The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 has all been leading to this moment in episode 8. It’s time for a wedding.
Caution: This post contains SPOILERS for The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3, episode 8.
Everyone who read the books knew that Belly and Jeremiah shouldn’t get married. The problem is, we learned that the outcome in The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 may not be the same as the books, and that had us wondering if Belly and Jeremiah would go through with the wedding.
Taylor calls Conrad and Belly out in The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3, episode 8
The morning after the events of The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3, episode 7, Belly wakes up to a message from Taylor saying that the coast is clear. Only, it’s not all that clear. Conrad is still there, and this leads to him asking Belly to forget everything that he told her on the beach.
She doesn’t want to forget it, but it’s not because she feels the same as him. She’s angry that he would tell her this, and she won’t listen to the fact that there have been moments all summer to prove that she does still have feelings for him.
Taylor is angry at Conrad for saying everything to Belly, and this man is not giving up now. He confesses his feelings once more to Taylor, and it does, in a way, give Taylor something to think about.
You see, she realizes that Belly is losing herself in codependence. She’s given up so much for Jeremiah, including Paris and now Taylor herself. Belly isn’t ready to hear all of this, but there’s no denying that it’s true.
Jeremiah always knew about Christmas
All season, we’ve seen Belly and Conrad keep a secret from Jeremiah about the previous Christmas, as a neighbor had mentioned it. It turns out that Jeremiah always knew all about this, and he had been waiting for Belly to say something to him about it. When she didn’t, he started a fight with her before Cabo, leading to him cheating on her. Now it’s all starting to make sense. Jeremiah would rather sabotage than communicate.
When Conrad hands him a letter from Susannah that she wanted Jere to have on his wedding day, things take a turn for the worse. This was the letter to Conrad, which Conrad genuinely wouldn’t have wanted to give. It turns out that letter included how Belly has been the only person Conrad has ever loved, and now Jeremiah hates his brother even more.
Telling Conrad that they are no longer brothers, Jeremiah then decides to talk to Belly and make it clear that he knows she still has feelings for Conrad. While she denies it, Jere shares that he wants all of Belly, and he can’t have that because of how Belly will always feel about Conrad. There is always going to be something there, and he makes it clear that marrying him won’t erase Conrad.
When Jere also admits that he doesn’t know how not to love Belly, she makes the decision for them both. The wedding is off.
Laurel is there for Belly, while Steven (who Denise is pushing back toward Taylor) is there for Jere. None of them have read their own letters from Susannah for their wedding days, as Conrad doesn’t even glance at his as Jere hands it back to him.
Belly finally makes a decision for herself in The Summer I Turned Pretty
With that, John is left making cancellation calls, and we’re sure that Adam is going to be fuming over the wasted money and opportunity for his business. After all, that’s why he invited so many people Jeremiah and Belly didn’t know, right?
Belly decides it’s time to do something for herself. She books a ticket to Paris, where she continues with her college plans. I thought she’d dropped out, but maybe she hadn’t quite gotten around to doing that? Whatever, at least she’s off to Paris now and spending a year the way she’s wants.
One thing that will hopefully be exciting about The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3, episode 9 is that we’ll get to see some development for Belly. That never really happened in the books, with a short epilogue after the wedding ended, and I always felt cheated out of Belly growing as a person and eventually marrying…I’m not saying here, but you can read my The Summer I Turned Pretty post all about it if you want spoilers. So, I’m looking forward to getting something, along with some growth for Jeremiah and Conrad, as I think all three of them need it.
The Summer I Turned Pretty airs on Wednesdays on Prime Video.
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