The truth about Bryce’s murder came to light in the 13 Reasons Why season 3 finale. After his brutal fight with Zach, a bleeding Bryce couldn’t walk. He was all alone at the pier — until he wasn’t. Alex walked up, as well as Jessica. Jessica came to get whatever it was that Bryce wanted to give her, and that was a tape. Bryce said his confession was on the tape and an apology. “It owns up to everything I did,” he said about the tape.
Bryce told Jessica she could play the tape for whomever she wanted but he wanted Mrs. Baker to hear it. “I’m trying to set things right. I’m trying to be better but this f**king world won’t let me,” Bryce continued. Jessica couldn’t believe what he was saying. Jessica and Alex started walking away and Bryce begged them to help him get home or to a hospital. Jessica didn’t want to help him in any way. Bryce called out to them again. Alex started having second thoughts. “If we help him, Zach goes to jail,” Jessica told Alex, who replied, “If we leave him and he freezes to death, then Zach definitely goes to jail.”
Jessica continued walking but Alex stayed back. Bryce tried to goad Alex into helping him by saying they were friends. Alex walked over to Bryce and said, “We were never friends.” Alex helped Bryce up from the ground and Bryce started screaming over the pain. Bryce vowed to destroy Zach for what he’d done to him. Bryce flew into a fury and screamed at Jessica, “You… you set me up.” That’s when Alex looked into Bryce’s eyes and realized he was actually never going to change.
“You’ve hurt everyone I’ve ever loved,” Alex said to Bryce before he started pushing Bryce towards the edge of the dock. There was a struggle before Alex pushed him into the water below. Jessica ran over and they watched as Bryce struggled to swim. They watched him fight to stay alive until he sank below the surface. It was Alex who killed Bryce.
Alex drove Jessica home afterward. Before she got out, Alex told her, “Hey, it’s going to be fine. No one knows. I love you.” A worried Jessica said, “You can’t say that. You can’t say that ever again. We have to stay apart.”
In the present day, Ani put her plan to exonerate Clay into motion. She blamed Monty for Bryce’s death and had an entire narrative for it. Deputy Standall knew Monty didn’t do it and knew that Alex had. He went along with the coverup that Monty killed Bryce to protect his son. Monty was killed in prison so he had no way of defending himself. Deputy Standall burned the clothes Alex was wearing the night he killed Bryce. With the police believing Ani’s narrative, Bryce’s murder case was closed.