Here’s Exactly How The ‘Summer I Turned Pretty’ Books End (In Case You Want Show Spoilers)

The Summer I Turned Pretty is back for it’s third and final season, and it’s making a huge splash online already. When the first few episodes dropped, viewers were immediately pulled into the drama (which includes cheating, a marriage proposal, and, most importantly, a love triangle including brothers), but there’s really only one question on our mind:

Who is Belly Conklin going to end up with?

Of course, that’s directly related to the love-triangle-including-brothers in question. In the show, Belly (played by Lola Tung) can’t seem to make up her mind between her first love, Conrad Fisher (Chris Briney), and her best friend, Jeremiah Fisher (Gavin Casalengo). Not only are Conrad and Jeremiah brothers, as I mentioned before, but they’re also the sons of her mother’s best friend, upping the stakes between the characters—because at the end of the day, there isn’t just love on the line. There’s also family, friendship, and, of course, a beloved beach house.

So, should you be Team Conrad? Or Team Jeremiah? If you want some insight into how the show might end (and who you should be rooting for if you don’t want to end up disappointed), I recently reread the final book in The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy (titled We’ll Always Have Summer), and I’m here to tell you exactly how everything went down on paper.

In case it isn’t clear: There are major book and show spoilers up ahead.

Before I dive in, let me preface it by saying that author Jenny Han (who created and executively produced the show) has said publicly that the ending of the show will be different. So while I’m writing what happens in the book, that doesn’t mean this is exactly what is going to go down on screen (though I’m fairly sure Belly will still end up with the same guy by the end).

So, as we know, Belly and Jeremiah begin the season by breaking up and then almost immediately getting engaged. It’s a whiplash for viewers, but it’s also going to be one for the other characters on the show, too—especially Laurel (Jackie Chung), Belly’s mother and Conrad. Laurel doesn’t believe Belly should be getting married so young, especially with so little experience under her belt, and in the books, she goes so far as to explicitly state she does not approve and will not attend the wedding. Conrad, on the other hand, has his own reasons that he’s so heartbroken by the announcement.

Belly And Conrad Reconnect In The Place That Brought Them Together: Cousins Beach

As we’ve already seen in the show, Conrad isn’t over Belly—not even a little bit. He’s been pining over her for years but keeping his distance in respect for both Belly and Jeremiah, but the engagement shakes him up. It only gets worse when Belly realizes she cannot spend the summer at home with her disapproving mother and decides to go stay at Cousins beach until the wedding—coincidentally, where Conrad is living until school is back in session.

Even though Belly is in charge of planning her wedding to Jeremiah, the forced proximity to her first love proves to be a challenge she didn’t anticipate. And as Jeremiah proves somewhat unreliable in terms of helping with wedding planning, Conrad steps up to help an overwhelmed Belly.

Conrad Finds Out About Cabo

Things really take a turn during Jeremiah’s bachelor party, when Jeremiah’s frat brothers tell Conrad about Jeremiah’s infidelity. Sober but deeply distressed, Conrad approaches Belly about this information, believing that he’s spilling a secret—only to end up confused and disappointed when he finds out that Belly already knows and is planning to marry Jeremiah anyway. It’s then when he finally opens up and tells Belly that he’s still in love with her.

The next day, Conrad lies and says he was drunk and doesn’t remember what happened between them, but asks Belly to forget about it. This only infuriates Belly, who sees it as Conrad simply displaying his old behavior of going back and forth about how he feels about her, and she yells at him for playing with her emotions. Frustrated, Conrad finally admits that he does remember and that he meant every word, but that he’s trying to save face and make it easier for them to be around one another, especially since Belly is still planning to marry his brother—and since, Conrad finally admits, he never got over Belly and has loved her the whole time.

Belly, rattled by this confession, decides to be upfront with Jeremiah about what happened. He’s deeply upset and ends up leaving, even though it’s the night before the wedding, and by the morning of the wedding day, no one seems to know where he is.

The Will-They-Won’t-They Wedding Day

While Belly prepares for the wedding ceremony, Conrad goes in search for his brother. When he finally finds him, a fight breaks out, but Conrad convinces Jeremiah to come back by pleading him to think about Belly. He also gives Jeremiah a letter that their mother wrote before her death, meant to be given to him on his wedding day. But when Jeremiah opens the letter, he realizes his mother has mixed up the notes—instead, he’s received Conrad’s letter, where his mother mentions only ever seeing him in love once (with Belly). Jeremiah agrees to return for the wedding, but tells Conrad to leave and to stay out of his life forever.

Despite everything that transpired, Jeremiah actually is willing to get married to Belly—but he grows frustrated and tense when she wants to talk about what happened, and even more so when she suggests they hold off on the wedding. Finally, he asks the question that’s on his mind: Does she still love Conrad? She admits she does, and that she thinks she always will, but that she loves Jeremiah too, and she’s choosing him. However, that’s not enough for Jeremiah.

Belly Chooses Herself—And Then She Chooses A Brother

In the end, Belly breaks up with Jeremiah, but she doesn’t get back together with Conrad. Instead, she moves in with her friends at college and even studies abroad in Spain. It’s while she’s there that she receives her first correspondence from Conrad, though she doesn’t write him back at first.

However, she admits that eventually she does return his letters, and it isn’t until her college graduation day that she sees Conrad again. It’s then that she realizes she’s still in love with him, and they begin dating again.

Does Belly Get Married By The End Of The Series?

Yes! By the very end of the book, Belly marries Conrad, cementing the fact that they are infinite.

So do I think the show will end with Belly and Conrad getting together? Absolutely. I think it’s clear that this show is ultimately their love story, showing how the right person won’t always be there at the right time, but how some things are inevitable anyway. That being said, I don’t think the show will get there in the same exact way—and it’s these small differences that will make the show worth watching, even if you already know how the books end.