Lolly began to sing “It’s Quiet Uptown,” the song from Hamilton, which told the story of Eliza and her husband dealing with the heartbreaking aftermath of the tragic death of their son in a pointless duel. It spoke of two people learning to forgive each other for the mistakes they’d made. It was also a song of redemption and forgiveness, about how Eliza learned to let go of the past and forgive her husband for his affair with another woman. The bereaved husband and wife bonded over the death of their son and learned to love each other again, despite all the odds stacked against them.

We push away what we can never understand

We push away the unimaginable.

Steven had never loved Lolly more than when she dedicated her song to his sister. Anna had never been so touched by another girl, bravely speaking up on her behalf to a crowd of disapproving hypocrites. Kimmie had never been prouder of her beautiful sister, who she once thought was superficial and shallow, but who surprised her by being anything but. And Dustin had never been so happy to sit in the dark theater, holding the hand of the girl he loved. And Vronsky? Vronsky stared at the back of Anna’s head in the dark and wondered if she was thinking of him the way he was thinking of her. Even though he hadn’t seen Anna in a month, she was still the first thing he thought of when he awoke each morning and the last thing he thought of before falling asleep.

Lolly received a standing ovation, and when the lights came up, Anna and Steven noticed that both their parents were wiping away tears. Lolly came and found Steven and Anna during intermission and was thrilled that they’d been so moved by her performance. Anna gave Lolly a fierce hug and thanked her for her incredible display of kindness. “Lolly, I hope I don’t bring down your reputation.”

“Oh, Anna, stop it!” Lolly replied. “I used to only care about what everyone thought of me, but not anymore. Now I only care about what the people I love think of me, and everyone else can rot in hell! If it wasn’t for you pushing me to find it in my heart to forgive Steven, I wouldn’t be here right now. I’m a better person for it, and I will never forget what you did for me. For us. I’ll be forever grateful to you for showing me the way.”