If Tom saw Jessica again, what did he want to do?

In Tony Abbott's Firegirl, we follow a boy named Tom Bender as he begins a friendship with Jessica Feeney, a new girl in his seventh grade class. Jessica is a burn victim, and many other students avoid her or gossip about her because of her scarred appearance.
Jessica and her family moved to Tom's town from Boston so that Jessica could have special medical treatment somewhere nearby. Tom and Jessica are only able to have a short friendship, because soon after arriving, Jessica and her family have to move again. After she leaves, Tom realizes that he has been changed by their short-lived relationship but isn't sure yet if he has truly become a better person. In the very last paragraph of the book, Tom says:

If I ever saw her again, I think I’d start saying all kinds of stuff and probably wouldn’t be able to stop. And I’d want her to talk, too. A lot. I’d want us both to talk to each other deep into the night and not stop. Mostly, I’d want to tell her thank you. And I’d try to say it loud enough for everyone to hear.