The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Charlie:
Dear Friend, I'm sorry I haven't written in awhile, but I've been trying hard to not be a loser.

Charlie:
Mary Elizabeth is a nice person underneath the parts of her that hate everybody.

Charlie:
So, I guess we are who we are for a lot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them. But even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there.

Charlie:
It's much easier to not know things sometimes. Things change and friends leave. And life doesn't stop for anybody. I wanted to laugh. Or maybe get mad. Or maybe shrug at how strange everybody was, especially me. I think the idea is that every person has to live for his or her own life and than make the choice to share it with other people. You can't just sit there and put everybody's lives ahead of yours and think that counts as love. You just can't. You have to do things. I'm going to do what I want to do. I'm going to be who I really am. And I'm going to figure out what that is. And we could all sit around and wonder and feel bad about each other and blame a lot of people for what they did or didn't do or what they didn't know. I don't know. I guess there could always be someone to blame. It's just different. Maybe it's good to put things in perspective, but sometimes, I think that the only perspective is to really be there. Because it's okay to feel things. I was really there. And that was enough to make me feel infinite. I feel infinite.

Charlie:
I don't know if I will have the time to write any more letters because I might be too busy trying to participate. So if this does end up being the last letter I just want you to know that I was in a bad place before I started high school and you helped me. Even if you didn't know what I was talking about or know someone who has gone through it, you made me not feel alone. Because I know there are people who say all these things don't happen. And there are people who forget what it's like to be 16 when they turn 17. I know these will all be stories someday. And our pictures will become old photographs. We'll all become somebody's mom or dad. But right now these moments are not stories. This is happening, I am here and I am looking at her. And she is so beautiful. I can see it. This one moment when you know you're not a sad story. You are alive, and you stand up and see the lights on the buildings and everything that makes you wonder. And you're listening to that song and that drive with the people you love most in this world. And in this moment I swear, we are infinite.

Charlie:
If my Aunt Helen were still here, I could talk to her and I know she would understand how I'm both happy and sad. And I'm still trying to figure out how that could be.

Sam:
Welcome to the island of misfit toys.

Patrick:
My life is officially an after school special.

Bill:
We accept the love we think we deserve.

Bill:
You know they say if you make one friend on your first day you'll do good.

Charlie:
If my English teacher is the only friend I make today, that'll be sorta depressing.

Charlie:
I really wanna be a writer but I don't know what I'd write about.

Sam:
You can write about us.

Patrick:
Call it "The Slut and the Falcon." Make us solve crimes.

Sam:
Why do I and everyone I love pick people who treat us like we're nothing?

Charlie:
We accept the love we think we deserve.

Charlie:
Do you like football?

Patrick:
LOVE it. [cheering] Be aggressive! Passive aggressive!

Mr. Callahan:
[looking at Patrick's terrible attempt at the Shop class term project] You've gotta be kidding me.

Patrick:
Remember, if you fail me you get me again next semester...

...

Patrick:
C minus, ladies and gentlemen! I am below average!

Sam:
Below average!

Patrick:
Below average!

Sam:
How do you feel, Charlie?

Charlie:
I just really want a milkshake.

Sam:
Charlie, I know that you know that I like Craig. But I want to forget about all that for a minute, okay?

Charlie:
Okay.

Sam:
I just want to make sure that the first person who kisses you loves you. Okay?

[Charlie is silent, transfixed. They kiss] I love you, Charlie.

Charlie:
I love you, too.

Songs:
I, I wish you could swim Like the dolphins Like dolphins can swim Though nothing, nothing will keep us together We can beat them, forever and ever Oh, we can be heroes just for one day.

Sam:
Let's go be psychos together.

Sam:
You can't just sit there and put everyone's lives ahead of yours and think that counts as love. You just can't. You have to do things.