Kathy changes the subject to the Exchange and explains why they are so fond of them and how important they are to the students. The stuff they got are their own personal treasures with a high sentimental value. The poetries are some of the things they see as important.

After that insertion Kathy starts remembering Tommy again. She remembers how his bullying had started in Miss Geraldine's art class. Miss Geraldine is one of the gentle teachers which leads to her being everyone's favourite Guardian. She praised his painting even though he wanted to create some kind of joke. After that the resentment started and the people started speaking about him. At first the bullying only affects his art lessons but it keeps on spreading to bullying him all the time.

Tommy's behaviour changes rapidly which leads to the bullying to stop. He does not react to any of the bullies so they get bored and stop teasing him.

Kathy notices these changes so she asks him what had happened that he changed himself so rapidly. His explanation does not satisfy her. Kathy thinks that he is lying to her because he tells her that he does not care about creativity anymore, even though the school is based on creativity. He promises that he'll explain that later on which keeps Kathy curious.

She Starts by pointing out her loss of her childish and protected worldview in those days and that she becomes more questioning. The protagonist realises that Miss Lucy gives hints about the student's future and states the example of one lesson about the topic of electric fences, where the guardian behaves strangely. This is followed by a rainy day in her last year at Hailsham, when Miss Lucy interrupts two students, who imagine and fancy a future as actors and lectures about the students true and frightening future predictions: those include a time as carers, followed by donating their vital organs, as it ist the children's purpose of life. Kathy goes on explaining how their minds have been prepared for this knowledge unconsciously since their early childhood. For example is the topic introduced by the guardians in combination with sex, so the students only focus on sex itself, although the teachers mainly want to inform about diseases and mental health. The topic of donations is only mentioned in jokes. To give an example of those jokes, she tells a story about an injury at Tommy's elbow, of which he was told to be careful about, so the bone wouldn't slip out while bending. Kathy doesn't reveal the truth to him and after some time, the joke turns into the fantasy of simply unzipping organs to plate them to the receiving person. At the end of the chapter, she tells how they handle the topic rather seriously after the talk, Miss Lucy gave them.

After the personal and private talk in the cottages the story skips till autumn. In autumn Kathy is well more adjusted to her new life the before and partially also enjoys it. But she notices that the older clones just start to disappear when they turn into adults. In paticular she thinks about a guy named Steve. Everybody in the Cottages says that Steve was responsible for all the porno magazines in the Cottages as they are supposedly from his collection. In the boiler hut she then meets Thommy while she is looking at some of the magazines. He asks why she does it and she just simply answers that she does it for the kick.

As his fourth donation comes around Tommy and Kathy are well prepared for this Moment because they often talk it through. Tommy confesses to Kathy that he wants another carer that her because he does not want Kathy so see him passing away. After his confession they talk about their time in Hailsham with Ruth and how their relationship with her.

In the end Kathy says goodbye to Tommy as they kiss one last time and drives off. In that moment she can see Tommy waving at her in the mirror. When Kathy finds out that Tommy is dead she drives to Norfolk and visits the beach. There she starts to cry and starts to get emotional. And then she just drives off.

Then Kathy recalls two key events from her childhood at Hailsham. First, she describes the "Tokens Controversy"" which arose when students realized that Madame took their artwork for the Gallery before they could exchange it for tokens. A group, led by Rory, demanded compensation from Miss Emily, the headmistress. Surprisingly, Miss Emily agreed to give a small number of tokens but emphasized that having art selected for the Gallery was a great honor. Later, when the students brought this up with Miss Lucy, she hinted that Madame's actions had a very good reason, which would be explained to them in the future. This vague explanation ended the controversy but left the students unsettled.

Kathy also recalls the "sales" where students used tokens to purchase everyday items like scissors or old shirts from the outside world. These events often descended into chaos, prompting Miss Emily to give long, abstract speeches about the students' special status and privilege, though few fully understood her. Finally, Kathy remembers how she became friends with Ruth. Ruth invited her to play a game of riding imaginary horses, which marked the beginning of their friendship. Later, Ruth included Kathy in a group that pretended to protect Miss Geraldine.

Kathy and Tommy discuss the possibility of applying for a deferral, a rumored chance for clones in love to postpone their donations. This brings a sense of urgency and hope to their relationship. They decide to seek out Madame, a figure from their past who might be able to help. The chapter highlights themes of love, regret, and the characters’ fleeting hopes as they try to reclaim some agency over their lives.

Kathy is sitting with Tommy by the pond near the house. At first, they talk about nothing in particular, but then they switch to the topic they actually wanted to discuss in private, Tommy’s conversation with Miss Lucy. Even though they are not in the perfect place for a secret talk, they continue.

Miss Lucy told Tommy that it is alright that he is not creative. She repeated it several times, but then she started talking to herself. However, Tommy had the impression that she was leading up to something different. She claimed that his creativity problem was not his fault and suddenly began shaking and getting angry about something. Nevertheless, things improved for Tommy because he realized Miss Lucy might be right. But suddenly Miss Lucy brought up the donations. She says that the students hadn’t been taught enough about it. Because of this, Tommy wasn’t sure if he had understood everything correctly.

Tommy and Kathy try to find a connection between his creativity problem and the donations. Kathy also recalls strange incidents with Miss Lucy and also Madame. She doesn’t understand why Madame keeps coming to take away the students’ best artworks for her gallery. Additionally, she wonders if the gallery is even real, as no one really knows it. In addition it is an unspoken rule not to talk about the gallery in front of the guardians.

Unlike the other guardians, Madame doesn’t talk to the students. Because of this, Ruth comes up with a theory: Madame is scared of them. Nobody in Kathy and Ruth’s group really believes it, so they decide to test it. The next time Madame visits, the girls plan to rush toward her all at once. They carry out the plan, and Madame freezes, waiting for them to pass. Strangely, all of the girls suddenly feel uneasy, excuse themselves, and separate.

This confirms Ruth’s theory. They wonder why Madame is scared of them and why she wants their artwork. Looking back from the present, Kathy realises that, even in that moment, she already knew she was different, which led to many questions and unpleasant feelings.

Meanwhile, Kathys relationship with Ruth grows strained. Ruth begins pretending she doesn't remember Hailsham, likely distancing herself from memories she sees as "immature." When Ruth finds Kathy's Bridgewater tape and learns she and Tommy found it together, she seems annoyed but says little. Ruth also mentions Tommy's drawings, and while Kathy jokes about them, she keeps her true interest in them to herself.

Soon after, Kathy finds Ruth and Tommy arguing. Ruth calls her over, revealing Tommy's "Gallery theory" that his art could lead to a deferral for them. Ruth cruelly mocks him, even falsely claiming Kathy also finds his drawings ridiculous. Stunned and hurt, Kathy leaves, unable to defend herself or repair the damage. This moment deepens the fractures in their friendships and pushes them further apart.

Later, Ruth, Tommy, Kathy, Chrissie, and Rodney take a day trip to Norfolk to track down Ruth’s possible. Chrissie and Rodney seem especially interested in the Hailsham students , thinking they might have special privileges or status. Kathy wonders if Ruth is encouraging the idea that Hailsham students are superior to the other clones at the Cottages.

Chrissie and Rodney believe that Hailsham students may have better chances at changing their fate, such as the possibility of “deferrals.” Ruth plays into this belief to elevate her status among the Cottages residents. The clones cling to the notion of Hailsham’s special status, seeking validation in a world that offers them little hope or control over their futures.

Kathy and her friends spend their time discussing literature, philosophy, and art with the veterans while also working on their final essay assignments from Hailsham, though the essays start to feel less important. Observing the veterans, Kathy notices their established relationships often mimic the gestures of characters from TV shows. Ruth begins imitating these behaviors, adopting a habit of lightly tapping Tommy on the arm as a way to say goodbye.

One day, while Kathy is engrossed in reading Daniel Deredona, Ruth irritates her by summarizing the plot aloud. Frustrated, Kathy shifts the conversation and questions Ruth about her habit of tapping Tommy on the arm to say goodbye. When Ruth feigns ignorance, Kathy dismisses the gesture as unoriginal, pointing out that it’s just something copied from television. Ruth brushes off the remark, but Kathy can sense her irritation. Ruth then accuses Kathy of being jealous of her friendships with the veterans and claims that Kathy limits herself to the company of fellow Hailsham students. In response, Kathy counters by saying Ruth doesn’t truly care about Tommy. Ruth, somewhat cryptically, acknowledges that Kathy has also befriended “some of the veterans.” Annoyed and upset, Kathy walks away from the argument.

The rumor of "deferrals"—that clones in love could delay their donations—is revealed to be false. The gallery, on the other hand, was real and was created to collect art as evidence that clones had souls, challenging the societal belief that clones were "sub-human."

The Morningdale scandal, a controversy in Scotland involving genetic modifications, raised fears of a "super-race" of clones. This led to a reduction in support for ethical treatment of clones, which contributed to Hailsham’s closure in the 1990s.

Kathy and Tommy express their disappointment over Hailsham’s failure to change anything for them. Miss Emily and Madame acknowledge their feelings but emphasize that they cannot alter their fate and encourage them to accept their reality.

Kathy feels guilty after unintentionally embarrassing Ruth, so she tries to make amends, by bringing her and miss Geraldine closer. Her efforts are eventually appreciated by Ruth, and they grow closer once again. Meanwhile, the students at Hailsham hold a shared fantasy that Norfolk is a special place where all lost things are found, an idea that originated from Miss Emily's lessons. The myth came about because miss Emily had no picture of this place and described it as a “lost corner”

After the weird encounter in the churchyard, Kathy doesn't talk to Tommy anymore like she used to. She, Ruth and Tommy act, like nothing ever happened, but Kathy feels the need to talk to Ruth about it. They sit outside on a bench of an old bus stop. Kathy tells Ruth that she thinks that Tommy is upset with Ruth sometimes, because she doesn't really listen to him anymore. Ruth agrees and also tells Kath, that she apologized to Tommy for saying all those mean things about his animals. But then she proceeds to say, that if she and Tommy should ever split up, Kath still wouldn't have a chance with him, because he just doesn't like girls, who slept with many boys before. They keep on talking about a bunch of other stuff, but when Kathy tells an anecdote from their Hailsham time, Ruth pretends to have forgotten about the Rhurbab patch. Kathy gets mad, because Ruth does that often. So things between them aren't like they used to be as well. Shortly after that, Kathy applies to be a carer and is now one of those, that are leaving.

Everything feels easy and perfect for both of them while they are searching. That is why Kathy feels sad when she finally finds it. Tommy buys it for her, and they settle down on a bench.

The perfect atmosphere fades, and they start talking about the theory of "Hailsham lovers." Tommy is worried because he believes that the art Madame collected over the years is used to find out if a couple is truly in love, but none of his art was taken. Kathy also recalls an unexplainable interaction with Madame when she started crying after seeing Kathy dancing with her pillow.

As they slowly head back to the car, Tommy asks Kathy not to tell Ruth about their conversation and shows her his drawings of imaginary animals. When they reach the car, Kathy confesses her sexual problems to Tommy and admits that she kind of believes these issues are because of who her "possible" is.

Ruth, Chrissie, and Rodney return in a good mood, and they all drive home, talking and having fun together.