Will Grayson, Will Grayson Page 24

  o.w.g.: you know my name. and i love you, tiny cooper. although not in the same way that the guy in the pink pants might love you.

  and then the girl who must be jane chimes in.

  girl: my name is not will grayson, and i appreciate you a helluva lot, tiny cooper.

  it’s the strangest thing ever. one by one, everyone onstage tells tiny cooper they appreciate him. (even the guy named phil wrayson - what are the odds?) then the audience gets into the act. row by row. some say it. some sing it. tiny’s crying. i’m crying. everyone’s crying.

  i lose track of how long it takes. then, when it’s all over, the applause starts. the loudest applause you’ve ever heard.

  tiny steps to the front of the stage. people throw flowers.

  he’s brought us all together. we all feel that.

  gideon: you did good.

  i link our pinkies again.

  me: yeah, we did good.

  i nod to the other will grayson, up onstage. he nods to me. we have something between us, him and me.

  but the truth?

  everybody has it.

  that’s our curse and our blessing. that’s our trial and our error and our it.

  the applause continues. i look up at tiny cooper.

  he may be heavy, but right now he floats.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:

  a cognizant v5 release september 06 2010

  We acknowledge that Jodi Reamer is a kickass agent, and furthermore acknowledge that she could beat both of us at once at arm-wrestling.

  We acknowledge that picking your friend’s nose is a personal choice, and may not be suitable with all personalities.

  We acknowledge that this book probably wouldn’t exist if Sarah Urist Green hadn’t laughed out loud when we read the first two chapters to her a long time ago in an apartment far, far away.

  We acknowledge that we were a little disappointed to learn that the Penguin clothing brand is in no way related to the Penguin publishling company, because we were hoping for a discount on smart polo shirts.

  We acknowledge the unadulterated fabulousness of Bill Ott, Steffie Zvirin, and John’s fairy godmother, Ilene Cooper.

  We acknowledge that in the same way that you could never see the moon if it wasn’t for the sun, there’s no way you’d ever get to see us if it wasn’t for the magnificent and continual brightness of our author friends.

  We acknowledge that one of us cheated on the SATs, but he didn’t mean to.

  We acknowledge that nerdfighters are made of awesome.

  We acknowledge that being the person God made you cannot separate you from God’s love.

  We acknowledge that we timed the completion of this book in order to persuade our masterful editor, Julie Strauss-Gabel, to name her child Will Grayson, even if it’s a girl. Which is somewhat disingenuous, because we should probably be the ones naming babies after her. Even if they’re boys.