In Chap­ter 168 of “All the Col­ors of the Dark,” Char­lot­te’s tran­si­tion into the new liv­ing sit­u­a­tion unfolds grad­u­al­ly. Ini­tial­ly qui­et, Char­lotte expe­ri­ences dis­com­fort at the local pub­lic library, express­ing dis­be­lief that oth­ers have han­dled the books before her. Her unease begins to dis­si­pate as Patch, her com­pan­ion, selects books for her, invok­ing mem­o­ries of his late wife Grace’s favorites. Although she resists his attempts to read aloud, pre­fer­ring to hide behind the sofa, she even­tu­al­ly becomes cap­ti­vat­ed by sto­ries like “Trea­sure Island.”

Their rou­tine includes ear­ly morn­ing walks, where Char­lotte helps gath­er birch­wood and learns the nuances of wood selec­tion, favor­ing the smell of birch. They also fre­quent Main Street, vis­it­ing a gallery where Sam­my, the own­er, observes Char­lotte with a mix of curios­i­ty and appre­hen­sion. Her blunt­ness, espe­cial­ly when fac­ing Sammy’s quirky sug­ges­tions about eti­quette, earns her unspo­ken admi­ra­tion.

In the stu­dio, Patch attempts to men­tor Char­lotte in art, ignor­ing Sammy’s reser­va­tions about let­ting a child use oil paints. Their inter­ac­tions reveal Patch’s strug­gle with his own artis­tic block and the weight of expec­ta­tions from New York deal­ers, who are eager for him to pro­duce work after a long hia­tus. Their shared meals at Lacey’s Din­er depict Char­lot­te’s enjoy­ment of food, con­trast­ing with Sam­my’s hor­ror at her messi­ness, as he rem­i­nisces about culi­nary mishaps.

Charlotte’s after­noons with her grand­moth­er unfold in an atmos­phere of shared soli­tude and unspo­ken ten­sion regard­ing her late moth­er, Misty. Patch and Mrs. Mey­er sit togeth­er exchang­ing con­cerns about Char­lot­te’s emo­tion­al state, not­ing how she avoids talk­ing about her moth­er’s death or vis­it­ing her grave. Their con­ver­sa­tion high­lights the com­plex­i­ties of grief; although time may soft­en per­spec­tives, the under­ly­ing pain remains unchanged. This chap­ter delves into themes of heal­ing, the chal­lenges of par­ent­hood, and the impor­tance of con­nec­tion amidst loss.