The Boy in the Black Suit ventures deeper into the life of a boy who is capable to confront his challenges thanks to the help of Lovey. Reynolds establishes a story where not only does it go into depth on the characters present lives, but it also leads a path back to their past. For instance, a tragic accident that took place in apartment 516 lead to various incidents that will continue to shape both Lovey and Matthew it is because of this that their fates remain intertwined. Reynolds purposely uses flashbacks as a way to establish each of the characters past and to reveal similarities corresponding to an event.

Lovey, who later becomes his girlfriend was able to help Matthew develops throughout the story which later helped him deal with his personal conflicts. He starts to speak on very sensitive topics such as his mother's death without feeling he will break down every single time. “The argument from outside. Loud. Angry... Can't be. The sound, the horrible, horrible sound. Gunshot. Screams. (Reynolds 222) “Yeah, I wheezed, squeezing my hands together. But now I need to tell you a story.”(Reynolds 223) This quote illustrates how Matthew starts to speak up about a part of his past he thought would never catch up to him. Although he does have trouble speaking on he finally gets the courage to tell Lovey he was there and he heard everything. As mentioned in the quote Matthew starts remembering everything from that day and very soon he is able to speak up. It's not easy to open up on topics such as witnessing someone's death and when Matthew suddenly opened up on such a fragile part of his past, drastically changed the the way he is portrayed in the mind of the reader. Since Matthew had so much trouble addressing his mother's death the possibility that he would struggle when raising his voice on what happened that night was very high. In the end, Reynolds did an incredible job foreshadowing the book, he was also able to create a love story where two persons share their similarities, miseries and loved ones.

The flashbacks Reynolds uses throughout the story not only affect Matthew and Lovey, but it also affected Chis, his best friend and Ms.Hayes, his mother. It is stated that, one fateful night, caused Chris and Matthew to go from friends to best friends. (Reynolds 43) Everything changed that night without knowing what huge effect it would have in the future. “As soon as a thin strip of light from the hall came shining through the opening, the loudest sound I had ever heard in my entire life came rushing toward us, making both of us shout out and slam the door…Ms.Hayes looked upset, but then she took one look at our faces and came rushing over”. (Reynolds 46) Although the book states that Ms.Hayes came over to comfort them, there is a possibility that not only was she scared, but she had a sense of madness. Mad that they didn't follow her instructions and something worse could've happened to them. The author never specifically promotes Ms.Hayes relationship with Matthew, but not only does this event bring Matthew and Chris closer, but it also created a stronger bond with Ms.Hayes. The quote lets us in into what seems like a random event with Chris but ends up having a greater impact on the books plot.

This flashback also creates a moment of realization corresponding to Matthew, he realizes that he is not the only one that has dealt with the grief of losing a loved one. There are various times throughout the book that he feels, as if he is the only one dealing with the suffering of a dear one's death. Both Lovey and Matthew deal with the grieve of their mother's death in a different way which drastically affects their relationships with others.  “It’s cool, I’ll tell u….. My mom passes a few months ago.Texting My mom passed away, and saying it out loud, are two different things. I mean, I could say it and not break down”. (Reynolds 149) In the following quote he is able to share about his mother’s death without breaking down and although it may not seem like much it causes a huge step in character development. Later on, he starts to deal with his grief by attending funerals and working at a funeral home. Knowing someone such as Lovey is also dealing with such sorrow promotes a connection between them.

The various flashbacks used throughout the story helps Matthew and the readers understand that you are never truly alone in your grief. It also helped promote the relationships with other characters through the story such as Chris, Lovey, and Ms.Hayes. No matter what, there will always be people who feel the same way you do, what's important is that you never give up and continue on fighting. This flashback not only strengthened relationships, but it was able to generate a moment were Matthew and Lovey could bring their past a little closure. No one knows how our past will affect our relationships with others and bring us closer to someone from our past.