Paper Towns

Quentin "Q" Jacobsen lives across the street from Margo Roth Spiegelman in Jefferson Park, a subdivision of Orlando, Florida. She is a childhood friend from whom he has drifted over nine years after they discovered the corpse of a local lawyer, Robert Joyner, who killed himself after his divorce. Unbeknownst to Margo, Quentin has been infatuated with her since they became neighbors. After reaching adolescence, Margo becomes one of the popular girls, with an adventurous reputation, at Jefferson Park High School. In contrast, Quentin is kind, unassertive, and unpopular. His friends are fellow outcasts Benjamin "Ben" Starling and Marcus "Radar" Lincoln. One night, Margo climbs through Quentin's window and recruits him for an all-night, revenge adventure. She has discovered that her boyfriend, Jason "Jase" Worthington, is having sex with one of her friends, Rebecca "Becca" Arrington. After buying supplies, Margo and Quentin pull humiliating pranks on Jason, Rebecca, and their friends, including Margo's best friend, Lacey Pemberton. Margo believes Lacey knew about but did not tell her about the infidelity. However, it is later revealed that Lacey was unaware until she was pranked. The event gives Quentin hope that he finally has a chance to develop a closer relationship with Margo. He begins to learn how to assert himself and to take chances. The next day Margo does not come to school and, after a few days, some consider her missing, while others conclude she left for an undisclosed location. Her parents will not report her missing to the police as she has run away from home repeatedly before, and they believe their daughter will return eventually. After seeing a recently attached Woody Guthrie poster on her bedroom wall, Quentin realizes that Margo deliberately left clues to let him know where she is going. Benjamin and Marcus start searching for other clues in hopes of finding Margo so that Quentin can confess his feelings to her. Quentin bribes Margo's sister Ruthie so they can look for clues in her room. When Quentin, Benjamin, and Marcus attend a party at Jason's house, Lacey argues with Rebecca over her betrayal of Margo with Jason. Because of her loyalty to Margo and her revulsion towards Rebecca and Jason's affair, Lacey leaves in disgust. Quentin finds her in a bathroom and gets to know her. He discovers that, beneath her superficial exterior, she is an intelligent and compassionate person, and they become friends. After finding more clues, Quentin and his friends are led to an old gift store at an abandoned strip mall. They find a map that Margo used, and discover that she has been hiding in Agloe, a paper town located in the state of New York. Quentin and his friends, including Marcus's girlfriend Angela, go on two-day road trip to find Margo. The group plans to be home in time for prom after they find her. They bond on the way, as Benjamin and Lacey decide to go to the prom together, and Marcus and Angela consummate their relationship. When the group does not find Margo where they expect her to be, Quentin stays in Agloe while the others return home with his car. He finds her on the street and admits his romantic feelings for her, but she does not feel the same way. Margo ran away from home to escape her dysfunctional family life and figure out who she is. She left the clues to let Quentin know that she is safe, not to invite him to follow her. Margo remains in Agloe. Quentin books a bus ticket home, and they share a farewell kiss. Before he leaves, she tells him that she has been in contact with Ruthie since leaving Orlando. Returning to Orlando, Quentin enjoys the company of his friends at the prom. After graduation, he continues spending time with them throughout the summer and learns ambiguous stories about Margo before they all leave for college.

Plot from Paper Towns (film)CC BY-SA 4.0