Tuck Everlasting: Chapter Five Summary & Analysis

The next morning, Winnie wakes up early and decides that she's not going to run away. Though she reasons that she doesn't really want to leave, she also knows that she's afraid to be alone. Winnie thinks that it's one thing to talk or think about being alone, but according to the adults around her, the world is a dangerous place and she won't be able to manage. She thinks it's awful to admit she's afraid and wonders if the toad might laugh at her if it returns to the fence later. Winnie decides that instead of running away, she'll just go into the wood to investigate the source of the music. She thinks that she can always decide at that point to run away.

Though it's already a hot day, Winnie finds it's cooler in the wood. Surprisingly, the wood is very pleasant. Green and gold light filters through the trees, illuminating little flowers and moss. She notices all the small creatures bustling around and even comes across the toad. Winnie tells the toad that she's following through on what she said yesterday; she did leave her cottage. The toad seems to nod and then hops away.

Winnie wanders for a while longer, thinking about the melody, and then she notices something moving ahead. She crouches down and creeps toward the clearing, reasoning that if it's elves, she can sneak up on them. When she gets close enough to see, however, her mouth drops open. A handsome young man (Jesse) sits against a huge ash tree, gazing up at the branches. He carefully moves a pile of pebbles to reveal a little stream. He drinks from it and as he wipes his mouth, his eyes lock onto Winnie's. After a minute, he frowns and tells her she can come out.

Sternly, Jesse asks Winnie what she's doing in the wood. Winnie insists that the wood belongs to her and she can come whenever she wants. Winnie asks what he's doing in the wood, but says that it's okay with her if he visits the wood. Grinning, Jesse says he doesn't live nearby. Absentmindedly, Winnie asks Jesse how old he is. She thinks he's laughing at her when he says that he's 104 and then amends this to 17. She then asks if he's married. He isn't, but he jokes that when Winnie turns 11 next year, she might get married.

Winnie asks if the water is good to drink, but very seriously and quickly, Jesse says the water is dirty. He begins to put the pebbles back as Winnie insists that he drank from it and since she owns the wood, she can drink too. She says her father would let her drink from it, in response to which Jesse puzzlingly asks if Winnie is going to tell her father about the brook. They hear a crash a little ways away and Jesse calls gratefully for Mae and Miles. They appear in the clearing and Mae looks as though Winnie is the worst thing she's ever seen. She sighs that it's happening at last.