45 pages • 1 hour read
It Starts with Us
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Chapters 13-24Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 13 Summary: “Atlas”
Atlas’s friend informs him that his mother has shown up unexpectedly at his restaurant, but because he dreads seeing her, he delays his return to the restaurant. Atlas’s mother reveals that she needs Atlas’s help to find his 11-year-old brother, Josh, who has run away: She faces truancy charges if he does not return to school. Unaware of his brother’s existence, Atlas questions his mother about Josh and discovers that, without Atlas’s knowledge, his mother and brother have been living in Boston for the past 10 years. After his mother mentions his brother’s resentment of Atlas’s absence from his family, Atlas realizes that his brother has been the one vandalizing his restaurants. Atlas’s mother’s lack of concern for his brother’s safety angers him. A call from Lily intervenes, and when Atlas opens the video call, he can tell she’s been crying. He asks for her address to come give her a hug.
Chapter 14 Summary: “Lily”
Lily nervously prepares for Atlas to come over, but when he arrives, they embrace. Atlas divulges his plan to stay overnight at his restaurant to catch the vandal in the act, and Lily gives him her next journal to read. After Atlas leaves, Lily reflects on her growing feelings for Atlas and how much Ryle’s abuse damaged her ability to trust.
Chapter 15 Summary: “Atlas”
That night, Atlas waits for the vandal to show up. He continues to read Lily’s journals until he notices a figure walking up to the restaurant. He greets the figure and immediately realizes that it is his younger brother, due to their similarities. Josh does not believe him when Atlas informs him that he never knew of his existence. Nevertheless, Atlas invites Josh inside to eat. After Josh finishes eating, Atlas invites Josh to come home with him.
Chapter 16 Summary: “Lily”
Lily wakes up the next morning still angry over her argument with Ryle the previous night. Soon after, her mother calls to ask permission to take Emerson for a few hours. Excited to finally have some free time, Lily calls Atlas back and learns of Atlas’s brother and Atlas’s plan to gain custody of Josh.
Chapter 17 Summary: “Atlas”
Atlas senses his brother’s lack of trust in him, but they begin to get to know each other over breakfast. Josh confesses that he has been sleeping in Atlas’s office. When Josh asks Atlas to help him find his father who moved away to Vermont years ago, Atlas reluctantly agrees. At the advice of his attorney, Atlas contacts his mother to alert her of Josh’s location and attempts to convince her to allow Josh to live with him. However, she refuses and orders Atlas to return Josh to her.
Later that day, Atlas drops Josh off at the hotel where their mother is staying. He gives Josh a phone and a credit card to use in emergencies. His mother slaps and yells at Josh, and Atlas intervenes and rushes Josh back to his car.
Chapter 18 Summary: “Lily”
Five days have passed since the last time Lily saw Atlas, and Lily and Allysa catch up at work after a busy week. Allysa questions Lily about Ryle’s hatred for Atlas and about her relationship with Atlas. When Atlas brings lunch later that day for Allysa and Lily, Lily invites Atlas to a wedding.
Chapter 19 Summary: “Atlas”
Chapter 20 Summary: “Lily”
Atlas arrives to pick Lily up for her friend’s wedding and gives her a bouquet of cookies. He helps Lily get dressed for the wedding and notices the heart tattoo on her shoulder that she got as a reminder of him. When Lily shares that Atlas was the inspiration for the tattoo, Atlas reacts in a detached demeanor. Disappointed by his reaction, Lily confronts Atlas, and Atlas recalls when he took Lily to the emergency room after Ryle’s abuse and remembers the bite on her shoulder. Filled with guilt, Atlas now realizes that Ryle bit Lily’s shoulder because of her tattoo. With the misunderstanding cleared up, Lily comforts Atlas, and they share a deep kiss.
Chapter 21 Summary: “Atlas”
Atlas and Lily attend the wedding but leave after just an hour. They return to Lily’s apartment, and Atlas calls Josh and lets him know that he will be home late.
Chapter 22 Summary: “Lily”
Atlas and Lily kiss passionately. They share an intimate moment as Atlas pleasures Lily with his fingers. Lily grows embarrassed when she begins to leak breast milk, but Atlas stops and gives her time to pump. When she goes to tell Atlas goodbye, they kiss again and have sex.
Chapter 23 Summary: “Atlas”
In bed, Atlas confides in Lily about his legal battle to gain custody of Josh. Lily reminds Atlas of the night her father discovered them in bed, and Atlas reveals that he ended up in the hospital after her father beat him and attempted to press charges. After receiving no support from the local officials, Atlas chose to distance himself from Lily to protect her from her abusive father. While he is talking, Atlas notices that Lily has fallen asleep. He writes her a letter saying goodbye and heads home.
Chapter 24 Summary: “Lily”
Lily wakes up the next morning to several missed calls from Ryle and him pounding at her front door. After seeing two wine glasses, Ryle questions Lily about the night before. When she does not lie to him, Ryle grows enraged and increasingly aggressive towards Lily, and Lily feels more confident in her decision to limit Ryle’s time with their daughter. She pushes Ryle out of her apartment and calls her mother to meet her in the park with Emerson.
Lily arrives at the park right as a storm encroaches. Spotting Emerson playing with her mother in the park, Lily takes a moment to read Atlas’s letter to her. In the letter, he expresses his love for Lily and his hopes for their future together. Lily’s mother questions her about her sudden call to meet in the park. Lily shares with her mother what happened with Ryle that morning. It begins to rain as Lily places Emerson back into her car and tries to figure out where to go to avoid seeing Ryle.
Chapters 13-24 Analysis
Atlas’s young brother Josh serves as a foil character who highlights the growth Atlas has made in his own healing journey. Atlas immediately recognizes himself in Josh and feels a kinship to him not only in their shared ancestry but also in their respective traumatic upbringings: Atlas notes “how much we look alike” with the “same jawline, same light eyes, same mouths, down to the unintentional frown” (137). The entry of Josh into Atlas’s life forces him to confront his past in the form of his mother who has not changed since abandoning Atlas. Instantly, Atlas feels protective of his brother and attempts to shield him from the same abuse that threatened Atlas’s life as a teenager: “I’ve known him for half an hour. I’ve known him for a fraction of a day. Yet I suddenly feel like I’ll be protective of him for a lifetime” (141). Now an adult, Atlas steps out of the role of abused child and attempts to build a new family with Josh.
Lily’s healing journey continues throughout this section of the novel. As she and Atlas grow closer, she learns to regain trust. Recognizing the impact Ryle’s abuse as had on her, Lily reflects on how Ryle “took what little trust I had left in men thanks to my father, and he stripped me of it” (125). Lily views her relationship with Atlas as an opportunity “to give back what my father and Ryle took from me” (126). This commitment to her relationship with Atlas and her own growth leads Lily to grow bolder as the novel progresses. When Atlas reacts oddly to her heart tattoo, she does not allow insecurities to fester and asks him what is wrong. Aware of her mistakes avoiding issues in her past relationship, Lily addresses the issues directly because she refuses “to be someone who brushes everything under a rug. I don’t even want there to be a rug” (181). The result of her boldness is a strengthened connection with Atlas. Maintaining their candidness with one another allows their relationship to progress because it is built on trust. Personal growth plays a factor as well: Lily notes how she and Atlas have grown from their first relationship. While their first kiss as teenagers “was made of fear and youthful inexperience,” Lily comments on how their first kiss as adults fills her with hope for the future. Secure in their relationship, Lily no longer feels on edge but ease because she is “exactly where I belong, being loved by Atlas Corrigan” (197).
Lily and Atlas’s relationship and her experiences with motherhood foster a confidence in Lily that allows her to stand up to Ryle. Although previously she struggled with guilt over her decision to divorce Ryle, Lily now follows her instincts as a woman and a mother to protect herself and Emerson. When Ryle explodes after confirming his suspicions regarding Atlas, Lily feels sadness for Ryle’s lack of progress, but she also feels justified in her decision to limit Ryle’s contact with Emerson and sees Ryle’s outburst as “absolute confirmation that I’m making the right choices for her” (207). After confirming her instincts, Lily grows bolder and proclaims “I can’t afford to allow anyone to break me anymore. I have a daughter I need to be whole for” (208). As Lily takes her power back from Ryle, it begins to rain, a symbol of cleansing: Lily has confronted one of her biggest fears and survived. No longer afraid of Ryle’s power over her, Lily feels cleansed of the guilt that threatened to keep her from pursuing a true, loving relationship with Atlas.
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