The Hoodie in Part of Your World: A Symbol of Comfort and Belonging

What the Hoodie Is and Why It Matters in Part of Your World

In Abby Jimenez's Part of Your World, a plain black hoodie becomes one of the novel's most emotionally charged objects. It first appears in Chapter 6, when Alexis Montgomery confesses to her best friend Bri that she stole it during her night with Daniel Grant. The garment itself is never described in detail—it is simply Daniel's black hoodie, hanging on a hook by his front door, then draped over Alexis's chair in Minneapolis. Its power comes not from how it looks but from what it carries: Daniel's scent, his presence, and the memory of a night that changes both of their lives.

The hoodie functions as a keepsake, a pretext, a comfort object, and finally a symbol of loss. Tracking its journey through the novel reveals how Alexis's feelings for Daniel deepen—and how the small-town world he represents becomes something she cannot let go of.

The First Theft: Impulse and Keepsake

Alexis steals the hoodie on the night she and Daniel first sleep together, after her car breaks down in Wakan. She flees at dawn, panicked to discover from his driver's license that he is twenty-eight, nearly a decade younger than her. The theft is impulsive—she grabs it on her way out, disheveled and missing a shoe.

When she tells Bri about it in Chapter 6, she frames the theft as a practical concern: she should return the hoodie in case it has sentimental value. But Bri sees through the excuse immediately, calling the proposed return a booty call. Bri's teasing forces Alexis to confront what she actually wants—not to return a stolen garment, but to see Daniel again.

The hoodie is, from the start, a pretext. Alexis needs a reason to contact Daniel that doesn't require admitting she wants him. The garment gives her that cover. It is also a keepsake—a tangible piece of a night she cannot stop thinking about, even as she insists she is emotionally unavailable.

The Hoodie as a Bridge

When Alexis calls Daniel in Chapter 7, the hoodie becomes the hinge of their conversation. She confesses, and Daniel's response is playful and revealing. He teases her about running off but dismisses the theft itself—one of those things ruined his whole week, the other was just a hoodie. Then he asks if she is wearing it, and Alexis admits that you don't steal a hoodie and not wear it.

Daniel immediately reads the theft as a signal: he thinks she took the hoodie because she wanted a reason to come back. In his reading, the hoodie is not a crime but an invitation. It gives Alexis a socially acceptable way to reach out, and it gives Daniel a reason to hope she will return. The phone call ends with her agreeing to drive three hours to see him.

The Second Theft: Growing Attachment

By Chapter 11, the pattern is established. After a weekend visit in which Alexis helps Daniel care for Popeye, an elderly neighbor who has fallen, she declines to stay for breakfast—she does not want to be seen with Daniel in public yet. When Daniel returns home, he notices his black hoodie is missing from the hook by the front door. She has taken another one.

This second theft is different from the first. The first was impulsive, a grab-and-go. The second is deliberate—she takes it from the hook on her way out. It signals that the hoodie has become a habit, a way of carrying Daniel with her between visits. It also marks a shift in Alexis's feelings: she is no longer just processing a one-night stand; she is actively collecting pieces of his life.

The Hoodie as Comfort Object

By Chapter 24, the hoodie's role has deepened considerably. Alexis has stolen a third one—a gray Cabela's hoodie with deer antlers on the front. She finds a cherry ChapStick in the pocket that tastes like Daniel's mouth, calling it a tiny bonus prize. She turns the thermostat down to freezing just so she can sleep in it, wearing it while talking to Daniel on the phone until almost midnight.

This is the hoodie as comfort object in its fullest form. It is no longer just a keepsake—it is something she sleeps in, something that lets her feel Daniel's presence when he is not there. The ChapStick in the pocket is a detail that makes the garment feel inhabited, like a piece of Daniel's life she gets to carry with her. The hoodie has become a portable version of the safety and warmth she finds in his world.

The Hoodie After the Breakup

In Chapter 34, after Alexis ends the relationship to preserve her family's 125-year legacy at Royaume Northwestern Hospital, the hoodie becomes an object of grief. She has not moved any of Daniel's things. The heart-shaped rock is where he left it, and the last hoodie she stole from him is still draped over her chair. She stands and stares at it, thinking that it would still smell like him, and that she could put it on and climb into bed and imagine he was holding her.

The hoodie now holds a double meaning. It is a source of comfort—she can still imagine Daniel's arms around her. But it is also a source of pain. She wonders if another woman is wearing his hoodies now, and the thought kicks the legs out from under her. The garment that once bridged the distance between them now marks the distance that cannot be closed.

Character and Theme Connections

The hoodie connects directly to several of the novel's central themes.

Comfort and belonging. For Alexis, the hoodie represents the safety she finds in Daniel's world. In Chapter 16, she describes being with him as a finally moment—like arriving at a finish line or coming home. The hoodie is the portable version of that feeling, something she can wear when she is back in Minneapolis, trapped in her family's expectations. This connects to the theme of small-town community and belonging.

Class divide and social status. The hoodie is a working-class garment. Daniel wears hoodies, flannel, and denim; Alexis's world is one of designer clothes and hospital boardrooms. When Alexis's friends visit the B&B in Chapter 16, they dismiss Daniel with class-coded jokes—Gabby calls him outdoorsy, and Jessica says he screams that he can change spark plugs. Alexis cannot tell her friends about Daniel because she knows they would judge him, and by extension her. The hoodie becomes a marker of the class divide and social status Alexis is trying to navigate.

Emotional abuse and recovery. Alexis's relationship with Neil was emotionally abusive—he made comments about her appearance and smell, which her therapist called abuse. The hoodie represents the opposite of that dynamic. Daniel's hoodie smells like him, and Alexis loves that smell. It is a sensory reminder of a man who makes her feel safe and beautiful, in contrast to Neil, who made her feel diminished. This connects to the theme of emotional abuse and recovery.

Self-worth and choosing love. The hoodie also tracks Alexis's growth. Early on, she steals it and hides the relationship, afraid of what her friends and family will think. By the end, she is willing to lose her family legacy to be with Daniel. The hoodie charts that arc—from secret keepsake to openly worn comfort object to, finally, a symbol of what she is willing to fight for. This connects to the theme of self-worth and choosing love and to the pressures of family legacy and obligation.

Study Questions

1. Why does Alexis steal Daniel's hoodie in the first place, and what does Bri's reaction reveal about Alexis's motivations?

Alexis steals the hoodie impulsively during her night with Daniel, before fleeing at dawn. When she tells Bri in Chapter 6, she frames the theft as a practical concern—she should return it in case it has sentimental value. But Bri immediately sees through this, calling the proposed return a booty call. Bri's reaction reveals that Alexis is using the hoodie as a pretext to contact Daniel—a way to reach out without admitting she wants to see him again. The theft is both a keepsake and an excuse, and Bri's teasing forces Alexis to confront what she actually wants.

2. How does the hoodie's meaning change between the first theft and the third theft?

The first theft is impulsive—a grab-and-go keepsake from a night Alexis is trying to process. The second theft, in Chapter 11, is more deliberate; she takes it from the hook by Daniel's door on her way out, signaling that the hoodie has become a habit. By the third theft, in Chapter 24, the hoodie has become a full comfort object. Alexis finds a ChapStick in the pocket, turns the thermostat down so she can sleep in it, and wears it while talking to Daniel on the phone. The progression tracks her growing attachment—from a memento of one night to a way of carrying Daniel with her between visits.

3. What does the hoodie represent in Chapter 34, after Alexis ends the relationship?

In Chapter 34, the hoodie becomes an object of grief. Alexis has not moved Daniel's things—the heart-shaped rock is where he left it, and the hoodie is still draped over her chair. She thinks about how it would still smell like him, and how she could put it on and imagine he was holding her. But the hoodie also becomes a source of pain when she wonders if another woman is wearing his hoodies now. The garment that once bridged the distance between them now marks the distance that cannot be closed—it is both a comfort and a reminder of what she has lost.

4. How does the hoodie connect to the novel's treatment of class and social status?

The hoodie is a working-class garment, and it becomes a marker of the class difference between Alexis and Daniel. When Alexis's friends visit the B&B in Chapter 16, they dismiss Daniel with class-coded jokes—Gabby calls him outdoorsy and Jessica says he screams that he can change spark plugs. Alexis cannot tell her friends about Daniel because she knows they would judge him, and by extension her. The hoodie represents the world Alexis is drawn to but afraid to claim—a world of comfort, warmth, and belonging that her friends and family would dismiss as beneath her. This tension is central to the novel's exploration of class divide and social status.