VIII: Our Infinite Days — Chapter 1
Contains spoilersOverview
In 1993, Sam and his new roommate Marx rehearse Banquo’s murder for a college Macbeth, forging the start of their deep friendship. The scene exposes Sam’s guardedness, hints at his physical limitations and loss, and segues to a formative memory of his grandmother’s pragmatic philosophy of grief.
These moments establish the emotional framework that will shape Sam’s relationships and responses to future tragedies.
Summary
In October 1993, Marx, newly cast as Banquo in a college production of Macbeth, enlists his roommate Sam to help stage his murder scene. Sam hesitates, wanting privacy and wary of situations that expose his mobility issues, but Marx’s enthusiasm wins him over.
They experiment with blocking and improvised attacks in their common room. As they play, Sam relaxes, enjoys the exercise, and discloses that his mother had been a professional actress and is dead. The rehearsal becomes the first clear marker of Sam and Marx’s friendship, giving Sam a starting point to later calculate its 4,873-day span.
Alone with his thoughts, Sam contextualizes the number, reflecting on scale and loss. He recalls being fifteen and asking his grandmother, Bong Cha, how she endured after his mother’s death; she answers with routine, time, and the idea that memory supplies the voices of the dead.
Bong Cha rejects literal ghosts yet describes the mind as a haunted house populated by those we have known. She pivots to teaching Sam to drive, and in the privacy of night, Sam admits his fear, revealing both dependence and trust in his grandmother’s steady pragmatism.
Who Appears
- Sam
College student; initially guarded and self-conscious about his foot; bonds with Marx while rehearsing Macbeth; remembers his mother’s death and grandmother’s counsel on grief.
- Marx
Charismatic freshman actor cast as Banquo; draws Sam into staging his murder scene, catalyzing their friendship.
- Bong Cha
Sam’s grandmother; explains coping with loss through routine and memory, calling the mind a haunted house; encourages Sam to learn driving.