With just one episode left of the season after this, The Summer I Turned Pretty has started to tie up loose ends in episode seven. So without further ado, let’s jump into everything that went down in “Love Affair.”
Laurel to the Rescue
After Belly’s tear-filled, late-night message Laurel does just what you would expect her to do: she drove all night to get to Cousins and Belly. Unfortunately, when she arrives, things are not quite how she expected them. For starters, the house is empty of all Susannah’s things and it’s completely trashed, leading Laurel to lay into the teens telling them to put it all back and she’s glad Susannah isn’t there to see what they’d done. Then, they reveal to Laurel that they didn’t move the stuff; Julia did when she sold the house, a fact that comes a a genuine shock to Laurel who thought that Susannah had sorted ownership of the house out with Julia before she passed. No one was impressed to hear that Laurel knew that Julia had a claim on the house, and harsh words were aimed her way.
Fortunately, Laurel doesn’t stay the villain for long. She quickly realizes that she has inadvertently been on the wrong side of the whole house issue and makes sure that she does all she can to help save Susannah’s house. We even get a glimpse at how much the house means to Laurel, as when Phoebe Bridgers’ hauntingly appropriate “Summers End” playing in the background she reminisces about one of the last times she visited. Featuring her sitting on the dock with Susannah talking and crying about the little time Susannah has left, this is a bittersweet moment that reminds Laurel that Susannah only ever wanted what was best for Laurel, her kids, and Susannah’s own boys. So, before the episode ends, Laurel makes it a point to remind the Fisher boys that she’s still there for them.
What About the House?
Fortunately for the teens trying to save the house, Laurel’s everything is a lot. For starters, she is ready to talk to Julia and has more details about the whys of what happened between the sisters than the boys ever had. Through a mix of emotional pleading and calm logic, Laurel eventually gets through to Julia about why this place matters so much to those boys. Julia may have terrible memories of this place, and it may seem like Susannah never wanted her there, but that’s simply not true. We find out that, although she’s still bitter about some things, Julia truly regrets not trying harder to connect with Susannah before she died, and she wishes she had been able to force herself onto the plane for the funeral. In the end, all this adds up to one thing: Julia pulling out of the sale of the house.
When Laurel and Julia break the news to the kids, they, of course, immediately want to celebrate. However, Laurel tells them there’s still one obstacle to face: convincing their dad to buy the house. Luckily Laurel has always had a way of making Adam Fisher see things her way. So, when he arrives at the house at her request, she, and Julia, are able to ambush him. Letting him know that they are here to help the kids, not him, the women proceed to attempt to convince Adam to move some money around to buy the house without touching the boys’ trusts. He’s not going for it and even reminds Laurel that the house isn’t hers. That’s when Conrad and Jeremiah step in, and after some emotional sharing about Susannah and some harsh realities about their family, Adam agrees. But he’ll have to sell their house in Boston — a condition the boys happily agree to.
Wrapping up with Skye & Taylor (for now)
It looks like we may have seen the last of both Skye and Taylor for the season, as each of their storylines seemed to wrap themselves up. Skye reconnects with their mom after Julia changes her tune about the house, with the two expressing their pride in each other for making the decisions they did. Although, Julia does make it clear that she didn’t enjoy Skye disagreeing with her. Then, with bridges rebuilt, Skye reveals that they managed to share their first kiss last night, describing Cam Cameron as nerdy and loves whales. Ultimately though, Skye heads away from the house with their mom, but not before Julia promises Conrad and Jeremiah that she’s only a phone call away.
Meanwhile, in an effort to stay out of the family drama that is happening now that Laurel is here, Taylor heads back home. Steven is not happy about this choice but makes it clear just how much he cares for her by insisting that she take his car instead of the bus. While he’s off getting his keys for her, Taylor and Belly talk about the new relationship, Taylor makes one last attempt to convince Belly to come to volleyball camp, and then Taylor reminds Belly that she can be there for the boys without getting her heart hurt again. It’s a bittersweet moment as Taylor drives away from Cousins, but watching her flirt with Steven on her way out saves it from being too depressing.
Conrad & Jeremiah: Brothers Again?
After all the drama between the brothers so far this season, this episode does a lot of heavy lifting to bring some peace back to the relationship and most of it comes from a single scene. After it is confirmed that they will be keeping the house, Jeremiah heads down to the beach to process and Conrad follows. The pair talks through many of their issues. Conrad acknowledges that Jeremiah is still pissed with him, and it’s completely deserved. He made assumptions about how Jeremiah felt because of how it’s always been, but Jeremiah never did anything to change that. Jeremiah acknowledges that he never told Conrad how he felt, but clarifies that he doesn’t want to be the person who’s always smiling and pretending it’s okay anymore — having both Conrad and Belly lay into him in the same night made that clear.
They then come to an accord. They can’t keep going on fighting the way they have. They need to talk to each other. Conrad kicks this new line of communication off by telling Jeremiah that he got into Stanford, but he wasn’t going to go because he will not abandon Jeremiah on the east coast alone. For the moment, Jeremiah says nothing, but once the pair joins the rest of the gang inside, Jeremiah makes up his mind and declares that Stanford is Conrad’s dream and he will be attending — even if they have to stay up all night helping him study to pass his exam tomorrow.
Study Time
The final night in the house, after Steven has begged Laurel to stay an extra night to help Conrad study for his exam, features the core four pulling an all night study session. They all know how important it is — Belly had proofed his application essay five times. So after a quick power nap for the Fishers, they’re off with Belly leading the charge. She’s devised a reward system so that when Conrad studies the boys get burgers and fries, a system that seems to work — at least for a while. Eventually the need for sleep starts to win out, so Belly breaks out the big guns: Susannah’s favorite song and a dance break. Conrad isn’t on board at first, insisting that he doesn’t dance, but eventually The Stokes “Last Nite” gets through to him and he joins in on the fun.
The next morning as they are packing up, Jeremiah reminds them they have one last thing to do before they go: the annual group picture. So they head out to the dock and Laurel makes it happen. Then as the Fisher boys, and Belly, get ready to head to Brown to get Conrad to the exam, they get one more great idea: one last Belly flop for the road . So into the pool she goes. After a joyful moment with all four kids fully clothed in the pool, it’s finally time to leave and Jeremiah and Belly drop Conrad off at Brown reminding him that they believe in him.
A Mother Daughter Conflict
This episode opens up with Laurel frantically waking Belly up out of worry after that awful phone message from the night before. Belly doesn’t remember making the call, but that doesn’t change the fact that she’s now directly facing the issues with her mom that we’ve seen lingering throughout the season. From the start of the conversation she’s faced with the reality of lying to Laurel about where she’s been as Laurel lays into her for her “poor choices.” Ultimately though, the big issue between the mother and daughter comes down to Susannah. Belly knows that Laurel has been upset with her since the funeral but claims that Laurel could never get her for it as much as Belly hates herself. Laurel tells her not to use Susannah as an excuse for her actions, and Belly shoots back that Susannah would never forgive Laurel for abandoning the boys the way she has. Laurel slaps Belly for that.
Belly is shocked. Laurel had never hit her before. Fortunately Laurel shocked herself too, and is quick to regret her decision. So the duo comes together for a special mother-daughter moment of reconciliation on the back steps of the house. Both apologize for everything that was said, and Laurel admits that Belly was right. She has been angry and it’s unfair to Belly, but she’ll try to do better.
The Love Triangle Rides Again
No matter what else has happened throughout the show, it always comes back to the love triangle between Belly, Jeremiah, and Conrad. So it is no surprise that this episode brings it back at full strength.
Early on in the episode Belly and Conrad share an awkward moment as they’re taking out the trash. Conrad thanks Belly for calling Laurel, before asking to talk about the night before. While it’s clear that he is not over Belly, Conrad wants to be sure that she knows that he’s sorry for the way things ended and he truly hopes that Belly does not regret what happened between them — particularly their night together in Cousins. As Vera Blue’s “Mended” plays, Belly reassures him that it hurts to remember, but she could never regret what happened before giving Conrad one last sweet hug. This is one of the only real moments between Belly and Conrad this episode. The only other moment the two share alone is in the middle of their all night study session as Belly follows Conrad out to the pool and ends up reassures him that while he may have messed up — in their relationship, with Jeremiah, and maybe maybe even with school — it doesn’t mean that he’ll do the same next time.
The rest of the episode’s love triangle moments circle around whatever’s happening between Belly and Jeremiah. Their relationship has been central to the whole season, and this episode really focuses on Belly chasing after Jeremiah. From reassuring him that she and Conrad really are over to her learning to leave Conrad out of the picture when they talk, Belly really tries to make Jeremiah comfortable with the idea of them as a couple. In the end, all Belly’s work pays off.
After dropping Conrad off at Brown for his exam, Jeremiah takes Belly over to Finch, where he will be attending that fall and she’s considering for the next year, to show her around. After a montage of flirty moments and an inspirational moment where Jeremiah convinces Belly to push to rejoin the volleyball team, they share an almost kiss before heading back to Brown at Jeremiah’s insistence. Belly is not impressed, and while they are waiting by the car she takes the direct approach, asking if she even has a chance with him. Jeremiah reaffirms what he said that night on the golf course, telling Belly that if he falls for her again, he doesn’t think he can take it if she changes her mind like last time. She reassures him that while Conrad may have been her dream, Jeremiah is her reality. Despite his initial reluctance, the pair kiss and continue to do so, enthusiastically, until Conrad appears and breaks up the moment.
