The Bright Years

Lillian sits at the library reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, though she knows she should be working. She is hoping for a promotion at the bank where she works. A man interrupts her, sitting down and introducing himself as Ryan. He explains that he recognizes her from the bank and asks her to lunch.

At the Greek restaurant across the street, Ryan explains that his visits to the bank are for a loan to open an art gallery. He works in a restaurant but dreams of having a space for himself and other artists to make the art they want. Lillian does not open up about her past, but she finds herself drawn to Ryan, particularly after he pays for another man’s food. Before leaving, Ryan gives Lillian his number, and Lillian, wary of love, opens herself up to its possibility.

Lillian and Ryan date for six months before Ryan invites Lillian to meet Elise. Lillian, who lost her parents, becomes annoyed when Ryan complains about how particular Elise can be. To push back, she asks about Barton. Barton has an alcohol addiction, and though Elise and Ryan left him, he still occasionally appears at their home. Ryan yells at Lillian but quickly apologizes, telling her that he loves her. She feels wary when Ryan mentions having a child with her.

At Elise’s home, Lillian feels welcomed and loved by Ryan’s mother. Elise is caring and kind, and Lillian watches the mother and son. She comes to see the depth of their relationship because of their shared experience. Lillian realizes that, compared to Elise, she represents only a brief moment in Ryan’s life. Later, at Lillian’s apartment, she and Ryan make love, and Lillian wonders if she is ready to have a family again. She worries that if Ryan discovers that she already has a child, he won’t want her.

Lillian helps Ryan coordinate the opening of his gallery, and to their surprise, it is a success. After a busy opening night, Ryan proposes to Lillian in the gallery. A year later, they are married at the gallery and go to Galveston for their honeymoon. While in Galveston, they begin to meld their lives together, and Lillian finds a new joy despite her painful past. They want to hyphenate their names but dislike both Brighton-Wright and Wright-Brighton.

When they return home, they begin to incorporate their wedding gifts into their apartment. One night, Lillian notices Ryan looking at their new table, a gift from an aunt, with sadness. He tells Lillian that it reminds him of the table they had when he was a kid, which he drew on. Lillian knows it reminds him of Barton. She comforts him as he cries, though he tries to downplay it, saying that Lillian’s loss of her parents, her mother to cancer and her father in an accident, is worse.

As Lillian comforts him, Ryan tells her that she is his light. After saying this, Ryan suggests they combine their last names into Bright. Lillian loves it, and the two of them spend the night writing their new name on each other. Lillian is happy to once again have love in her life after her failed relationship with Zack Melendez.

The gallery, named Sundance Gallery, is a success, and Lillian works there full-time, coordinating publicity. The first few years of their marriage pass in bliss. One night, Ryan comes home with cowboy boots for Lillian and takes her dancing. While Lillian struggles along, Ryan shows off, teaching others different dances. On their way home that night, he reveals that he and his mother took dance lessons to prepare him for his first dance.

Lillian’s life changes one day when a woman comes into the gallery and hands Lillian her baby while she pays for a photograph. As she holds the child, Lillian feels sick. Ryan, however, is excited, and he hints that they should have a child. Lillian resists, disappointed to find that despite her love for Ryan, she is not ready. After some time, Lillian relents out of guilt, and after four months, she is pregnant. When she loses the pregnancy, she is devastated and feels the pain of her past amplified, remembering her first child.

In 1972, Lillian met Zack Melendez in college. Zack was a musician, always dreaming of a bright future. Lillian swiftly fell in love, reveling in Zack’s charm. After the recent deaths of her parents, her relationship with Zack felt like a new beginning. When she discovered her pregnancy, she was overjoyed. On the day she meant to tell him, however, Zack surprised her, saying he and his band were going on tour, and he thought they should break up. Devastated, Lillian decided not to tell him about their baby.

Now, Lillian stays at home, recovering from the pregnancy loss. Ryan mourns the future he thought they’d have, and Lillian mourns the child she lost. Their relationship falters. One day, Elise comes over and tells Lillian that she also once lost a pregnancy, the day after she and Ryan fled Barton. She never told anyone, and she confides that it was actually this child who gave her the courage to leave.

The gallery is struggling as the economy takes a downturn, but Ryan refuses to relinquish it. Resentment begins to grow between Lillian and Ryan, who feel unable to speak honestly with each other. Months after losing the pregnancy, Lillian finds herself pregnant again. While Ryan is overjoyed, she is terrified of losing this child as well.

In 1974, Lillian delivered her baby and gave him up for adoption. As her life returned to normal, she thought of how she faced an impossible decision, oscillating between feeling as though she should have kept the baby and knowing that she was not prepared. She struggles to continue with school and pay her bills, surrounded by constant reminders of her son.

Now, Lillian gives birth to a healthy girl she and Ryan name Jet, short for Georgette. Lillian is in awe of the baby. She feels simultaneous joy and shame as each new memory made with Ryan and Jet reminds her of what life could have been with her son or the child she lost.

The dynamic between Ryan and Lillian continues to change as they are overwhelmed by their responsibilities. The gallery continues to struggle, forcing Lillian to go back to working at the bank and Ryan to take shifts at a restaurant. One night, as they fall asleep, Lillian feels the need to connect with Ryan, and she tells him about her first child. At first, he feels betrayed that Lillian kept this from him, but he comforts her when he sees the pain she carries. To counteract the guilt she feels, Lillian commits herself to being a great mother to Jet. With all her focus on the baby, though, she doesn’t notice that Ryan is changing.

For the first time in his life, Ryan drinks. At first, it is only a few beers a night, and when Lillian questions him about it, he is defensive and accusatory. He jabs her about keeping secrets from him and assures her that he is not his father. As Jet begins to grow, Ryan’s drinking worsens. Lillian begins to worry but holds on to the memory of the Ryan she first met. One night, when she suggests they buy a house, Ryan throws a beer bottle at her, which she barely dodges. Ryan blames Lillian for not understanding his stress.

The image of Ryan throwing the bottle haunts Lillian, and she takes Jet to stay with Elise. Elise knows Ryan is drinking but does not push Lillian to tell her more. After a few days, Ryan calls and tells Lillian that he is moving out. He promises to provide for Jet, and when they meet at their apartment a few days later, Lillian sees that Ryan took all of his belongings. When he shows up, he is drunk and says the best way for him to protect her and Jet is to leave them. He pushes her, ending the conversation. As weeks go by, Lillian struggles to understand how she can both love and hate these different versions of Ryan.