Chapter 34: Reese – Summary & Analysis
⚠️ Spoiler Notice
This page reveals plot details from Chapter 34 of It’s Not Her. Read the chapter first to avoid spoilers.
Summary
Reese is at the lodge with Cass and Mae when a new family checks in. The teenage daughter immediately grabs Reese’s attention—she’s beautiful, confident, and moves with the kind of grace Reese both despises and envies. Later, Reese takes Mae and Cass to the pool. On the way, she spots Daniel skimming leaves and replays their almost-encounter in the woods the previous night. She waves, but he doesn’t see her. When she reaches the pool gate, she freezes: the new girl is sunbathing on the other side. Daniel stares at her, mesmerized. The girl senses his gaze, sits up, and the two exchange smiles and waves—a wordless connection that excludes Reese completely. Reese’s heart pounds, her throat tightens, and she wonders whether what she feels is a heart attack or something worse. She leaves without entering the pool area.
Key Events
- Reese, Cass, and Mae linger in the lodge; the new girl and her family check in.
- Reese feels an instant mix of hatred and admiration for the girl’s looks and confidence.
- Reese leads Cass and Mae to the pool, fixating on Daniel as he cleans the water.
- Her mind drifts to the previous night’s intimate moment in the woods with Daniel.
- She waves at Daniel, but he doesn’t notice; she hurries toward the gate.
- At the gate, she sees the new girl sunbathing and watches Daniel stare at her.
- The new girl opens her eyes, notices Daniel, and a silent, flirtatious exchange unfolds.
- Reese feels physically sick, her heart hurting, and compares the sensation to a heart attack.
Character Development
- Reese: Her inner turmoil deepens. The chapter lays bare her insecurity and desperation for Daniel’s attention. Her hatred of the new girl is tangled with a wish to be her, revealing low self-esteem. The final line shows emotional pain so acute it feels physical, marking a turning point in her vulnerability.
- Daniel: Previously presented as a desirable, attentive figure, he now appears fickle. His instant focus on another girl, despite the recent closeness with Reese, highlights his casual attraction and emotional unavailability.
- The New Girl: An unnamed catalyst. She embodies everything Reese feels she lacks—beauty, ease, social status—and functions chiefly as a mirror for Reese’s insecurities.
- Cass & Mae: Minor presence, but their movie-rental dawdling and eagerness at the pool provide a contrast to Reese’s brooding internal drama.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Jealousy and Unrequited Desire: Reese’s reaction is visceral; she “hates” the new girl and wants to be her. The silent connection between Daniel and the stranger underscores Reese’s exclusion.
- Appearance vs. Reality: Reese projects a complete life story onto the new girl based only on her looks—popular, athletic, beloved. The chapter questions how much of both characters’ identities is imagined.
- Physicality of Emotion: The heartbeat, tight throat, and loss of balance turn emotional pain into something tangible, foreshadowing potentially dangerous consequences.
- The Pool as a Stage: The water—a site of Daniel’s work and summer leisure—becomes a theater for rejection. Daniel skimming leaves with a net can be read as him “skimming” for the next object of his interest.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 34 marks a critical emotional blow for Reese. After the charged moment in the woods, she believed she had something special with Daniel. Watching him turn his attention so completely to another girl shatters that illusion. The chapter crystallizes Reese’s core conflict: her desire to be seen and loved battling her sense of invisibility. It sets the stage for escalating jealousy and raises the stakes for her decisions going forward.
Study Questions & Answers
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Why does Reese feel both hatred and admiration for the new girl?
Reese sees in the new girl the qualities she believes she lacks—beauty, confidence, and social ease—making her an object of envy. At the same time, the girl’s presence threatens Reese’s fragile sense of romantic hope with Daniel, which fuels hatred. -
How does the chapter contrast Reese’s memory of Daniel with his current behavior?
Her memory of the woods is intimate and promising: Daniel leaning in, asking her to remove her shorts. In the present, he’s distant and captivated by someone else, ignoring Reese’s wave entirely. The contrast underscores the flimsiness of their connection and Daniel’s unreliable attention. -
What does the final line—“I wonder if this is what a heart attack feels like, or if this is worse”—suggest about Reese’s emotional state?
It conveys that her emotional pain is overwhelming and indistinguishable from physical agony. The comparison to a heart attack hints that Reese feels her survival is threatened, not just her heart broken, foreshadowing the novel’s darker turns.