Chapter 12 Summary and Analysis
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
⚠️ This page contains detailed plot points and character developments from Chapter 12 of Leila Mottley's Nightcrawling. If you have not yet read the chapter, you may want to do so before continuing.
Summary
Chapter 12 opens with Kia reflecting on the people who have drifted out of her life. Alé has stopped answering her phone since their last encounter at the skate park, and Kia worries that their bond is dissolving. Marcus has been gone for a full week, having only stopped by to pick up clothes Kia washed for him. Kia feels like the last survivor in her family, the only one still living in the apartment.
To keep the household afloat, Kia and Trevor have been hustling on the basketball court. They win bets against younger players, and combined with money from the cops, they manage to help cover the March rent. Kia practices with Trevor late at night, sometimes imagining him knocking on her door when she is not there.
Despite her precarious situation, Kia cannot stop thinking about the party Camila invited her to. She imagines a disco, a flash of light that might make her dizzy or convince her this could be the life for her. She considers the possibility of holding Camila's hand every night and earning enough money that Trevor would never worry again.
On the night of the party, Kia slips on the only dress she owns—a gift from one of the cops that feels more like a nightgown. In the bathroom mirror, she studies her reflection: brown skin, remnants of red dye in her hair, a face that has grown more angular. She paints her face with watered-down mascara and eyeliner, trying to look like a grown version of herself. She wears silver heels, two inches shorter than the ones the metal man threw into the street, and skips a jacket because she knows the party will be humid.
Kia walks toward the address on High Street, a two-mile trek that feels like a marathon. She repeats