A New Ending

George came charging out from under the sycamore tree. Relieved he said, “good ole boy for waitin’ at the secret meeting spot.”

Lennie ran to George. “We gonna stick together, ain’t we George? I know I done the baddest thing yet. I know it.”

“There’s no use crying over spilt milk,” George said, as he heard the shouting coming from far into the forest. The worst heat of the day had passed. The combination of the sun reflecting brightly on the crystal blue water, and the green grass on the hills in the distance, momentarily calmed George down.

“I’m sorry George. Please don’t leave me.”

“I would never leave you. As you was doing a stupid thing, I got word from my cousin, an’ today is our lucky day.”

“George, I ain’t feelin so lucky” Lennie replied.

George looked frantic again as he grabbed Lennie’s hand and pulled him into the river. “We gotta get outa here, fast. Come on you dumb bugger, swim.”

“I’m scared. George, what are we doin’?

“We are going to the caves to hide out. When we get there I will explain everything. I am gonna tell you more about the farm. You just gotta trust me and do as I say.”

The water was warm and calmly flowing. The banks of the river were alive with activity as the rabbits were scurrying in the sycamore leaves and the herons calmly walked along the shore searching for food. The shouts of the lynching party were growing more and more distant. For moments at a time the two men were able to forget that Lennie was fleeing for his life. Finally, exhausted and looking like drown rats, they emerged from the water, crawled into the cave, and fell into a deep sleep.

Through the cave opening the picturesque sky was visible. The heavens were black to navy and the moon was full; the night sky was cloudless and clear with every star shining; the moon was an exquisite white, surrounded by an ethereal glow. George and Lennie had woken at the same time and now sat side by side, with their clothing laid out to dry. Lennie asked again “you ain’t gonna leave me in these caves, are ya, George? I know you ain’t.”

“I ain’t gonna leave you here Lennie.” George said as he put his arm around Lennie’s broad shoulders.

“I knowed it,” Lennie whispered. “You ain’t that kind, we in this together. What was you gonna tell me about the farm?”

George continued to comfort Lennie patting his back. “I got good news for ya Lennie, with a little help from my cousin and the money we got, we are all gonna get that farm.”

“You better not be messin’ with me George.” Lennie said excitedly.

“I ain’t messin’ with ya Lennie. We gonna get that little place. We’ll get a cow,” said George. “An’ we’ll maybe have a pig an’ some chickens, an’ down in the field we’ll have some alfalfa.”

“For the rabbits” Lennie shouted. “You still gonna let me tend the rabbits, I know I did another bad thing but it's the last time, it’s all changin for us now.”

“An’ you get to tend the rabbits.” George said nervously, as he realized they still had a long way to go to get to the farm.

Lennie giggled with happiness. “I ain’t gonna do anything bad to the rabbits, just pet ‘em nice.”

For days and days they walked, hiding each time a vehicle went by, resting only at night. It was sweltering hot, they barely had enough to eat, and they were filthy, but neither one complained. George was elated by the thought of finally settling down in one place and keeping Lennie safe. Lennie could think of nothing but tending the rabbits. He was so excited.

They finally arrived at the little rundown farm. The house was wooden; some of the panels were falling off; and not all of the windows had glass. The barn was very small, you could tell it was once a red colour with white details but was now mostly a dull brown. “That’s where the rabbits is gonna go. It’s perfect and the alfalfa can grow right beside ‘em.” Lennie shouted as he pointed frantically in every direction.

“We gotta get ‘em rabbits before ya get too excited,” George said sarcastically.

“It’s just gonna be you and me George, with the rabbits, pigs, cows and chickens. We really are a family now!”

George went quiet for a second. “Always remember Lennie I got you an’——-“

“An’ I got you. We got each other, that’s what, that gives a hoot in hell about us,” Lennie cried in triumph.

Reflection

I decided to portray George and Lennie the same way that John Steinbeck did, George as the leader and Lennie as the follower who listens to and respects George as much as he can. I continued to keep the characters of George and Lennie very similar to the way John Steinbeck did so the reader would empathize with them to create more suspense for the reader as George and Lennie were trying to get away from Curley. I continued to portray George and Lennie the same way throughout my extract by the narration style I used. I made my extract very conversational so the reader could see what they were going through their heads as they were trying to escape. I also continued to show how George would take care of Lennie as he was trying to calm Lennie down, constantly reassuring him that it would be alright and how everything was about to change for them. Even after what Lennie did George continued to care for him and Lennie continued to admire George but was more excited about the rabbits he would soon have! I also added vivid descriptions throughout so the reader could feel like they were with them experiencing everything first hand creating suspense as you did not know if Curley would catch up to them or would be in one of the cars driving by as they were trying to get to the farm. Even after what Lennie did you still felt bad for him, as he was unaware of his strength and just did not want George to get mad at him. I wanted to change the ending so everyone including George and Lennie will finally be happy and not crying at the end of the novel!