The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han’s ending is right around the corner, and whether you’re Team Conrad or Team Jeremiah you couldn’t go without noticing that everything is changing rapidly. This story isn’t just about which Fisher boy Belly ends up with, it’s about who cares the most, the small details, and the way one realizes that growing up teaches you to pay more attention to the things we once overlooked.
“For me, everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August.”
– Belly
Jenny captures the delicate art of noticing throughout the story between Conrad and Belly’s eyes. From Belly’s perspective, as she’s growing up, she sees how Susannah and Laurel’s friendship evolves mainly with the weight of Susannah’s illness, realizing that love and loyalty often reveal themselves in quiet acts of care. On the other hand, her feelings begin to get altered by her first childhood crush, making her consider just how silence, hesitation, or a glance can carry as much meaning as words.
Conrad, on the contrary, has his own unique way of noticing everything with detail. He struggles with grief but makes himself strong around others because that’s how he copes with the pain and pressure around him. This is the main reason Belly finds him so confusing since, from her perspective, he seems untouchable, calm, and put-together. For this reason, Han shows us that noticing does not always mean speaking; sometimes it means holding back, observing from afar, or protecting others in ways they might not recognize.
“When I look at you, I see forever.”
– Conrad
Since the very beginning, Conrad has always been there for Belly; he has always been very attentive to her every step, despite the distance. He always worried, never stopped doing so, just as he never stopped thinking about her. He was always willing to do anything for her because he doesn’t regret loving her. Jeremiah, on the other hand, only thought about her for his own best interests. He saw Belly as someone who relieved him of the pain of losing his mother, while Conrad saw his future as complete. He always offered her food and helped her run errands for the wedding, despite the deep pain he felt in his heart. He was always willing to risk everything he had just to see her happy.
However, Jeremiah only notices the things that endanger him, put him at risk, or make him uncomfortable. He only focuses on the things that are self centered. One of the reasons he fell in love with Belly was because she replaced his mother and he would always have felt overwarmed by that role in a marriage. With Conrad, it’s different; he had to grow up quickly and struggled to find himself. He’s willing to always take care of her because he’s willing to change for the better of both of them. Conrad is finally healing; he knows Belly needs to find herself, that she’s not ready for eternity, but Jeremiah is still broken.
From the moment Belly decided to go with Jeremiah, she knew she still loved Conrad. In fact, she admitted and accepted that she would never stop loving him. Jeremiah knew this; he knew Belly hadn’t yet healed that wound, but he still decided to be with her to feel equal, or even superior, to Conrad.
Belly may think whatever she wants, but deep down, she knows Conrad is the one for her. He’s the one who’s always there for her, even when she’s with Jeremy, just as Laurel knows and cares for Connie, and he cares for her. Everyone knows it, they’ve always known it, they just ignored it because they thought it would go away, but it never did.
“I loved him more than I hated everything else.”
– Belly
Love isn’t fleeting, much less a game. From the beginning, Conrad gave Belly the moon and the stars. They both know that their love is endless because they always return to each other, even if they didn’t plan to do so. Their love languages are different, yes, but he has shown her the true meaning of feeling loved and valued. The season finale is approaching, and the one thing we should all keep in mind is that Conrad has been the true meaning of “To be loved is to be seen.”