49 pages • 1-hour read
Mr. Wrong Number
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Chapter 17-EpilogueChapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 17 Summary: “Olivia”
Olivia drinks several glasses of wine before her and Colin’s date. She’s excited to go out with him but doesn’t know what to expect. When he comes to her apartment, they compliment each other’s appearances before heading to the restaurant, Fleming’s.
“Colin”
Colin doesn’t want to tell Olivia that he and his family have gone to Fleming’s countless times over the years. It’s an expensive restaurant and he’s worried that Olivia already thinks he’s pretentious. Outside the door, Colin is shocked when Olivia excitedly greets a passing dog. The dog knocks her over, dirtying her dress. He notices how alive Olivia is and tells her she doesn’t have to worry about her appearance. During dinner, he realizes that Olivia isn’t clumsy and awkward, but simply excited about life.
Colin and Olivia enjoy their dinner. Colin’s grandparents appear at the table nearby and Olivia dismisses herself to the restroom. Colin is shocked when he looks at his phone and discovers she’s texting Mr. Wrong Number from the bathroom, asking if they can talk later.
“Olivia”
Olivia feels better after texting Mr. Wrong Number. They haven’t been communicating as often but she feels guilty keeping up their relationship while seeing Colin. She plans to tell him they can’t talk anymore that night. Back at the table, she notices that Colin’s demeanor seems different. His mood lightens when Olivia reveals that she’s always thought he was attractive. She urges him to reveal if he’s ever thought of her romantically over the years. As they talk, Olivia realizes how much fun they’re having. On the drive home, they agree not to see anyone else while they’re seeing where their relationship goes. Inside the apartment elevator, they kiss. They pull away when a neighbor gets on. Olivia silently considers her and Colin’s relationship. She tells herself that if she can “keep [her] feelings from growing too big” everything will be okay (260).
“Colin”
Colin and Olivia get off the elevator. In the hall, Colin is surprised when Olivia doesn’t invite him in and ends the night instead.
Back at home, he and Jack talk. Colin admits that he and Olivia went out. He then asks about her relationship with Eli. Jack teases him about being insecure but insists he doesn’t know much about Eli. All he knows is that Olivia was madly in love and thought Eli was going to propose on the day she caught him cheating with her best friend.
Chapter 18 Summary: “Olivia”
Olivia falls into a routine over the following weeks. She continues applying to jobs and seeing Colin. When they’re together, she can’t help feeling that their relationship is perfect. One day, she gets a call from Elena Wrigley at Feminine Rage. Olivia applied for their content writing position. Elena has read Olivia’s work and asks if she’d want to write their advice column. She called Glenda, and Glenda spoke highly of Olivia. Shocked and thrilled, Olivia accepts the job. After the call, she shares the news with Colin.
Chapter 19 Summary: “Colin”
Colin invites Olivia over for dinner. Jack is spending the night with his new girlfriend Vanessa, and they have the condo to themselves. While running that morning, Colin realized how much he loves being with Olivia.
Olivia comes over and Colin serves her the pepperoni casserole he made. Over dinner, they talk about her new job. While listening to Olivia, Colin reflects on how perfect their dynamic seems.
“Olivia”
Olivia stays over with Colin at the condo. They climb into bed together and Olivia feels as if they’ve done this many times before. While they’re kissing, Olivia realizes that she’s “madly in love with him” (278).
Olivia wakes up before Colin to get ready for her first day at Feminine Rage. She texts Mr. Wrong Number, telling him that they can’t talk anymore because she’s seeing someone new. She also thanks him for his friendship. While she’s texting, she notices Colin’s phone light up repeatedly. She stares at it, shocked to see her texts on his screen.
“Colin”
Colin wakes up to find Olivia pacing in the kitchen, holding his phone. She demands to know why he’s receiving her messages and why he didn’t tell her he was Mr. Wrong Number. Colin explains that when he found out he was afraid of revealing the truth. Olivia gets even more upset when he admits he’s known she’s Miss Misdial for months. He begs for her to let him explain but she storms out of the apartment.
“Olivia”
Olivia reports for her first day of work. When her coworker starts talking about her relationship, Olivia starts crying. She dismisses herself to the bathroom. Looking at her reflection, she realizes she needs to focus before she spoils another work opportunity.
When Olivia gets home later, she takes the mattress from Colin out of the apartment and wrestles it down the stairs. Colin texts her repeatedly asking to talk. Olivia tells him she’s going to block him. Afterward, she scrolls through their text exchanges and realizes how much their communications have meant to her.
Chapter 20 Summary: “Colin”
Colin meets up with his family for dinner. Upset over Olivia, he gets angry when Thomas confronts him about his life. His mom tries changing the subject by asking about Olivia, who his grandparents mentioned meeting. Colin reveals that they’re no longer together. Thomas takes Colin outside and reprimands him for failing to take his job, living situation, and love life seriously. He insists that working in finance and dating his friend’s sister aren’t signs of being an adult. Colin argues back, insisting he isn’t joining the family business, and leaves.
“Olivia”
Olivia’s first advice column letters for Oh, Olivia! come out. She rereads the letters she wrote, feeling proud of herself. However, she feels upset when she thinks about Colin. She feels more heartbroken over him than she did Eli.
“Colin”
Jack moves out of the condo he shared with Colin’s to move in with Vanessa. Before Jack leaves, he assures Colin that he’s not upset with him for what happened with Olivia. Afterward, Colin reads Olivia’s column, missing her. He writes to Oh, Olivia! asking for advice on his relationship with Olivia.
“Olivia”
Olivia shows Colin’s letter to Sara. The friends discuss whether or not she should contact him. Olivia ends up texting him, asking if he wrote the letter. When he confirms that he did, Olivia isn’t sure if she should forgive him or not.
Chapter 21 Summary: “Olivia”
Olivia runs into Nick at the coffee shop. He apologizes for the Mr. Wrong Number situation and asks her on a date. Colin appears and he and Olivia get into an argument. Nick leaves and Olivia agrees to talk to Colin. He professes his love for her, insisting he’s shocked by how his feelings developed.
“Colin”
Olivia processes Colin’s confession, getting upset and insisting he’s making a joke of her and their relationship. They part ways.
Chapter 22 Summary: “Olivia, Thanksgiving Day”
Olivia goes to her parents’ house for Thanksgiving. Olivia is shocked when Jack reveals that Colin took a different job in Chicago and is selling his condo and moving. He explains that Colin is so heartbroken over their breakup he doesn’t want to live in the same area as her anymore. Desperate to talk to him, Olivia leaves her parents’ house and races to the condo. She stands outside Colin’s door and talks to him, explaining how sorry she is and how much she cares for him. Colin appears behind her. They make amends, profess their love, and kiss.
Epilogue Summary: “Olivia, Two Weeks Later”
Olivia texts Mr. Wrong Number, asking him to send naked photos of himself to her. Mr. Wrong Number texts back. Olivia and Colin laugh at their joke, toss their phones aside, kiss, and profess their love.
Chapter 17-Epilogue Analysis
In the novel’s final narrative sequences, Olivia and Colin learn how to combat The Challenges of Balancing Personal and Professional Goals by overcoming a new series of conflicts. Olivia’s discovery that Colin is Mr. Wrong Number serves as the novel’s climax, and the events that follow act as the descending action. This scene punctures the overarching narrative tension and leads the characters to a personal and romantic crossroads.
The resolution of Olivia and Colin’s misunderstanding brings them back together, cementing their Evolution From Friendship to Romantic Love and conveying a buoyant narrative tone. Before Olivia realizes his connection to Mr. Wrong Number, her relationship with Colin “seem[s] unbelievably perfect” (274). Both she and Colin feel that “[t]hings ha[ve] changed” significantly between them and that these changes have been positive for both of them (270). Colin feels that “everything [is] brighter when Olivia [is] around” and feels determined to make her happy (271). Meanwhile, spending time with Colin “completely obliterate[s] any remaining doubts [Olivia] had” that she was in love with him (278). They’ve grown to appreciate each other not only as lovers, but as individuals with distinct desires, needs, and passions; and Painter makes their deepening connection explicit from each of their narrative points of view as the novel builds toward its climax.
Painter’s climax disrupts this idyllic tone, forcing the lovers to reckon with another conflict. However, unlike their earlier misunderstanding, the growth both characters experience allows them to work through their conflict during their time apart rather than burying their feelings or running away from them. Despite Olivia’s heartbreak over losing Colin, she retains the new confidence she’s built and accepts a job better suited to her talents and passions. At Feminine Rage, she remains determined “to keep [this] dream job” despite her internal unrest (287). Painter makes Olivia’s journey of Self-Discovery During Times of Transition explicit when she “look[s] at [her] reflection in the mirror” at work—an overt symbol of Olivia’s capacity to self-reflect (287). By confronting her physical reflection, she’s also confronting her heart, mind, and spirit, reminding herself that her relationship with Colin is not the sum of who she is. Separating her relationship with Colin from her personal sense of worth allows her the capacity to forgive.
Similarly, Painter emphasizes the ways in which Colin takes charge of his life during their time apart. Although the breakup “wrecked him,” he manages to focus on his job and personal life to stay balanced and strong (315). The novel suggests that by prioritizing their individual well-being, both Olivia and Colin equip themselves to invest in each other’s needs more effectively when they ultimately reconcile. The final narrative sequences demonstrate how clear and open communication can resolve differences and foster lasting, romantic bonds. Once Olivia and Colin open up about what happened between them they discover how much they love one another and learn how to empathize with each other’s experiences.
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