, and Via put her arm around 
me.
"You're definitely coming," she said, smiling her old smile at me. They started leading 
me out of the crowd, and I have to admit, for the first time in a very, very long time, I felt
absolutely happy.