Chapter 2: Aubrey — 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

The chapter opens at the Ashland Memorial Recreation Center, where Aubrey Story is competing in her final swim meet of the season. She finishes seventh out of eight in the 200-meter event—her worst result ever—but instead of feeling devastated, she feels a spark of anger directed at Coach Matson. Aubrey has decided she will never swim for Ashland High again; she only attended this meet so the team wouldn't have to forfeit.

After the race, Aubrey texts her boyfriend Thomas, claiming she's sick, and asks him to meet her at the door. She slips away while her teammates are focused on the relay, briefly imagining what it would be like to push Coach Matson into the pool before dismissing the fantasy. Thomas arrives, dressed in the Trail Blazers jersey Aubrey bought him. They've been dating since eighth grade and recently marked their four-year anniversary. Thomas is wary of her claim of illness, noting she's rarely sick, and he's reluctant to get too close because she's wet.

During the drive home, Aubrey checks the group chat with her cousins Milly and Jonah. They're discussing travel plans for their summer at Gull Cove Island, where their grandmother has summoned them to work. Jonah is openly resentful, complaining that he's missing a competitive science camp and describing the summer as a minimum-wage job for a grandmother who hates their parents. Milly pushes back on his negativity, and Aubrey stays out of the argument, noting that confrontation isn't her thing.

Milly then sends Aubrey a private message asking if Jonah is a total ass, and Aubrey agrees with a grin. She reflects on what she knows about her cousins: Milly, who is white and Japanese and looks more like a Story than Aubrey does, was easy to find on social media. Jonah, on the other hand, has almost no online presence—his Facebook profile picture is the DNA symbol, he has only seven friends, and he hasn't accepted Aubrey's friend request.

Aubrey also reflects on her family history. Her father, Adam Story, used to call himself and his siblings the Four As: Adam, Anders, Allison, and Archer, born a year apart. Adam was the golden-boy athlete, Anders the brilliant eccentric, Allison the reserved beauty, and Archer the charming jokester. Aubrey remembers a visit from Uncle Archer shortly after the family moved to Oregon, when he helped her build a Lego town before vomiting into her toy chest—something she only recently realized was because he was drunk.

Thomas pulls into Aubrey's driveway but declines to come inside, saying he has things to do. When Aubrey leans in for a kiss, he pulls back, claiming he doesn't want to get sick. He drives off quickly, leaving Aubrey with an uneasy feeling.

Inside, Aubrey finds her father in his author chair, reading his own novel, A Brief and Broken Silence, which he rereads at least once a year. The book was published almost ten years ago and was well reviewed but not a blockbuster. Her father was offered a contract for a second novel but has never written it; he hasn't had any other job since Aubrey was in grade school. Aubrey used to believe he got paid for reading books, but she now knows he doesn't get paid at all.

When Aubrey asks where her mother is, her father says she's taking some time and spending the afternoon with Aunt Jenny. He adds that this is hard on all of us, which strikes Aubrey as petulant and resentful. She wants to laugh at him and throw his book at his head, but she doesn't—just as she didn't push Coach Matson into the pool.

The chapter ends with Aubrey retreating to her bedroom, reflecting on the revelation from the previous day: she learned that her father is capable of lying. For years, he insisted that he and his siblings did nothing to justify their grandmother's estrangement, that she was cold and capricious. But now Aubrey doesn't know what to believe anymore.

Key Events

Aubrey finishes seventh out of eight in the 200-meter swim, her worst result ever, and decides to quit the team
She lies to Thomas about being sick to get a ride home
Milly privately texts Aubrey about Jonah's behavior, and Aubrey agrees he's difficult
Aubrey learns her mother is taking time and spending the afternoon with her aunt
Aubrey reflects on learning the previous day that her father can lie
Thomas declines to come inside and leaves quickly, making Aubrey uneasy

Character Development

Aubrey is introduced as someone who avoids confrontation—she doesn't push Coach Matson into the pool, doesn't argue with her father, and ghosts the group chat argument. But internally she's seething. Her anger at Coach Matson, her frustration with her father, and her growing disillusionment all point to a character on the edge of change. Her excitement about connecting with Milly suggests she's ready for new relationships, and her view of Gull Cove Island has shifted from weird and unwelcome to sweet salvation—an escape from her fractured home life.

Adam Story is revealed as a man living on past success. He rereads his own novel annually, hasn't written the promised second book, and has no other job. More importantly, Aubrey has discovered he's a liar, which undermines everything he's told her about the family's estrangement from Gran.

Thomas is distant and evasive in this chapter. He declines to come inside, avoids a kiss, and leaves quickly—small signs that Aubrey notices but doesn't fully process.

Milly comes across as funny and direct, willing to privately criticize Jonah and bond with Aubrey. Jonah is angry and resentful, complaining about the summer and missing his science camp.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Deception and broken trust are central. Aubrey lies to Thomas about being sick, but the bigger deception is her father's—she's just learned he can lie, which calls into question everything he's said about the family's estrangement from Gran.

Appearances vs. reality runs throughout. Aubrey's father presents as a successful author but hasn't written in years. The family's Four As mythology—glamorous, mysterious, tragic—is undercut by the reality of a drunk uncle and a father who can't finish his book.

Failed ambitions appear in both Aubrey's swim career (her worst finish, her decision to quit) and her father's stalled writing career.

Escape is a motif: Gull Cove Island, once unwelcome, now feels like salvation to Aubrey. The pool itself is a place she'd stay down forever if she could—a desire to disappear.

Family legacy is present in the birthmark Aubrey shares with Gran, a physical connection to a grandmother she's never met, and in the Fifth A identity she once embraced.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter establishes Aubrey as a central narrator and sets up the emotional stakes for the Gull Cove Island summer. It reveals the fracture in her family—her mother's absence, her father's deception—and plants the mystery of what the Story siblings actually did to earn their mother's estrangement. The chapter also introduces the cousin dynamics that will drive much of the novel's tension: Milly and Aubrey's budding alliance, and Jonah's resentment. Aubrey's discovery that her father can lie is the chapter's most important beat, because it means the family's official story—that nothing happened—can no longer be trusted.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Aubrey decide to quit swimming, and what does her reaction to her worst finish reveal about her state of mind?

Aubrey finishes seventh out of eight in the 200-meter, her worst result ever, but instead of being devastated, she feels anger toward Coach Matson. She's already decided to quit the team; she only attended so the team wouldn't forfeit. Her reaction shows she's emotionally detached from something that once mattered to her, and her anger is displaced—she's really angry about her father's deception and her family's collapse.

2. What does Aubrey's father's behavior in this chapter reveal about him?

Adam Story is still rereading his own novel, which was published almost ten years ago and wasn't a blockbuster. He was offered a contract for a second book but never wrote it, and he hasn't had another job since. He presents himself as a victim of his mother's unfair treatment, but Aubrey has just learned he's capable of lying, which makes his version of events suspect. His comment that this is hard on all of us strikes Aubrey as self-pitying rather than genuine concern.

3. How does the chapter set up the summer at Gull Cove Island?

The chapter establishes that all three cousins are being sent to work on the island for the summer, and that none of them is thrilled—though Aubrey has come to see it as an escape from her home life. Milly and Aubrey are beginning to bond, while Jonah is openly resentful. The mystery of why Gran cut off her children is reinforced by Aubrey's realization that her father may have lied about what happened.