Teenagers, like adults, may decide to take their lives for a variety of reasons. Michael, who was Charlie’s friend, had committed suicide (killed himself) but the reason behind it is never explicitly said in the novel. The school counselor guessed that he might have had "a problem at home" but nobody to talk to, so he felt desperate and lonely. As suicide is a tragic event, it impacted many of the people around him, like Charlie (his best friend) and Susan, (his girlfriend), in addition to the rest of his school. It did, however, help the staff and students become more aware of mental illness in and beyond the school. In addition, it is mentioned in the book that both Bridget and Carl struggled with suicidal thoughts when facing problems in their lives.