Yale dying alone
Even though Yale had financial and emotional issues of his own to deal with, he was always willing to help out his friends in their time of need. He rescued Nico’s cat from abandonment and paid for all of its needs, he let Julian stay with him while he was sick, he made hospital visits.
Fiona touches on Yale’s generosity in a way that also highlights how many friends had died since Nico’s death 6 years ago:
“When Nico had died, there were too many people wanting to be in the room...Yale had been there for Nico, and Terrence, and even f*cking Charlie, and there was no one left for him, not really, and it killed her” (pg 390).
On a related note, Yale is also betrayed when his friends don’t tell him about Charlie’s affairs that they know about.
Charlie getting AIDS
Charlie had always been an advocate for safe sex and condoms, and then out of nowhere he got AIDS. Julian acknowledges Charlie’s do-gooder past with Yale, but indicates that Charlie still brought it on himself:
Julian: “He’s this pillar of the community, or whatever, and then every six months or so he’d snap..I just know there was a lot of, like, dark corner sex”
Yale: “What Charlie was doing was suicide. You don't use condoms for suicide” (pg. 288).
Claire and Fiona
There is an irony in Claire rejecting and despising her mother yet managing to be so similar to her in every way possible. Both are single mothers to one children, both are hardworking, both feel resentment towards their parents. Both hang out with “the wrong crowd”, both are independent, both are determined. Claire even named her daughter Nicolette, perhaps a reference to Fiona’s beloved brother Nico.
Neither person understands how alike they are, and even when Julian points it out Fiona can’t see it:
Julian: “..my God, she’s just like you.”
Fiona: “She’s nothing like me. That’s the problem.”
Julian: “Are you kidding? Don’t you remember yourself? You were the most bullheaded little--you were practically feral!” (pg. 414).
Ranko’s “Self Portrait”
Nora initially identifies a painted man as being Ranko Novak, the piece assumed to be just another Ranko donation. Yale later finds out that Nora painted it herself, but he doesn’t tell anyone and the piece eventually is put on display with the ironic title Self-Portrait.
Nora explains the painting’s context: “He wanted a self-portrait, and he’d never done one he liked. Of course I was willing to be his hands” (pg. 309).
Yale getting AIDS from Roman
Roman is probably the least likely person Yale would suspect to get AIDS from, and yet ironically it happens. Roman always seemed uncomfortable with his sexuality (Yale ties this to his Mormon upbringing), and Yale had convinced himself that Roman was a virgin. The innocent, awkward boy surprised him and caused him to have a mental breakdown:
“What had happened, exactly, and on what bed and when? He’d been careful about himself, protecting Roman. They hadn’t been careful the other way. Because Roman was a virgin. Because Roman was a virgin” (pg. 327-328).
