43 pages • 1 hour read
In Five Years
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Chapters 16-20Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 16 Summary
Bella decides not to tell anyone else about the pregnancy on their weekend away. Everyone goes to the beach and when Dannie is the only one who wants to take a walk, Aaron offers to go with her. They talk about friendships in general and Bella in particular, and something Aaron says lets Dannie know that he’s in love with Bella, even if he hasn’t said it out loud yet. They have a water fight that culminates in a moment when Aaron looks at her “intently” and says, “I just…I like you” (113). It takes Dannie back to their lovemaking in the premonition. Dannie challenges him to a race back and wins.
Chapter 17 Summary
Bella tells Aaron about the pregnancy, and he’s very happy about it. Dannie and Bella go shopping for baby things. When Dannie comes over, the hallways are full of packages of baby things, and Bella has started painting the nursery. Because of the chances for miscarriage, conventional wisdom advises that pregnant women don’t start preparing for the baby until they’ve passed the twelve-week mark. Dannie says that Bella is “ahead of the curve for the first time in [her] life” (118), referring to the speed at which the nursery is coming together so quickly. Dannie is very happy for Bella and thinks about how she’s firmly present in the lives they’re living right now.
Chapter 18 Summary
It’s September, which is a very busy month for Dannie at work. She and David are falling behind on wedding planning. She gets a voicemail from Aaron asking her to call him. When she does, he tells her that the doctor’s appointment wasn’t good and that there isn’t a baby. Dannie assumes this means there was a miscarriage, but Bella tells her that she wasn’t ever pregnant. The doctors think she has ovarian cancer.
Chapter 19 Summary
Dannie calls Bella’s father, who is on the board of cardiology at the best hospital in the city, and they make an appointment with Dr. Finky, the best oncologist in the city. Dannie is surprised that Aaron comes with them, as she expected he would not want to deal with cancer with a woman he’s been dating less than a year. Dannie is also surprised that Bella has insurance because the process of setting up the insurance seems to Dannie like it would have been too long and frustrating for Bella. The doctor says they should run some tests, and Dannie asks if they can do them today. She takes notes in a notebook that was supposed to be for wedding planning.
Chapter 20 Summary
They confirm Bella’s ovarian cancer and start treatment with Dr. Shaw, whom Dannie likes immediately. He says they’ll need major surgery to remove the uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes, along with reducing the size of the tumor. Bella is devastated to learn that she will never have children and doesn’t have time to freeze her eggs. Bella wants to be alone after they leave the appointment, and Dannie is called away for a work emergency. When she arrives home late that night, devastated, David takes care of her.
Chapters 16-20 Analysis
These chapters mark an abrupt shift in the tone of the novel. What was previously about boyfriends and weddings has become about life and death. The pacing of the novel becomes particularly effective as Dannie confronts the reality of Bella’s illness. Her brother, Michael, died suddenly and unexpectedly. Bella’s dying is just as devastating but different in that it unfolds slowly. Dannie, who is disciplined and regimented her life, uses all of her usual tricks—statistics, note-taking, planning, caution—but none of it can make a difference. Her need for control cannot be fulfilled in this situation, and so she feels helpless and unbalanced.
Chapters 16 and 17 linger in the positive feelings of Bella’s supposed pregnancy, which everyone is joyful for. The reversal into fear and despair is sudden and captures Dannie’s complete focus. She is no longer concerned about the wedding or the premonition. Bella has only a 50% chance of surviving the cancer, and if she does not, their time is very short.
Make note of the way time passes throughout the rest of the novel. The author has used the passage of time both as a way to move the reader through the story and as a motif of urgency. Dannie sees the exact date during her premonition: December 15, 2025. Aaron’s arrival made her aware of the scarcity of time; now Bella’s illness has made time even more valuable. The events of Chapter 20 take place in the last week of September, which leaves only 10 weeks until Dannie’s life is supposed to completely change.
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By Rebecca Serle
