‘Wayward’ Ending Explained: Do Leila and Abbie Escape Tall Pines Academy?

So you’re confused by that twisty ending to Netflix‘s latest psychological thriller, Wayward. Don’t beat yourself up; you are certainly not alone.

In just eight episodes, series creator and star Mae Martin takes the viewers on a journey of self-discovery, struggle, and an examination of cults and troubled teen institutes… it’s a lot to tackle!

At the start of the series, it may be that Alex (Martin) and Laura (Sarah Gadon) are moving to Tall Pines for a quaint and quiet life away from their past mistakes, but with Evelyn (Toni Collette) always around and dropping in on them unexpectedly, can they ever find their happy ending?

As for Abbie (Sydney Topliffe) and Leila (Alyvia Alyn Lind), while the show starts in a completely different country for them, does their finale look much different than that of their grown-up counterparts? So many questions, so little time.

Whether you didn’t finish or are just a little turned around by that finale, we’ve got you covered. Here’s everything you need to know about the Season 1 finale of Wayward.

Wayward Season 1 Ending Explained: Do Leila and Abbie escape Tall Pines Academy and Evelyn’s Clutches?

At the start of Episode 8, “Leap,” Laura has welcomed several of her fellow Tall Pines Academy schoolmates into their home as she and Alex await the arrival of their baby. Elsewhere, Alex has been tased and kidnapped by Dwayne Andrews (Brandon Jay McLaren) as Evelyn — who shows up uninvited to Alex and Laura’s home — has plans to “leap” him, a.k.a. sever his human emotion through a torture process that takes place in the basement of Tall Pines.

As that happens, Leila (Lind), Abbie (Topliffe), and Rory (John Daniel) escape from the academy, ironically using Mule (Tricia Blacke) as a means of transportation. In town, the trio breaks into a home for food and supplies, which is when Leila decides that she wants to stay behind and head back to Tall Pines, the only place she says she’s ever felt safe and wanted. As Abbie reminds Leila that staying means going through “the leap,” Leila tells Abbie that she knows and doesn’t care. The duo part ways with Abbie promising to come back for her.

In the basement of Tall Pines, Alex is mid-Leap when Rabbit (Tattiawna Jones) turns the hallucinogenic drug-filled syringe around on Evelyn, giving Alex an opportunity to escape. Before he can do that, however, Evelyn tells him that she wasn’t the one who killed Laura’s parents, it was Laura. After narrowly escaping, Alex is once again stopped by Dwayne, who he ends up killing by smashing his head in with a rock. It’s important to note that this is the same method of murder that Evelyn just told Alex is how Laura killed her parents. Yikes.

Sadly (or not so sadly for Alex and Laura), Alex injecting Evelyn with additional doses of the hallucinogen causes her to overdose, leaving her to “Leap” into the afterlife as Rabbit rocks her to death. That’s not before she’s sent off to sleep to the sound of Rabbit telling her to go into the green door, which is met with Evelyn finding herself trapped in a twisted maze of green doors, marking her position in an eternal limbo.

As this is happening, Rory and Abbie are making a break for it before getting cornered while hiding out in a barn. After an adorable kiss, Rory offers himself up as a distraction, letting Abbie get away and make it to the car that Alex stashed for her in the woods. Before they can meet to get out of Tall Pines, Laura gives birth as all of the city residents (cough cough, former Tall Pines Academy students) have gathered to take in the birth of the first child the place has seen in decades. Just after pushing the baby out and holding him for mere seconds, the rest of the residents line up for a turn doing skin-to-skin, which only slightly freaks Alex out.

“It’s everyone’s,” Laura tells Alex, attempting to settle his ever-growing fears. “It’s the only way to break the pattern.” It sounds like at least part of what Evelyn said about Laura being psychotic and not to be trusted is true, as she has seemingly appointed herself — or been appointed by her fellow TPA alums — as the leader of the new order cult in Tall Pines.

The one and only happy ending we can provide you with for the show is that Abbie finally makes it to the car after losing both her best friend and her potential boyfriend, leaving Tall Pines in the rear view and heading westward to Vancouver. She does get some company in Toast, Alex and Laura’s dog who Alex left with the vehicle. Briefly, the show does psych out the viewers by making them believe that Alex grabs the baby and makes a break for it, but we quickly zoom out to discover it was just a vision. The series ends with Alex shutting the open door of their farmhouse as Laura watches and Abbie driving out of the Tall Pines city limit.

At the end of the day, so many questions about this thriller remain. Will Alex ever escape Tall Pines? Will Laura go full-on cult leader? Will Abbie head back and one day rescue Laura and Rory from the school that changed all of their lives? These are questions that can only be answered if Martin gives the world a Season 2, which has yet to be confirmed.

In the meantime, you can stream all of Wayward Season 1 on Netflix.