Hassan kept to himself for about a week after his ordeal. Amir lied to Ali after he asked if he knew what was troubling Hassan. He told him he didn't know what was wrong with Hassan.

Amir and his father were getting along better than they ever had. Amir knew he should be enjoying this time with his father, but he couldn't because of his actions the day of the tournament. Every time his father mentioned the tournament Amir felt as if a hole had opened up in him. He couldn't get the image of Hassan in the alley with Assef out of his mind.

Amir craved alone time with his father, but his father was always bringing groups of people with them on overnight outings. On such an outing to Jalalabad, Amir after hearing praise for his win, found he could not sleep. The guilt of his lack of action caused him to become, from that night on, an insomniac.

After about a week of keeping to himself Hassan tried to reestablish his friendship with Amir. Amir was too ashamed to respond to his attempts, instead he responded with cold rejections to Hassan's suggestions.

The summer of 1976 Amir turned thirteen and his father celebrated by inviting 400 people to a birthday party. By this time the relationship between the two had returned to living cold separate lives, this was in part because Amir asked, if Baba would replace Ali and Hassan with new servants. This suggestion incensed Baba.

At the party Assef attended with his parents. He seemed wonderful to Baba, but Amir could hardly stomach being near him. It especially distressed him to see Hassan serve Assef and his friends drinks at the party.

The next day Amir opened the many presents given to him the previous evening. He found no joy in the presents, because he considered the gifts blood gifts. He knew the only reason his father gave him such a large party was because he won the tournament.

The only gift he prized was the notebook given to him by Rahim Khan. His father had given him an expensive bike and a wristwatch.

At the party, Rahim told Amir he almost married a Hazara girl, who was a neighbor's servant's daughter, but his father stopped the marriage by having the girl's family sent away. Rahim told Amir it was for the best, because his family would never accept a servant as a family member. Remembering these words gave Amir an idea.

He wanted Hassan and his father far away from him, so he would not be constantly reminded of his guilt for not stopping Hassan's rape. He hid some of his birthday money and the wristwatch under Hassan's mattress. He then he told his father Hassan stole the items from him. Amir remembered his father told him the only sin is the sin of theft. He was sure his father would make Hassan and Ali leave.

Hassan admitted he stole the items and Baba forgave him, which stunned Amir. He was also stunned by Hassan's admission of guilt, which confirmed his suspicion that Hassan knew he was at the alley and could have stopped the attack. This made Amir love Hassan, but at the same time he was glad to be rid of the constant reminder of his inaction.

Ali told Baba he and Hassan would move to Hazarajat, because of Hassan's crime. Amir knew then Hassan had told his father everything. Baba begged them to stay, but finally he agreed to take them to the bus station.

Five years later in March of 1981, Amir and his father were on a truck with others trying to flee Afghanistan. The Soviets had taken control of the country, which caused everyone fear of what lied ahead of them in the future. The man who took them and the others is Karim, he made his living taking people from Kabul to Jalalabad, where his cousin transported them into Pakistan. Karim was paid a hefty fee by the passengers, some of which went toward bribing the check point soldiers, so the soldiers would let the truck pass through to their destination.

At one of the check points, the Russian soldier wanted a little more for his silence, he wanted to rape one of the women in the truck. She was a wife and mother, her husband tried to reason with the man, but he was unwilling to listen. Baba decided it was time for him to get involved. He told the Afghan soldier to let the Russian know he had to kill him to get to the woman. The situation was resolved as Baba was about to be shot; the Russian soldier's superior officer fired his gun into the air halting the execution of Baba. The woman was safe and the truck continued to Jalalabad.

Once there they learned the second truck had been broken down for two weeks. Baba almost killed Karim, because he realized Karim had known this information all along. The group was put into a basement, to wait with others for the truck to be repaired. They learned a week later it would never be repaired and the only way out was inside a fuel truck tank.

This was a stifling dark place for them to be, but eventually they reached Pakistan. As they crawled out of the tank, Kamal, who was one of the boys who helped Assef terrorize the neighborhood, was found dead. His father, whose wife was killed not long before, took Karim's gun and killed himself; this left the others in a state of shock.

Amir is filled with guilt for not saving Hassan from Assef. In order to help himself, he frames Hasssan for theft, causing him and his father to leave Baba's employ. A few years later Amir and his father are forced to flee Kabul after Russia takes over Afghanistan. These are very strange and trying times for them and their country.