54 pages • 1-hour read
The Things We Do For Love
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 22-27Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of pregnancy loss and termination, child death, and sexual content.
Chapter 22 Summary
Angie and Conlan kiss and talk. He questions how she could have changed so suddenly, but Angie emphasizes that it has taken time to realize how selfish she was. Conlan stays the night. The next morning, Angie suggests that he take the day off or come back once he feels ready, but Conlan says no. At the restaurant, Angie worries about why Lauren has missed work again and tries to contact her. Maria comments that Lauren has a mother, so Angie decides to wait one more day before doing anything.
At school, Lauren feels like an outsider even with David. She learns from her guidance counselor, Mrs. Detlas, that David told his coach about the baby. Mrs. Detlas is worried about David’s opportunity at Stanford and claims that no pregnant girl has ever graduated from Fircrest. Hinting that Lauren’s scholarship could be revoked, she instructs Lauren to transfer to West End High. Back in class, Lauren is angry that David revealed their secret. When she confronts him, however, David reveals that his father will not talk to him, and Lauren softens.
That afternoon, Mrs. Mauk regretfully tells Lauren that she cannot stay alone in the apartment. Upstairs, Lauren is contemplating her future when Angie arrives. Lauren bursts into tears, revealing that her mother left her and that she is pregnant.
Chapter 23 Summary
Despite her jealousy of Lauren’s pregnancy, Angie listens as Lauren talks about the near abortion and her mother leaving. Lauren explains that she did not say anything before, because she did not want to hurt Angie. She also reveals that although David suggested marriage, she fears that it would jeopardize his place at Stanford and that he would grow to hate her. Angie remembers her family’s advice to be careful, but she cannot abandon Lauren, so she invites the girl to live with her. At the cottage, Angie shows Lauren her room, and Lauren lurches into Angie’s arms, crying; despite herself, Angie hugs her and murmurs in her ear.
When Angie’s family hears the news, they worry about Angie’s mental well-being. Their response escalates after they learn that Lauren is pregnant. They argue for hours until Livvy suggests that only Angie knows what is best. Grateful but unable to bear the arguing anymore, Angie escapes upstairs. Maria follows, expressing only worry and a mother’s love. Angie promises to be careful and vows that she is stronger than before.
Chapter 24 Summary
As Lauren gets ready for her first day at West End High, she drops an earring. Retrieving it from under the bed, she discovers a box of photographs from Angie’s childhood. She sees pictures of a man who she instantly knows is Angie’s father. When Angie knocks on the door, she returns the box beneath the bed.
Downstairs, Angie asks why Lauren is in regular clothes. When Lauren explains, Angie tells her to put on her uniform. Soon, they are in the counselor’s office of Fircrest with an irate Angie acting as Lauren’s mother. When she threatens a lawsuit and suggests that her ex-husband could write a headline about a Catholic school expelling a pregnant girl, Mrs. Detlas flounders. Angie demands that Lauren finish the semester at Fircrest, at which time she can graduate. After further threats by Angie to contact a Catholic cardinal, Mrs. Detlas acquiesces. As Angie and Lauren leave, they laugh at Angie’s fibs, and Lauren feels stronger with Angie in her corner.
Driving home, Angie worries about Lauren. Her cell phone rings; it is Conlan, asking to meet for lunch. She agrees, and as they eat, Angie thinks of Lauren but does not mention her. Conlan shares that he got a book deal, so they celebrate. After the meal, they kiss. Angie wants to talk, but he insists that they go to his place first. There, they immediately go to the bedroom.
Chapter 25 Summary
Conlan senses that something is wrong. When Angie tells him about Lauren, he storms into the bathroom. When he emerges, he is less angry but insistent that she has not changed. He reminds her that they once planned to adopt a teenager’s baby and that their plans fell through. Angie pleads with him that this is different, and she urges Conlan to meet Lauren. He refuses.
Meanwhile, Lauren finds herself ostracized and a source of gossip. Her friends talk about the pregnancy, and someone says that David mentioned adoption. Lauren realizes that David will be able to leave this all behind him. When they are alone, she learns that his father set up a meeting with a lawyer to discuss adoption. Even though David says he loves her, the words sound wrong.
That night, Lauren tells Angie that she would not be able to handle David no longer loving her. Angie empathizes, noting that love is complicated. Then, she talks about Sarah, the teenager whose baby she and Conlan planned to adopt. Angie insists that this is different because she cares about Lauren. Sometimes she imagines that she is Lauren’s mother, and Lauren confesses that she wishes the same.
On Christmas Eve, Lauren and Angie meet the DeSaria family downtown, which is teeming with people. Lauren is swept into the hubbub and feels like she belongs. The Christmas lights switch on, and it is magical. They wander the town square before going to midnight mass. It begins to snow. When they get home, Conlan is there.
Chapter 26 Summary
Inside, Angie, Lauren, and Conlan play cards. Conlan eventually softens toward Lauren, and everyone has fun. Because she is interested in journalism, he offers to bring her to work with him. When Lauren takes a call from David, Angie asks why Conlan is there. He responds that she is family. Conlan worries that Angie is getting hopeful again, but they agree to take their relationship one day at a time, and Conlan stays the night.
The next morning, Angie invites Conlan to her mother’s house. He gives her an angel ornament, and she responds by giving him her wedding ring so that he can decide what to do with it. At the DeSarias, everyone is thrilled to see Conlan. Once the family gathers around the tree, an overwhelmed Lauren receives several gifts. Angie exclaims when she opens Lauren’s gift to her: a frame filled with family pictures, including many of Angie’s father. Maria, too, is overcome with emotion.
Christmas dinner is boisterous, the opposite of what Angie expected without her father. Conlan admits that Lauren is wonderful, but he still worries; Angie assures him that her “heart is big enough to lose a piece now and then” (257). Suddenly, Livvy announces that she is expecting a baby, but her words do not hurt Angie as they once would have.
Back at the cottage, Lauren waits for David, who arrives with roses. Lauren gives him a St. Christopher medal to protect him when he goes to Stanford. He gives her earrings. When they talk about adoption, Lauren realizes that their relationship may not survive but agrees to talk to the lawyers.
Chapter 27 Summary
With exams approaching, Lauren prepares to graduate. She is anxious about an upcoming meeting about adoption: When they arrive at David’s house, she bursts into tears as the lawyer speaks. Mr. Haynes is gruff, but his wife gently outlines the benefits of adoption. Lauren sees that David will support her no matter what, but she is worried about ruining his life, so she agrees to think about adoption. Later, Lauren asks Angie how she handled the loss of Sophia. Angie says that although the pain persists, it has lessened. Lauren reveals the pressure on her to opt for adoption, and Angie reminds her that she is not alone.
On Valentine’s Day, Conlan sweeps Angie off her feet and drives her to the beach. As they lie together by a fire, he asks about their future. When Angie urges him to enjoy the moment, he finally sees how much she has changed. Weeks pass, and Angie wakes one morning from the baby dream but does not cry. Later that morning, Lauren has a doctor’s appointment. At the clinic, Angie grapples with her swirling emotions. Afterward, however, the DeSarias take Lauren shopping for maternity clothes; even though it is hard, Angie wants to be there for Lauren.
Chapters 22-27 Analysis
Angie’s reflections highlight the theme of The Quest for Maternal Fulfillment. When Angie learns that Lauren is pregnant and that Lauren’s mother left her because of this, she thinks, “It had, over the years of her infertility and losses, occurred to her often that motherhood was too random. Too many women that shouldn’t raise a child were granted that gift, while others lived with arms that felt empty” (219). Angie is in the latter group, and the situation brings home the unfairness of it; neither Lauren nor her mother wants to be a mother, and Lauren’s mother is clearly unfit for it. However, Angie has now healed sufficiently that she can set aside her inner conflict to help Lauren, concluding that while she might “never be a mother; that [doesn’t] mean she [can’t] act like one” (220). This reflection, that motherhood is not merely biological, marks Angie’s character development. She finally grasps that she can feel whole without bearing a child, provided she can care for others.
Angie’s reflections also fuel the theme of Embracing Grief to Heal. When Livvy announces her pregnancy, Angie is even able to smile: “[T]he pain was there, of course it was, lodged in her heart like a piece of glass. And the envy. But it didn’t hurt as much as before. Or maybe she’d finally learned to handle the pain” (258). Healing does not mean that the pain ever goes away, as Angie notes in her simile comparing it to glass that cannot be removed from her heart. However, by confronting her grief head-on, she has learned to accept it and move forward. Her baby dream underscores her new mindset, as Angie recognizes that despite the pain, she no longer cries in the aftermath of these visions. She concludes that “there would simply be days like this—nights like the one she just endured” (271). Grief has become part of the fabric of her life—even routine.
Ultimately, Angie gets to a place where she can also help Lauren deal with heartache. When talking to Lauren about her past, Angie shares her father’s advice: “[T]his too shall pass. Life has a way of going on, and you do your best and move with it. A broken heart heals. Like every wound, there’s a scar, a memory, but it fades” (267). Comparing a broken heart to a wound with a scar, Angie suggests that time does not eliminate the pain but leaves a reminder of it. Yet, a scar also represents the healing process, the simile suggesting how one can continue to live with grief.
Angie’s relationship with Lauren also demonstrates The Transformative Power of Love. On Christmas Eve, when Conlan arrives, the tension gradually eases. At the end of the night, Lauren laughs, “a young girlish sound full of hope” (250). Her joy contrasts with the worry she normally displays. Additionally, she is described as young and girlish, emphasizing that the love that Angie, and now Conlan, shows her has allowed her to embrace her youth instead of assuming adult responsibilities. The gift exchange the next morning further underscores Lauren’s character development. As Lauren takes in Angie’s and Maria’s reactions to her present, her “smile seem[s] to be taking over her face. She [can’t] rein it in” (256). The impact of being included in this intimate family moment, being loved and giving love, physically transforms Lauren just as it has transformed her emotionally, as evidenced by the fact that she allows herself to be vulnerable with the DeSarias. Moreover, the support she receives also enables her to give support. With her gift for Angie—family photos—Lauren demonstrates that she is not only thinking about herself and her own pain but focusing on others, too.
Unlock all 54 pages of this Study Guide
Get in-depth, chapter-by-chapter summaries and analysis from our literary experts.
- Grasp challenging concepts with clear, comprehensive explanations
- Revisit key plot points and ideas without rereading the book
- Share impressive insights in classes and book clubs