Summary of 'The Last Leaf' (Class 9 English)

Sue and Johnsy were two young artists who lived together in a small flat. In November, Johnsy fell severely ill with pneumonia. She lost all hope of recovering and developed a strange, depressing belief: she started counting the falling leaves on an ivy creeper outside her window. She convinced herself that the day the very last leaf fell from the vine, she would die.

Sue was extremely worried and shared this problem with their downstairs neighbor, Behrman, a sixty-year-old unsuccessful painter whose lifelong dream was to paint a 'masterpiece'. Behrman was angry at Johnsy's foolish imagination but deeply cared for the girls.

That night, a fierce storm with heavy rain and strong winds struck. Johnsy was certain the last leaf would fall. But the next morning, to her surprise, the last leaf was still clinging bravely to the vine. Seeing the leaf survive the harsh storm gave Johnsy hope. She realized it was a sin to want to die, and her health began to improve.

A few days later, Sue revealed a heartbreaking truth to Johnsy. The last leaf on the wall was not real; it was a painting. Old Behrman had secretly gone out in the freezing, stormy night and painted a perfect, realistic leaf on the wall exactly where the real one had fallen. Because he was out in the freezing rain all night, Behrman caught severe pneumonia and died. He had finally painted his true 'masterpiece', which saved Johnsy's life at the cost of his own.