The Other Wes Moore

It is 5.30 am, and Moore is awoken by a chorus of loud shouts telling him to get out of his “racks.” His roommate urges him to get up and is “dumbfounded” by Moore’s protests that he’ll wait until 8. As his roommate leaves, Moore is left in a state of disbelief about the situation he’s found himself in. First Sergeant Anderson enters the room and begins screaming and cursing at Moore in decidedly unfamiliar language. Anderson then flashes a “devilish smile” before leaving. Moore explains that this is his first morning at military school, which Joy has sent him to after he was put on academic and disciplinary probation at Riverdale. On the same day as he receives the news of probation, Moore is sitting next to Shani at home, punching her arm out of boredom. At one point, he misses and splits her lip open. Furious, Joy slaps him across the face, and for a moment it seems as if Moore might hit her back. Joy breaks down in tears, fearful that she is “losing” her son.

Moore is unafraid of Sergeant Anderson; compared to the Bronx, military school does not seem particularly intimidating. However, suddenly Moore’s entire chain of command bursts into his room and flips Moore out of his top bunk onto the floor. The school Moore attends is named Valley Forge Military Academy; it is in Pennsylvania, and its pristine campus reminds Moore of “a more austere version of Riverdale.” Life at the institution is strict and exhausting, requiring a formidable level of discipline. The new arrivals (“plebes”) are treated as “less than nothing,” and their first names and life histories are never mentioned. In his first days at the school, Moore is filled with rage at Joy for sending him there, and tries to run away four times in as many days. Moore’s roommate is from Brooklyn, and it was his grandmother who first told Joy about Valley Forge—a fact that leads Moore to deeply resent him.

After four days, Sergeant Austin enters Moore’s room and says it’s clear that Moore doesn’t want to be at Valley Forge, adding “we don’t want you here.” He gives Moore a map of the local area, including instructions on how to get to the train station. Overwhelmed with joy, Moore thanks Sergeant Austin and feels a sudden surge of respect for him. That night, Moore packs his things and creeps out of his room. He follows the map closely, but soon finds himself in a completely dark and unfamiliar wooded area. Frightened and confused, Moore beings to cry. At that moment, Moore notices that his whole chain of command is there laughing at him, including Sergeant Austin. The map he had been given was completely fake. The older boys take Moore to the office of Colonel Battagliogli, a distinguished and enthusiastic retired Army officer in charge of the plebes.

Colonel Battagliogli tells Moore that he will allow him to speak on the phone for five minutes. Moore looks around at the members of his chain of command and notices a stranger, a black man who seems to be a teenager even though he has “an old soul and frighteningly serious demeanor.” Moore calls his mother and immediately begins to apologize for his past behavior and beg to be let home. Before he can finish, Joy cuts him off and tells him that he is not going anywhere; his family are proud of him and have already sacrificed too much for him to be there. At the time Moore doesn’t understand his mother’s words, but years later he learns that Valley Forge is even more expensive than Riverdale, and that his mother was forced to write to family and friends for help in paying the fees. Eventually, Moore’s grandparents decided to use their retirement savings (which they had been hoping to use to move back to Jamaica) in order to pay for Moore’s first year at Valley Forge.

Joy repeats that she loves Moore and is proud of him and that “it’s time to stop running.” The next day, Moore notices the black man again standing next to Colonel Battagliogli and sees that he is a member of F Company, the most distinguished and disciplined company. His name is Cadet Captain Ty Hill, and Moore is impressed by how he demands “real respect” from those around him. It is a different kind of respect than that inspired by Shea and other drug dealers, which more closely resembles intimidation. Moore later learns that the previous night, Joy had asked Captain Hill to “keep an eye out” for her son. Sure enough, Colonel Battagliogli soon tells Moore that Captain Hill wishes to speak with him.

Back in Maryland, Wes has slowly grown used to his new suburban neighborhood, although he still misses the “speed” and “intensity” of the city. On the school bus, Wes and his godbrother, Red, notice two girls and decide to approach them. Wes is popular with girls, and he has “a dozen girlfriends,” although these relationships all remain casual. One of the girls on the bus is called Alicia, and she and Wes quickly become close. Two months later, she discovers that she is pregnant. Wes is so shocked that he enters a state of denial. Eventually, he tells Tony, who has just become a father himself. Tony bursts out laughing, pointing out that Mary has recently had a baby too and that “this is some sitcom shit.” Teenage pregnancies are common in Baltimore, yet Wes still feels despondent about the prospect of becoming a dad. He senses that he has suddenly reached “a point of no return.”

At Wes and Tony’s little brother’s first birthday, Tony indirectly reveals that Alicia is pregnant. On learning this news, Mary takes a deep breath before offering everyone cake. Meanwhile, Wes’s approaching fatherhood fails to stop him from seeing other girls. Alicia remains hopeful that she can raise the baby in the stable, two-parent household that she and Wes didn’t have. Yet the fact that Wes grew up without a father means he is uncertain and ambivalent about his role in his child’s life. The last time Wes saw his father, Bernard asked Wes, “Who are you?”. Wes simply smirked and left without responding.

One day, Wes’s new girlfriend sleeps in late at his place and wakes up in a panic. The two creep down to the front door only to find an angry older teenager named Ray waiting out on the street. Ray first yells at the girl (his girlfriend) before coming for Wes, beating him ruthlessly. Wes manages to run inside the house and quickly retrieves a gun. The girl attempts to stop him, but Wes charges outside, signaling for his partners in the drug crew to join him. The crew chase and shoot at Ray, who eventually lets out a scream before falling behind a car. Back outside Wes’s house, the girl is hysterical and threatens to call the police, but Wes feels no regret. Inside, Mary asks her son what has happened, but Wes simply shuts himself in the bathroom and starts washing away the blood. Mary calls Tony, who immediately drives over. Wes throws his bloodied clothes in the garbage and sinks his gun into the family’s fish tank.

The police arrive at Wes’s house and immediately arrest him while Mary shouts at him through tears. Mary asks him if he shot Ray, but Wes does not reply. Just as the police car pulls away, Wes tries to shout out to his mother that he doesn’t know the answer to her question. By the time Tony arrives, Mary informs him that it’s too late—Wes is gone.