Talk:Penpal/@comment-4533241-20180507120450/@comment-4533241-20180508180510

I am of the genuine belief that he originally wanted to, but he was either too weak to carry it out or too twisted to be satisfied with abducting the kid that he believed was "destined for him" and just disposing of him like trash. Ever since he received the balloon, his life was meaningless without the author; he wanted them to go out with a bang, together. He wanted it to be truly spectacular. (Of course, this is just one interpretation; the actual author could and probably does know something about the stalker's motives that we don't.)

It's incredibly sad, and disgustingly wicked. I often find myself wanting to throw my computer (or my copy of the book, if that's my chosen tool of torture for the day) every time I get to those heartbreaking parts or simply every time I remember how it ends. The stalker's plan was truly carried out flawlessly, and the only one who could've stopped him (the author's mom) didn't. She chose to only think about her own kid until it was too late, which ended up being one of the worst things she could've done. As the author pointed out, Josh barely got to live before he was abducted; and now he never will.

Still, I think the biggest kick in the teeth for me is not just that evil triumphed and Josh eventually died, but that he suffered the worst imaginable kind of death – and no I'm not talking about being buried alive.

RIP Josh, the world is terrible