Opening
A late-night call tips Libby Strout and Jack Masselin from teasing friends into unmistakable romance. Over the following days, Jack defends Libby at real cost, Libby claims public space and freedom, and their first official date tests—and affirms—their trust.
What Happens
Chapter 76: Libby
Jack calls Libby after midnight to “address” their mutual attraction, cloaking the conversation in the safety of hypotheticals. He “hypothetically” wants to hold her hand, take her to a movie and dinner, dance her to her door, and kiss her. Libby mirrors his playfulness step for step, saying yes to each imagined moment as if they’re sketching a future together.
When Jack finally drops the pretense—would she let him kiss her?—Libby answers without hesitation: “No. Definitely.” They stay on the phone for two more hours. When they hang up, Libby lies awake, heart racing, knowing the line between friendship and something more has clearly moved.
Chapter 77: Jack
Across the next eight days, Jack sits at lunch with his friends, sketching robot designs for his brother, Dusty Masselin, while Dave Kaminski and Seth joke around. Seth produces a printed list—“Top Ten Reasons to Date a Fat Girl”—as supposed “help” for Jack’s “situation” with Libby.
Rage spikes. As Seth reads the degrading bullets, Jack’s stomach burns. He rips the paper away, clips Seth on the head, and warns him to “lay off her.” Then he leaves, disgusted—with Seth, with the social script they’ve all been playing, and with his own fear of how others see him. The lunch table fractures; Jack’s loyalty now belongs elsewhere.
Chapter 78: Libby
Libby signs up for Damsels Drill Team auditions and immediately draws fire. Caroline Lushamp confronts her with a sugary, fake smile, stunned that Libby would try out. Libby refuses the script. “Just imagine it—we could be teammates,” she says brightly, pulling Caroline into a hug and flipping the power dynamic on the spot.
Afterward, she tells her friend Jayvee she’s decided against taking the medical test her father suggested. She chooses to trust his judgment—and her own read of her body. The day marks a turn: Libby puts herself forward and doesn’t ask permission.
Chapter 79: Libby
At driver’s ed, Libby gets her first behind-the-wheel lesson with Mr. Dominguez, a stoned Travis Kearns, and an anxious Bailey Bishop. For a girl once confined to her house, gripping the steering wheel feels like touching the horizon. Tears come—joy for the life she’s building, grief for the mother who isn’t here to see it.
On impulse, she merges onto the highway. The car jolts, then loosens; “All Right Now” blasts from the radio and, laughing, even Bailey sings. The road unwinds like a promise. Later at Conversation Circle, Jack officially asks her out for the weekend, sealing the step her heart already takes toward Self-Acceptance and Body Image.
Chapter 80: Libby
Jack arrives for their first real date and faces Libby’s father, Will Strout. Will is protective, blunt about Jack’s past mistakes, and relentless with questions. Jack doesn’t flinch. He owns what he’s done, promises respect, and listens. Will mentions he knew Jack’s father in high school, and something in the room eases.
In the car, Libby imagines future kisses and shared rituals—until Jack drives past every restaurant in Amos. Old fears flare: Is he hiding her? Then he turns onto the highway. “We’re going to Richmond,” he says. “There’s no way I’m taking you to one of the usual dumps in town. Not looking like that.” The words land like a hand held steady—he isn’t ashamed; he believes she deserves more. The night opens.
Character Development
Libby and Jack step from secrecy into public choice, each pushing against the roles others assign them.
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Libby Strout
- Chooses visibility by auditioning for the drill team and saying yes to a public date.
- Claims physical freedom in the driver’s seat and emotional freedom on the phone.
- Confronts lingering insecurities during the drive to Richmond, then reframes them through Jack’s affirmation.
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Jack Masselin
- Moves from private feelings to public commitment, even when it costs him socially.
- Protects Libby against his own friend group, signaling a shift in allegiance and values.
- Faces adult scrutiny from Will with humility and honesty, showing growing maturity.
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Will Strout
- Guards Libby’s well-being with tough questions and clear boundaries.
- Keeps an open door: skeptical but willing to let Jack earn trust.
Themes & Symbols
Jack and Libby learn to look past surfaces—each other’s and their own. The chapters center on Seeing Beyond Appearances: Jack rejects Seth’s objectifying “joke,” and Libby confronts the internalized gaze that makes her fear being hidden. Their date tests a familiar narrative of shame; Jack’s choice of Richmond replaces secrecy with celebration.
Libby’s arc continues to crystallize around self-worth and embodiment. The high of driving folds into her broader journey toward self-acceptance, the way agency over movement reshapes her sense of self. Public steps (auditions, a date) work against the gravity of past Loneliness and Isolation, replacing it with connection and forward motion.
- Symbol: Driving
- Represents liberation and control after years of confinement.
- The highway suggests momentum and possibility; merging is an emblem of re-entering life rather than watching from the shoulder.
Key Quotes
“No. Definitely.”
Libby drops the “hypothetical” mask, choosing clarity over safety. The simple firmness of the line marks a consent-forward turning point and transforms playful imagining into intention.
“Lay off her.”
Jack’s warning to Seth is short, physical, and public. It signals a shift from passive discomfort to active defense, declaring new boundaries for his friendships and his values.
“Just imagine it—we could be teammates.”
Libby answers Caroline’s condescension with humor and a hug, undercutting cruelty without mirroring it. The line reframes belonging as something Libby grants herself, not something others can gatekeep.
“There’s no way I’m taking you to one of the usual dumps in town. Not looking like that.”
Jack challenges Libby’s fear that he’s hiding her; the compliment reframes the out-of-town choice as reverence, not avoidance. It validates Libby’s worth and redirects the narrative from shame to celebration.
Why This Matters and Section Significance
This sequence marks the pivot from secrecy to declaration. The late-night call builds intimacy; the cafeteria scene tests loyalty; the driving lesson and audition restore agency; the date enacts respect in public. Together, they turn private connection into public choice.
The chapters also draw a sharp line between tenderness and the world’s contempt. Jack’s break with his friends and Will’s cautious vetting pressure-test the couple’s resolve. For Libby, the wheel under her hands and Jack’s visible pride answer years of isolation with motion, voice, and recognition—and steer the story toward a romance grounded in dignity and choice.