Chapter 32 Summary: Mr. Self-Confidence

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

Summary

Georgia meets Jason outside the Gala cinema on Saturday afternoon for their date. They joke about the cinema being a strange choice—essentially sitting in silence for two hours—and Georgia feels she's handling the flirting well. Half an hour into the film, the fire alarm goes off, forcing everyone outside. A staff member distributes cinema vouchers, and the two decide to return to college rather than end the date awkwardly. Jason invites Georgia to his room to watch a movie there. Georgia internally panics about what going to a boy's room on a date might imply—talking, flirting, kissing, possibly sex—but tells herself she can be normal and brave.

In Jason's small room, Georgia immediately notices a framed photograph of Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr. from Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed on the otherwise blank wall. Jason explains that his old school friend Ed gave it to him as a good-luck charm to help him get a girlfriend. He then reveals something he's never told her before: at his all-boys school, he was known as the guy who'd never kissed anyone, and he was teased relentlessly for it. People called him ugly, mocked his acne and his love of musical theatre. A week after Ed gave him the photo, Jason had his first kiss—a bad one—just to get it out of the way.

Jason goes on to explain that he stayed with his ex Aimee for so long because he was terrified of being single and becoming that person again—the unlovable one. He believed Aimee was the best he deserved. Georgia tells him he deserves more, and he agrees, saying he knows that now. She calls him Mr. Self-Confidence, and he laughs, wishing he could tell that to his sixteen-year-old self.

In that moment, Georgia realizes she is a hypocrite. She is doing exactly what Jason was pressured into doing all those years ago—forcing herself through romantic experiences because she's scared to be different. She considers telling him to stop, to just stay friends, but decides to hold on a little longer in case they fall in love and she stops hating herself.

They begin watching a movie on his laptop, sharing a blanket. Georgia fidgets, anxious about whether kissing or sex is expected. After about twenty minutes, Jason notices she's not OK. She claims she has a headache, and he kindly suggests she go take a nap. When she leaves, she feels a moment of overwhelming relief—followed immediately by self-hatred.

Key Events

Georgia and Jason's cinema date is interrupted by a fire alarm half an hour in
The date relocates to Jason's college room, where they plan to watch a movie
Georgia notices the framed Scooby-Doo 2 photo of Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr.
Jason reveals he was bullied at his all-boys school for never having kissed anyone
Jason explains he had a bad first kiss under pressure and stayed with Aimee out of fear of being unlovable
Georgia recognizes her own behavior as a mirror of Jason's past
Georgia fakes a headache and leaves early, feeling relief then self-hatred

Character Development

Jason emerges as a far more vulnerable figure than his cheerful exterior suggests. His story about the bullying and the pressure to have his first kiss reframes his earlier anecdotes about his romantic history. He's clearly done emotional work on himself—he can now say he knows he deserves better than Aimee—but the scars of being called unlovable are still present. His wish to tell his sixteen-year-old self that things get better shows both growth and lingering pain.

Georgia is forced to confront her own hypocrisy. She feels genuine anger on Jason's behalf about the pressure he faced, only to realize she is doing the same thing to herself—and risking hurting him in the process. Her internal debate about whether to end things or hold on shows her torn between self-protection and hope. The chapter ends with her in a dark place: relief at escaping the situation, immediately followed by self-hatred for feeling that relief. Her reference to the Kinsey Scale's X category—meaning no sexual attraction—shows she's still actively questioning her sexuality, even as she tries to suppress that questioning.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Societal pressure around romantic milestones: Jason's bullying for never having kissed anyone is a stark example of how society treats romantic inexperience as a flaw. Georgia's parallel anxiety about what's expected on a date shows the same pressure operating on her.

Fear of being unlovable: Jason explicitly says he stayed with Aimee because he believed she was the best he deserved. This fear is the emotional engine of the chapter, and Georgia recognizes it in herself.

Hypocrisy and self-awareness: Georgia's realization that she's doing exactly what she's angry at Jason's bullies for doing is the chapter's central emotional beat. She sees the pattern but can't break it yet.

The good-luck charm: The framed photo of Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr. functions as a symbol of the pressure Jason was under—a joke about romance that became a talisman for achieving a romantic milestone. It's also a marker of his friendship with Ed and the world he left behind.

Comfortable silence vs. forced intimacy: Early in the chapter, Georgia and Jason joke about the ideal marriage being two people who can sit in comfortable silence. By the end, Georgia can't even manage that—the silence in Jason's room is anything but comfortable for her, because she's terrified of what might come next.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is a turning point in Georgia's internal conflict. It gives Jason real depth, revealing the pressure and pain behind his easygoing persona, and it forces Georgia to see her own behavior through his story. The parallel between Jason's past and Georgia's present is the emotional core of the chapter: he was pressured into experiences he didn't want, and she's doing the same to herself. The chapter also sets up the stakes for whatever comes next—Georgia knows she's being dishonest with Jason, and she's choosing to continue anyway, which makes her eventual reckoning inevitable.

Study Questions

1. How does Jason's story about the Scooby-Doo photo and his first kiss parallel Georgia's current situation?

Jason was bullied for not having kissed anyone and forced himself into a bad first kiss just to get it out of the way. Georgia is currently forcing herself through a romantic relationship with Jason for similar reasons—she's scared of being different, of being weird for not having romantic experiences. She recognizes this parallel explicitly, calling herself a hypocrite for being angry at Jason's bullies while doing the same thing to herself.

2. Why does Georgia call herself a hypocrite in this chapter, and what does this reveal about her internal conflict?

Georgia is angry on Jason's behalf about the pressure he faced, but she realizes she's doing exactly what he was pressured into doing: having romantic experiences because she's afraid of being different. This reveals that she's aware of the harm she's potentially causing Jason, but she's not ready to stop—she decides to hold on a little longer in case they fall in love and she stops hating herself. Her self-awareness doesn't yet translate into action.

3. What does the chapter title Mr. Self-Confidence suggest about Jason's character arc, and how does it contrast with Georgia's state of mind?

Georgia calls Jason Mr. Self-Confidence after he says he now knows he deserves better than Aimee. The nickname is affectionate but also ironic—Jason has clearly grown in self-worth, but he's still carrying the scars of being called unlovable. The contrast with Georgia is stark: Jason has done the work to believe he deserves love, while Georgia is still trying to force herself into a version of love she doesn't actually want. The title highlights the gap between where Jason is and where Georgia still needs to go.