Joel repeatedly calls out Tony’s name, but Tony either does not hear him or chooses not to respond. After riding up a steep incline on the deserted highway toward Starved Rock, Joel receives “no answer [then] turned around to see where Tony was” (13). When they are riding their bikes, Joel feels a protectiveness reminiscent of an older brother toward a younger brother, checking on Tony and trying to make sure that he is following closely behind him. Tony does not respond because he is very far behind, peering over the bridge toward the Vermillion. The foreshadowing accomplished by this pattern is apparent when Joel calls out Tony’s name after the race and realizes that Tony is gone forever: “Tony [...] where are you?” (29).

This calling out of Tony’s name is a symbol of the care that Joel has for Tony while also providing subtle hints of the circumstances of Tony’s disappearance in the river. The repetition creates a narrative thread linking the events in the first several chapters and builds dramatic tension as Tony is increasingly distant from Joel each time he calls his name: First they are only a few feet apart, then they are further apart on the deserted highway and on the bridge, and finally they are completely separated by life and death.