Winona Forever

The short story “Winona Forever” by Leesa Cross-Smith begins in medias res with Heather stating her romantic feelings for Crystal. The narrative is static. There are no conflicts and there is little progression.

The story is structured into two parts. The first part describes the aftermath of Amber’s death, while the second part follows Heather and Crystal two years later. 

The main events take place chronologically. However, the structure of the narrative is non-linear, following Heather’s thought process. The story frequently jumps into the past, as Heather remembers her friendship with Crystal and Amber, as well as her obsession with Winona Ryder. There is also a jump into an imagined future at the end of the story when Heather anticipates getting together with Crystal later that night. 

There are several flashbacks in the story. For instance, Heather remembers seeing the movie Mermaids for the first time at the cinema together with her mother, Amber, and Crystal. Several other episodes from Heather’s life, as well as from Heather and Crystal’s shared past, are mentioned in flashbacks. For instance, Heather mentions cutting her hair to look like Winona Ryder.

There is an instance of foreshadowing when Heather mentions that she is waiting for something so she can have sex with Tristan. Later, it turns out that she is waiting to see Crystal and Jamie making out. The idea of Crystal having sex with Jamie makes Heather want to have sex with Tristan. 

The climax of the story is when Heather realizes that she wants to lose her virginity while Crystal is also losing hers, so they can discuss it later: 

That quick, I decided I was tired of waiting and I wanted to lose my virginity with Crystal in the same house, so we could talk about it later. I hoped maybe she was in the living room losing hers to Jamie.