Chapter 28 ('Twenty-five') Study Guide: Summary, Themes, and Analysis

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

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This page discusses the entire chapter in detail, including its ending.

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This is a pivotal chapter in the novel, marking a turning point in Adelaide and Rory's relationship.

We'll break down everything that happens, analyze the characters and themes, and explore why this chapter matters so much.

We'll also provide three study questions with answers to help you think critically about the text.

Let's begin.

Summary

The chapter opens on a warm Saturday morning in London. Adelaide has just signed the lease on a new one-bedroom flat in Pimlico, found by her friend Celeste. Despite the frayed couches and dog hair, she signs the contract on the spot, excited about this new step. She then heads to the Notting Hill Carnival, carrying a container of homemade cookies and a signed copy of Fleabag: The Scriptures by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, hoping to lift Rory's mood. She hasn't seen him in nearly three weeks.

At the carnival, she finds Rory drunk on the curb outside the Electric Cinema, surrounded by his roommates. He greets her with unexpected enthusiasm, and she gives him the cookies and the book. He's delighted, and then he kisses her—a deep, passionate kiss that makes Adelaide feel like she's reentering the universe she first found when they kissed on Lower Marsh Street, before she fell in love, before Nathalie died. She realizes the danger of Rory Hughes: there are moments when he is absolutely perfect, and they click together like puzzle pieces, but there are also jagged edges that don't align.

They spend the day together, taking tequila shots, dancing in the street, getting covered in red, yellow, and blue paint, and singing along to Lizzo. They shower together at her flat, and Adelaide feels an intimate connection as they wash each other's hair. Rory agrees to spend the night, and as they lie in bed, he invites her to his hometown of Shere in Surrey for the weekend. He says he desperately needs to get out of London, but he doesn't mention that it's Nathalie's twenty-eighth birthday—that he's using Adelaide as an escape from his grief. Adelaide is hesitant because Madison's farewell party is that Sunday, but Rory promises they'll be back in time. She agrees.

Later that night, Adelaide has a sudden intense craving for buttermilk ranch dressing. She wants Rory to join her in searching for a delivery option, but he dismisses it, saying it's too late. She suppresses her disappointment, telling herself to