An unnamed man in contemporary New York City stands on the edge of the Williamsburg Bridge. He is prepared to jump, but, before doing so, he explains the moments of his life that brought him here. Although he was a half-black man and an alcoholic who faced difficulties, those parts of his life did not drive him to want to jump. He mourns an old relationship; he remembers a woman in France that he fears he may have had sex with nonconsensually; he regrets not visiting his agent one more time. But, ultimately, his motivation is his fear of living longer than he had to. As he prepares to jump, he remembers his time on the bridge the day before, when he saw another woman ready to jump. He asked her for a quote about her decision; she waved him off and said, rather cryptically, "Splash." With that, the story ends. It is unclear if he went through with his suicide or not.