Rufus’s Parents Character Analysis in They Both Die at the End

Rufus’s mom and dad and his older sister, Olivia, received their Death-Cast calls a few months before the novel begins. The entire family was in a car accident—their car went through a guardrail and into the Hudson River, where Rufus’s parents and Olivia drowned. Rufus notes bitterly that his parents didn’t try to fight once the car was in the water; he resents them somewhat for this.

Rufus’s Parents Quotes in They Both Die at the End

The They Both Die at the End quotes below are all either spoken by Rufus’s Parents or refer to Rufus’s Parents. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

I believe him. He’s not monstrous. Monsters don’t come to your home to help you live; they trap you in your bed and eat you alive. “People make mistakes,” I say.

“And my friends are the ones being punished,” Rufus says. “Their last memory of me will be running out the back door from my own funeral because the cops were coming for me. I left them behind... I’ve spent the last four months feeling abandoned by my family dying, and in a split second I did the same damn thing to my new family.”

Related Characters: Mateo Torrez (speaker), Rufus Emeterio (speaker), Aimee Dubois, Malcolm Anthony, Peck/Patrick Gavin, Tagoe Hayes, Vin Pearce, Rufus’s Parents, Olivia

Page Number and Citation: 173

Explanation and Analysis:

Rufus’s Parents Character Timeline in They Both Die at the End

The timeline below shows where the character Rufus’s Parents appears in They Both Die at the End. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...Death-Cast calls. Mateo’s friends, Tagoe and Malcolm, stare with terrified looks. Rufus thinks of his parents and sister, who died in the Hudson River. He vows not to vomit. Rufus doesn’t... (full context)

When the call is over, Rufus prays that he doesn’t drown like his parents and Olivia. He walks back to Peck, slams him against the wall, and informs Peck... (full context)

...explains why he wants a Last Friend instead of his real friends: he watched his parents and sister die, and he doesn’t want his friends to feel the guilt he now... (full context)

Human Connection and Social Media Theme Icon

...account when he moved into the foster home because his life “lost color” after his parents died. Mateo smiles, brightens up, and suggests that Rufus should post everything from today on... (full context)

...cares at all—but he knows they’re friends. Mateo asks if Rufus came out to his parents. Rufus says he did, and it made his mom sad that she’d never meet her... (full context)

...He’d be mad, but happy. He admits, for the first time, that he left his parents and Olivia. He doesn’t know if it was a reflex, but it would’ve been easy... (full context)

...never wrong, but Rufus continues to list what he could’ve done. He says that his parents made sure he got out of the car, but then they just sat there. Mateo... (full context)

...see the Plutos, but he’ll settle for a bike ride—he rode after Olivia and his parents died, and when Aimee broke up with him. Mateo and Rufus argue about whether it’s... (full context)