Brooke and Mitch attend a medical appointment in Athens, Ohio, where an ultrasound confirms Brooke is six weeks pregnant. The doctor is hesitant when she hears about their open-ended international trip, recommending Brooke receive consistent care from a single provider to ensure a safe pregnancy. Instead of feeling joy, Brooke is overwhelmed by the sense that her pregnancy was not supposed to happen this way. With no home or job to return to, she is consumed by fears of miscarriage and other complications. 

Brooke insists that Mitch proceed with their trip to Italy alone, arguing that she will have support from her friends and that he might as well enjoy the trip. Either she will miscarry and the cancelled trip will be wasted, or this might be the last opportunity for him to take an extended trip. 



She secretly fears that if he cancels his plans for her, he will eventually grow to resent her. Though Mitch is reluctant, they agree to postpone a final decision until the following day, both feeling trapped by their sudden change in circumstances.

It is mid-January, and Marie’s teaching semester is about to begin. Lucy will be starting her program at the same time. Marie has lunch with Kyle, updating him about Brooke’s pregnancy and the plan for Mitch to go ahead with their trip. It is still not known when Collins will be able to leave the hospital. Kyle urges Marie to move back in with him and reveals he knows about her “quitting” pact with her friends. He tells her that he thinks it has been destructive and urges her not to take it further. When Marie proposes couples counseling, Kyle agrees only if she moves back home, but insists on virtual sessions, which leads to another fight.

Later, Marie visits Collins in her hospital room and comes close to asking directly if Collins deliberately jumped from the ledge (causing her injuries). Although Marie has not discussed this suspicion with Lucy or Brooke, she wonders if everyone has the same worrying doubt. However, they are interrupted by Lucy’s arrival. Collins deflects questions about her fall, saying she got distracted by the view at the top and “I can’t explain what happened” (148). Two doctors enter the room and reveal shocking news: scans taken for Collins’s injuries revealed a mass in her lungs, and a biopsy has confirmed she has Stage III lung cancer

The doctors explain that cancer treatment cannot begin until Collins has recovered enough from her injuries to endure it, a process that requires graduating from an acute rehab unit. Marie and Lucy promise to support Collins through her recovery no matter what.

At Collins’s insistence, Lucy begins her MBA program at Ohio University. During her first week, she sits in on Marie’s “How to Say No” lecture as an unregistered student. Before class begins, a group of students recognize her from her social media handle, “@lucymayerwrites.” They excitedly inform a stunned Lucy that her blog post, “Why I Love Books Too Much to Keep Writing Them,” has gone viral. The students tell Lucy that she is now, “like, famous” (158).

At the airport, Mitch gives Brooke one last chance to ask him not to go to Italy, but she stands by her decision that he should leave without her. She rationalizes that the time apart will give them both space to process the pregnancy. She also resolves that if she miscarries, she will join him overseas and they can resume their original travel plans. After they share an emotional goodbye, Brooke watches Mitch walk toward the security checkpoint. She can tell that despite his hesitations, he is also excited about the trip, leaving her feeling sad and conflicted.

After teaching her first class of the new semester, Marie takes her sons to dinner. Later, back at the house, Marie’s son, Wade, reveals that Kyle told Connor (her older son) that Collins might die from her illness, and that Connor relayed this to Wade. Wade also admits that he and his brother prefer living at Collins’s house and don’t want to return home to live with Kyle. 

Later, Marie talks with Lucy, who shares her conflicted feelings about her essay going viral and boosting her book sales. Lucy also voices concern that in focusing on Collins’s physical health, they may be missing signs of her severe emotional distress. Their conversation is interrupted when Brooke returns from the airport and, upon seeing them, immediately bursts into tears.

The uncertainty about Collins’s prognosis and setbacks in her recovery are emotionally challenging for all of the friends. One day, Collins sends Lucy the updated passwords for her social media accounts (Collins changed the passwords and concealed them, at Lucy’s request). The encouraging passwords leave Lucy determined to stay positive, although she still has no intention of reactivating the accounts. 

Impulsively, Lucy invites Collins’s neighbor, Travis, to accompany her on a visit to the hospital. During the drive, Travis reveals that he and Collins had a one-night stand shortly before the trip to Hilton Head (where the friends first formed the pact). He explains that Collins immediately regretted it the next morning, calling herself a “lost cause” (178) and acting as if she deserved to be punished. His story culminates in him asking Lucy if she is certain Collins’s fall was an accident, reinforcing Lucy’s own private fears.

Struggling with Mitch’s absence and her own anxieties about her pregnancy, Brooke endures unhelpful phone calls from her mother that leave her questioning her fitness to be a parent. She visits Collins at the hospital and finds her crying alone in a dark room. When Brooke tries to commiserate by saying, “We’re quite a pair, aren’t we?” (186) Collins lashes out, angrily detailing her horrific injuries and sarcastically dismissing any comparison between their situations.

Shamed, Brooke apologizes and says, “This is all my own doing.” (187) Her words trigger a violent reaction from Collins, who screams, “Do you think this is not my own doing? This is all my own damned fault!” (187). A nurse rushes in and asks Brooke to leave. Brooke flees the room.