What does Charlie mean when he says "it felt like a goodbye rather than a "see ya"

[Nick]

At the end of the book when Sam was leaving for college, what did Charlie mean when he said "it felt like a goodbye rather than a 'see ya'"? Is he saying that they will never be together in a relationship?

[[deleted user]]

I think that he's saying that instead of a friendly "see ya" (as in, see you later, we're going to definitely see each other soon a lot) it's a permanent goodbye (as in, this is our ending and its going to stay that way)

[Nick]

Really? Why do you think it would be their ending? I have to say, I read it the same way as you but it made me feel a little sad to think that true, when he has so much love for Sam. And when she returns at the end of summer she takes him out in the pickup.

[Lucinda]

I thought that perhaps it "felt like a goodbye" to him because he could sense that a stage in their relationship--and in each of their lives--was coming to an end. Any previous times they said "see ya" meant "I'll see ya in school Monday" or I"ll call you this weekend." I think this moment represented a larger sense of "goodbye" in Charlie's life.

[Nick]

I prefer your understanding of what he meant. I know it's only a story but to lessen the melancholic state into which I slipped after finishing the book, I told myself that Charlie and Sam ended up with each other.

[Lucinda]

I felt sad at the end of the book because, as I said in my review, Charlie had become such a "real" human being to me that I knew I would miss him. I'd like to think he ended up with Sam too.