The Summer I Turned Pretty, #3
We'll Always Have Summer
by Jenny Han
Contents
Chapter Five
Overview
Belly flashes back to the spring breakup that preceded Jeremiah’s Cabo trip. Minor resentments over his frat life and priorities explode when he chooses Cabo over visiting his father and Susannah’s grave. They break up, he goes to Mexico, and they reconcile later. In the present, Belly reevaluates that reconciliation gift—a shell bracelet—as a token of guilt.
Summary
Belly recalls how small frictions with Jeremiah built up: feeling sidelined by his frat life, wanting her own friendships, and irritation over his obliviousness during allergy season and lazy hangouts. A missed party invitation and everyday slights prime their first real confrontation.
When Jeremiah’s fraternity impulsively books Cabo for spring break, Belly urges him to visit Mr. Fisher and Susannah’s headstone instead, and to return to Cousins with her. Jeremiah jokes about jealousy and suggests she come, which stings because she can’t afford it and doesn’t want to be a tagalong.
Tension spikes when Jeremiah admits he’d prefer a guys’ trip and mentions Alison will be there with her sorority. Belly feels excluded and questions his priorities; the argument widens into criticisms of his fraternity and fears about his direction, culminating in her blurting “inferiority complex.”
The fight escalates beyond control. Jeremiah, hurt and angry, says to end it; Belly, expecting him to stop her, says “Fine” and leaves in tears. He departs for Cabo without calling. Belly spends spring break at home, devastated, but after his return they apologize and get back together.
Jeremiah brings Belly a puka shell bracelet, which she once took as proof he missed her. In light of what she has since learned about Cabo, Belly now reads the gift as guilt, realizing how desperate she’d been to believe in their reunion.
Who Appears
- Belly (Isabel Conklin)Narrator; recalls the spring breakup and later reconciliation, now reinterpreting past events and the shell bracelet as guilt.
- Jeremiah FisherChooses Cabo with fraternity, argues with Belly, initiates breakup, later reconciles and gifts a shell bracelet.
- ShayInvites Belly (and possibly Jeremiah) to a country house party, highlighting Belly’s need for her own friends.
- Steven ConklinBelly’s brother; reassures her during spring break that Jeremiah will call and they’ll reconcile.
- JillianBelly’s roommate; annoyed by Jeremiah staying over and his tissue use during allergy season.
- AlisonJosh’s girlfriend; her sorority’s Cabo trip overlaps with the fraternity’s, intensifying Belly’s insecurity.
- JoshJeremiah’s fraternity brother; mentioned because his girlfriend Alison will also be in Cabo.
- Mr. FisherJeremiah’s father; Belly urges Jeremiah to visit him instead of going to Cabo.
- Susannah FisherDeceased; her headstone visit is part of Belly’s plea for Jeremiah to prioritize family.
- Conrad FisherReferenced as pre-med at Stanford; comparison fuels Jeremiah’s sensitivity during the fight.