Meet Me at the Lake

“‘Whenever I’m home, I have the chance to get to know the city all over again.’

‘How romantic,’ I said deadpan. But his words hit my bloodstream like an espresso shot.”

In this quote, Fern describes the first time Will’s words made an impact on her, igniting her interest. She uses a simile, where something is compared to something else using “like” or “as.” In this case, she compares her reaction to Will to being “hit” with “an espresso shot,” suggesting its intensity. This sets up how, throughout the novel, coffee or its absence is a barometer for Fern and Will’s relationship.

“I made ferns for my favorite people. I hadn’t realized I was making one for Will until I’d finished pouring the milk.”

As Fern makes a latte for Will, she subconsciously draws him a fern for his latte art—a gesture reserved for special people or special occasions. This indicates her budding attraction to Will and foreshadows his importance in her life. This moment also explores how good coffee represents positivity in the novel.

“But Mom doesn’t stop cooking. She makes pancake after pancake, and I never get to the part of the dream where she sits down and we eat together.”

Fern describes one of her recurring dreams about her mother. The dream shows how Fern holds onto resentment toward her mother for working long hours at the resort and leaving Fern by herself most of the time. Maggie’s absence at the table represents not just her absence during Fern’s childhood, but her absence now, in death.

“Once I get back to the house, I pack up the pod coffee maker and put my new French press on the counter. It feels monumental. Even if I’m only here for a short time, I don’t have to drink my coffee like Mom did, and I don’t have to run the resort like her, either.”

Fern replaces her bad coffee maker with a good one. She acknowledges that there are different ways for her to approach her future, and that she can shape that future. By choosing to replace her bad coffee maker with a good one, Fern takes steps toward improving her own happiness and satisfaction with her situation at the resort. This foreshadows the good times Fern has ahead of her as she warms up to her new life.

“When I read Mom’s diary, I’d called her the worst names imaginable. I threw the book across the room at her. I lashed out in the most irresponsible ways for months until I finally ended up in the hospital.”

Here, Fern explains her tumultuous adolescence without going into too much detail. She hints at the conflicts buried in Maggie’s diaries, as well as the intensity at which she retaliated because of the things she read. The quote foreshadows Fern’s later reveals about her biological father and her near-death experience.

“But I’ve also mourned the future we’ll never have, the relationship we were only starting to make solid.”

Fern explores her feelings about her mother’s passing and how that has impacted her vision of the future. She hints at her complicated relationship with Maggie, suggesting there are unresolved problems lingering in Fern’s mind.

“Tonight, after I get ready for bed, I curl up with the diary, laughing out loud at Mom’s description of the Roses and my grandparents.”

This quote features a significant moment for Fern on her path to healing as she picks up her mother’s diary again for the first time since she was a teen. Fern has indicated throughout the novel that something she read in this diary messed her up as a teenager, building suspense. Fern’s return to the diaries shows her efforts to heal that part of herself.

“As Eli and Will chatted, it hit me that we were in uncharted territory. My day with Will had been spontaneous and unusual, but we’d unwittingly given ourselves a road map, a rule book, and an end point. Now, not only had we gone off course, but we’d opened our odd partnership up to spectators.”

Fern describes a moment that takes place at the venue where Fern and Will watch Will’s friend, Eli, play with his band. Here, Fern realizes that she and Will are hanging out way later than anticipated. They are now allowing other people to observe them together, pushing the boundaries of what a casual one-day friendship should be. Fern’s observation here reveals that the dynamic between her and Will is shifting.

“‘I don’t think you should give up on anything, Fern,’ Will says. ‘I just think you won’t admit what you want to hold on to.’”

After Fern and Will argue about whether Fern knows what she really wants, Will leaves her with this advice. The argument begins when Will pressures Fern into considering where her feelings really lie regarding her future and the future of the resort. Fern is upset that Will is overstepping and leaves, but Will ensures his message is clear by following her. The idea—of not “[giving] up on anything”—is the core message of the novel. Will doesn’t give up on Fern and makes a business plan with Maggie so that he can see Fern again. Fern doesn’t give up on Will even when he abandons her a second time, leading to their reconciliation and marriage.

“I should tell Will that, as amazing as it was, I can’t see him like this again. It’s one thing to have a crush, but naked sleepovers will only lead to ruin. I don’t think my heart can handle being Will’s break from reality for the rest of his time here.”

After Fern and Will have sex for the first time, Fern realizes the gravity of what she’s opened herself to. The wounds from Will’s original abandonment run deep, and she worries that allowing herself to get close to Will will result in the same ending. Having sex with Will makes Fern realize how deep her feelings are.

“‘I got the impression you love it up there.’

“I blinked at him. In so many ways, I did. I loved watching a storm move across the lake. I loved hanging out in the pastry kitchen with the Roses, and taking a kayak out on a still day.”

Despite Fern indicating otherwise, Will reads her behavior and understands that Fern has a lot of fond feelings for the lake and the resort. This quote builds the connection between Fern and Will by showing how easily Will understands Fern on a fundamental level. This suggests that he is a worthy partner for her in spite of his abandonment years earlier.

“People change. Dreams change, too.”

Fern narrates this after she has spent time at the docks, reminiscing about her mother. She realizes that she’s allowed to change what she wants out of life. This quote summarizes the novel’s larger message about the passage of time and the way people change and grow.

“Deep down, I suspected something was wrong with me—that I had unearthed a core of rot at seventeen, and I was worried if someone looked too closely, they’d see it, too. I diligently covered my mistakes with economics classes and good grades and shifts at Two Sugars and Sunday phone calls with Mom.”

In these lines, Fern expands upon the insecurities she still feels because of who she was as a teenager, showing how much that time impacted her life’s direction. Fern’s decision to go to business school and her efforts to be responsible are her way of attempting to repress the dark parts she worries will haunt her forever.

“We chew together in silence, no music to lift the mood, one hunk of bread after another, avoiding eye contact. With each bite, I feel like I’m saying goodbye. I wipe a tear away with the heel of my hand, and Peter acts as if he doesn’t notice.”

Here, Fern describes how she and Peter emotionally share Peter’s bread mockups, deciding which one will replace the sourdough that Maggie picked. This quote explores The Link Between Grief and Tenderness by showing how Fern’s attachment to the restaurant’s bread allows her an opportunity to grieve her mother.

“I think about telling him the truth—that I’ll take as much as he can give—but then I remember Peter saying almost the exact same thing about my mom. He spent decades with someone who couldn’t give herself to him fully. I always loved when Mom said I was like Peter, but in this way, I can’t be.”

After learning that Will’s previous relationships have ended because he couldn’t devote more of himself, Fern considers whether or not that’s something she can accept. This quote highlights the parallels between Fern and Will’s relationship and Peter and Maggie’s. Like Maggie, Will’s job and family come before his romantic pursuits. Here, Fern realizes she may not be able to accept having only a piece of Will.

“‘My mom saved my life—I owe her everything,’ I said. ‘That’s why I didn’t argue when she suggested I apply to business school and hop on the Brookbanks career track.’”

Fern explains why she feels like she must go along with her mother’s plans for her rather than make her own. Fern owes her life to her mother, so she’s using her second chance after being hospitalized to make up for what she did. However, Will emphasizes how, to really make the most of a second chance, one must act in accordance with one’s own desires.

“As if anyone knows where they’ll be or who they’ll be in ten years.”

Will disparages the idea of 10-year plans. His suggestion to create a one-year plan instead is full of irony, as 10 years later, Will and Fern both find themselves doing exactly what they said they wouldn’t do. Will emphasizes The Gap Between Plans and Reality, as he understands one cannot plan for the distant future.

“I didn’t think an us was possible. But watching him with my friends tonight, seeing how much care he’s put into the dinner, maybe it is. Maybe this isn’t just a break from reality for him. Maybe this could be the kind of relationship that’s worth the effort. Maybe this is the start of an us.”

Fern realizes that what she wants from Will—a full commitment and long-term relationship—is something they could make happen. Until this point, she’s worried that Will is only interested in being with her as an escape from his life, but the effort Will has put into making Fern’s celebration dinner special shows Fern how much she means to him and gives her hope for their future together. This is a significant development in the way Fern views her potential with Will.

“I wasn’t going to be able to keep it together much longer. I had thought what I felt for Will was physical attraction, but it was more than that—it was so much worse.”

Fern reflects as Will leaves her apartment after their first day together, walking out of her life for what Fern believes will only be a year. As she says goodbye, she realizes that she has feelings for Will that go much deeper than physical attraction. Her emotions haunt her for the next decade as she wonders what happened to Will and what could have happened between them.

“I laugh, forgetting Will for a brief, wonderful moment. There was a time when everything about this night—the end-of-summer dance, a band hired specifically to tease me, a room full of guests—would have been my greatest nightmare. I spot Whitney and Cam being ushered to their table, and a flock of children boogieing with the Roses. In one corner, Peter watches the servers deliver baskets of bread rolls. Right now, I just feel…at home.”

Fern realizes how good it feels to be back at the resort, doing all the things she resented as a child. She’s grown to appreciate all the quaint and familiar details of Brookbanks, including the dance. Fern’s acknowledgment that she feels at home, even at the height of her anxiety about Will’s second abandonment, shows the sentimental attachment she has for the resort. This allows her to temporarily forget about the grief she feels over Will being gone again.

“He was so mad at himself that he wasn’t home when Sofia got sick, and I’m sure he sees it as evidence that he isn’t allowed to have all the things.”

Here, Annabel explains why Will acted the way he did toward Fern. Will’s anxiety surrounding Sofia’s illness has made him feel guilty for pursuing Fern, so he’s pushed her away. This helps bring clarity to Fern and allows her an opportunity to give Will a second chance at being together.

“Being with you, being at the lake, away from all this—it’s like I remembered who I used to be, what I used to want. I don’t know that I still want those things. I don’t really know who I am, Fern. […] But I know I want you in my life.”

Will explains how his time with Fern has changed how he views himself and what he wants in life. Will realizes that Fern is an essential part of his life and can help him figure out the parts he’s unsure of. This is a significant turning point for Will and Fern’s relationship, as he acknowledges that he wants to keep Fern around after previously pushing her away.

“I visit Peter in the pastry kitchen almost every morning, and one sunny day in October, I hear music before I enter.”

Here, Fern narrates how Peter begins listening to music again, showing how he’s processing his grief over Maggie’s death. Peter’s music reflects how he’s thinking of the good times with Maggie and no longer grieving the times they won’t have in the future. This quote shows how music is a representation of love and affection in the novel.