Chapter 16: Monday Summary & 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

Before her Monday therapy appointment, Phoebe goes to the Santa Monica Pier beach alone. She recalls a pivotal memory from the summer after graduation: Jonathan pushed her to approach a teacher, Cheryl Groff, at Brentwood Friends Academy, leading to her job. While digging in the sand hoping to find a plastic piece as a sign about reconciling with Jonathan, she encounters Finn, who has just finished surfing. They talk, and Finn steps on a plastic shard, which Phoebe secretly takes as the sign. At therapy, Phoebe admits to Sandy about the fight with Jonathan and her unanswered texts from Matthew. Sandy observes that Phoebe spent the session on Finn and suggests her focus might be avoidance. Phoebe insists her connection with Finn is real and promises something will happen soon.

Key Events

Phoebe spends her pre-therapy hour at the beach under the Santa Monica Pier, reminiscing.
She recalls the summer day when Jonathan encouraged her to speak to teacher Cheryl Groff, which resulted in her job at Brentwood Friends Academy after Phoebe calmly mediated a sand-throwing incident between two children.
Back in the present, Phoebe frantically digs holes in the sand, looking for a piece of plastic as a sign that her friendship with Jonathan will be okay.
Finn approaches, in a wetsuit and carrying a surfboard, and they have a conversation. He reveals he is twenty-four, fresh out of college, and from a military family that moved frequently.
Finn steps on a piece of plastic and dismisses it; Phoebe secretly keeps the piece, interpreting it as the sign she was seeking.
In therapy, Phoebe spends most of the session recounting her afternoon with Finn, only at the end mentioning the fight with Jonathan.
Sandy notes the imbalance and suggests Phoebe’s focus on Finn may be a way to avoid dealing with her issues with Matthew and Jonathan.
Phoebe promises Sandy that something significant will happen at the upcoming Fall Ball or Noah’s birthday party.

Character Development

Phoebe Berman: This chapter reveals Phoebe’s tendency to seek external validation (the plastic piece as a “sign”) and to use new relationships (Finn) as a distraction from older, more painful ones. Her memory of Jonathan’s encouragement shows how much she once relied on his push to take risks; now she is avoiding him entirely. In therapy, she is partially honest but still defensive when Sandy challenges her motives. Her determination to “act like everything’s fine” with Jonathan indicates a coping mechanism of avoidance through forced normalcy.

Finn: Appears as a relaxed, younger man comfortable in his own skin (surfing, loose-limbed). He is unaware of the complex web of Phoebe’s current troubles. His casual comment that “age doesn’t mean a thing” hints at his openness, but also at Phoebe’s potential self-consciousness about their five-year age gap.

Sandy (therapist): Continues to be a perceptive, gentle challenger. She directly names Phoebe’s “fixation” on Finn as possibly avoidant, pushing Phoebe to reflect on why she is avoiding Matthew and Jonathan.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

The plastic piece as a sign: Phoebe desperately wants a tangible token to assure her that her friendship with Jonathan can be mended. The broken bucket piece that Finn finds becomes that symbol, allowing her to believe in a positive outcome without doing the work of actually reaching out to Jonathan.
The beach as memory repository: The specific spot under the Santa Monica Pier holds powerful memories of Jonathan and a turning point in Phoebe’s career. Returning there shows her clinging to a past when she and Jonathan were close.
Avoidance through new romance: Sandy’s observation that Phoebe fixates on Finn while avoiding Matthew and Jonathan highlights a recurring pattern: when old relationships become difficult, Phoebe turns attention to a novel, less complicated connection.
Honesty in therapy vs. everyday lies: Phoebe admits she lies easily to herself and others but tries not to lie to Sandy. Yet even in therapy, she deflects and reframes her motives, showing that true honesty is still a struggle.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 16 deepens the reader’s understanding of Phoebe’s psychological patterns: her reliance on superstitious signs, her habit of burying conflict beneath new distractions, and the central role Jonathan played in her career success. The contrast between the hopeful, action-oriented memory with Jonathan and her current passive, anxious beach-digging underscores how far their friendship has deteriorated. Sandy’s intervention plants the idea that Phoebe’s crush on Finn may be more about escape than genuine connection, setting the stage for possible self-awareness or conflict in upcoming chapters. The chapter also places Finn and Phoebe in a romantic light just as the Fall Ball approaches, raising expectations for a pivotal moment.

Study Questions and Answers

Why does Phoebe decide to look for a plastic piece in the sand, and what does she hope it will mean?
She wants to find a token that reminds her of the plastic shell Katie gave her years ago. She tells herself that if she finds something, it will be a sign that everything will be okay between her and Jonathan. The search is an attempt to gain reassurance without directly confronting Jonathan.
What does Sandy observe about Phoebe’s choice of topics during their therapy session, and what concern does she raise?
Sandy notes that Phoebe spent nearly the entire session talking about Finn, even though she is currently having issues with both Matthew and Jonathan. Sandy suggests that Phoebe’s “fixation” on Finn might be coming from an “avoidant place”—a way to shift her focus away from the more difficult relationships in her life.
How does the flashback to the beach with Jonathan serve to contrast with Phoebe’s present-day actions?
In the flashback, Jonathan actively pushes Phoebe to take a risk by talking to Cheryl, leading to her dream job. In the present, Phoebe is digging alone in the sand, hoping for a sign rather than doing something proactive to repair her friendship. The memory shows a time when Phoebe was willing to act on Jonathan’s encouragement, whereas she now avoids reaching out to him.