Chapter 11: The Palm Springs Trip Begins – Summary 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.

Summary

Poppy and Alex land in Palm Springs and pick up a rental car from a Facebook group—a dilapidated Ford Aspire. During a shared cab ride, they pretend to be newlyweds for the amusement of a honeymooning couple. On the road, Alex surprises Poppy by using portrait mode on his phone, and they banter about his unchanged habits. The drive sparks a painful memory for Poppy: a night during junior year of college when she confessed to Alex the bullying she endured at Linfield—from gum in her hair to the cruel nickname “Porny Poppy.” Alex listened without judgment and still defends her today. At the Desert Rose apartment, they discover the studio has only one bed (a pullout chair). The oppressive heat and construction noise compound their awkwardness. The chapter ends with them deciding to head to the pool, but the tension over sharing a room looms.

Key Events

Poppy and Alex land in Palm Springs and retrieve the rental Ford Aspire, arranged through a women’s online travel group.
In the cab to pick up the car, they share a ride with a honeymooning couple, “Wifey” and “Hubby.” Poppy impulsively pretends she and Alex are also on their honeymoon.
Alex uses portrait mode on his phone to take Poppy’s photo, a small change that surprises her.
On the highway, they joke about the car’s lack of air-conditioning and its smell, and Alex’s cautious driving.
Poppy has an extended flashback to a college sleepover where she finally told Alex about her years of being bullied for her clothing, her braces, and a false sexual rumor.
Alex verbally defends Poppy, saying he would “fucking waste” any student who called her “Porny Poppy.”
They arrive at the Desert Rose apartment complex in blistering heat, only to find the studio has one bed—a pullout chair—instead of the promised two.
Poppy tries to claim the chair, but Alex insists she take the real bed, citing her history of migraines.
Construction sheeting and noise from overhead ruin the balcony view, and the thermostat was set to 80°F.
They decide to go to the pool to escape the tension, but the awkwardness about changing in the small space remains.

Character Development

Poppy

Poppy opens up about her past more fully than she has in years. The flashback to the sleepover reveals how much she values being seen and accepted by Alex. She acknowledges that pride ruined their friendship before, so she consciously tries to say things that need to be said. Her joke about Ohio reveals her lingering fear of hurting Alex, and she immediately backtracks. Poppy is vulnerable but committed to making the trip work.

Alex

Alex shows subtle growth: he knows how to use portrait mode, which Poppy treats as a radical change. Yet he still wakes at 5:30 a.m. and goes to the same gym, reinforcing his resistance to change. He is protective of Poppy, both in the past (listening to her story) and the present (offering to fight her bullies and insisting she take the real bed). His annoyance at the single bed hints at his own anxiety about the trip.

Themes, Symbols, and Motifs

Transformation vs. Stasis: Poppy’s haircut and Alex’s phone feature represent small changes, but the chapter questions whether people can truly reinvent themselves. Poppy wants Alex to have changed (to fix their friendship) but also wants him to stay the same (the person who knows her).
The Comfort of Being Known: The flashback underscores that Alex’s acceptance of Poppy’s past is what made him her safe place. The present awkwardness threatens that comfort, and they struggle to reclaim it.
Vulnerability and Secrecy: Poppy’s high school story—and her reluctance to revisit Linfield—shows how trauma shapes her. The single bed forces intimacy that neither is ready for.
The Car as a Metaphor: The “aspirational” Ford Aspire, with its broken AC and weed smell, symbolizes the imperfect, fragile nature of their repaired relationship.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter establishes the central conflict of the Palm Springs trip: physical proximity in a studio apartment with one bed mirrors the emotional closeness Poppy and Alex are both craving and avoiding. It also deepens their backstory by revealing Poppy’s bullied adolescence and Alex’s role as her witness and defender. The flashback anchors the reader in why their friendship matters—and what is at stake if they fail to reconnect.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Poppy pretend she and Alex are on their honeymoon when the cab couple asks?
Poppy defaults to a playful game they have played before—inventing personas and stories together. It eases the awkwardness of their first minutes of the trip and lets them slip back into an old habit that once brought them joy. The lie also allows her to physically touch him (linking arms) without having to explain their real history.

2. How does Poppy’s high school flashback affect her behavior during the chapter?
The memories make Poppy more aware of how much Alex’s acceptance means to her. After the flashback, she is careful not to offend him (she immediately apologizes for the Ohio joke) and she tries to take the worse sleeping arrangement to spare him discomfort. Her vulnerability makes her more eager to please him and to avoid the pride that ended their friendship.

3. What does the argument over who sleeps on the pullout chair reveal about their relationship?
On the surface, it shows they still care for each other’s well-being—Alex doesn’t want Poppy to get a migraine, and Poppy doesn’t want Alex to be uncomfortable. Underneath, the argument exposes their mutual anxiety about intimacy: sleeping close to each other is unavoidable, and neither knows how to handle it. The pullout became a symbol of their current, unsteady state.

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