Dr. Adam Carlsen is Olive’s love interest and one of the top biologists in the world. He has a reputation for being rude and aloof, and Olive describes him as “ridiculously intimidating with dark eyes and even darker hair” (11). Combined with his large physical stature, Adam comes across as intimidating, which he shows in the harsh way he interacts with his grad students and fellow faculty members. The narrative eventually reveals that this harshness echoes the emotional abuse Adam received from his own academic mentors, putting him at risk of perpetuating the issue of Systemic Inequality in Academia. 

However, thanks to Olive’s influence, the round and dynamic character experiences significant growth. She helps him to become more conscious of how he exercises his authority. Adam has been pining after Olive since they met in the Sanford lab bathroom about three years before the story’s main events. He treats her with gentle kindness, offering emotional and the occasional monetary support. Olive brings out Adam’s lighthearted side. He only ever smiles around her, revealing the significant effect she has on him. Adam’s past with his grad school advisor mirrors the trouble Olive faces with Tom in the later chapters. Both have experienced loneliness and abuse, and sharing those experiences brings them closer together.

Tom Benton, a colleague of Adam’s who heads Harvard’s biology lab, is the novel’s primary antagonist. Tom looks like the all-American good guy with blonde hair and a boyish grin, and there is “a smooth charm to him” (85). While Tom’s outward appearance is appealing, he is dominated by jealousy and fear within. He emerges as a key figure in the theme of Systemic Inequality in Academia because he bullies anyone he can lord power over. This gatekeeping is motivated by his feelings of inadequacy despite his prestigious reputation. than deal with his fears, he takes out the anger they cause him on others to build himself up. Tom’s presence also personifies the often-toxic white male academic atmosphere found in higher level academia. His harassment towards Olive highlight the abusive authority figures that persist in academia, preventing a truly diverse expansion of knowledge. By having Tom face consequences for his actions, including losing his coveted position at Harvard, the author offers encouragement that the systemic toxicity the antagonist represents can be overcome.

Anh is one of Olive’s best friends and a fellow graduate student in the program. The Vietnamese woman heads a group for BIPOC women on Stanford’s campus and throws herself wholeheartedly into everything she does, modeling the perseverance needed to overcome Systemic Inequality in Academia. Described by the protagonist as “beautiful and fierce” (191), Anh is the first person who Olive has felt connected to since her mother’s death. As a result, Olive will do anything to make sure Anh is happy. This leads to the fake-dating plot when Olive becomes convinced that Anh will only pursue a romantic relationship if she believes Olive has moved on from her ex-boyfriend. Although Anh is a minor character, she exerts a major influence on the story by offering Olive consistent emotional support and by catalyzing the central romance.

Malcolm is Olive’s roommate and other best friend. While Olive and Anh throw themselves completely into academia, Malcolm manages “to have a life outside of grad school” (62). He foils Olive’s fierce dedication to her work. Later, when he gets involved with Holden, Malcolm mirrors Olive as a student who’s in a relationship with a professor. Malcolm demonstrates strong interpersonal and emotional intelligence in his romance and friendships, illustrating the author’s message about The Value of Emotional Intelligence.

Holden is a professor at Stanford and Adam’s oldest friend. After seeing Holden and Adam together, Olive realizes “Holden was Adam’s Anh” (184), the person in Adam’s life he can turn to for anything. Holden offers Olive advice about Tom and Adam, and by the end of the book, he is also someone Olive can turn to if she needs anything.

Jeremy is Olive’s ex-boyfriend and the secondary reason for the fake-dating plan. To show Anh that she is completely detached from Jeremy, Olive pretends to date Adam, setting the events of the novel into motion. Jeremy serves to connect the narrative to Olive’s past relationships, many of which were lackluster due to her failure to connect with them. Jeremy represents Olive’s fear of confronting her feelings, a fear that Adam eventually helps her to overcome.