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Chapter 12
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in It Ends with Us, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Cycles of Abuse
Naked Truths
Good and Evil
Chosen Family
Summary
Analysis
Soon after, Ryle comes to the shop after closing to meet Lily. Lily reflects that she is pleased with how both her business and her relationship are going. She feels this even more deeply when Ryle arrives in his scrubs. He tells her he will nap on her couch while she finishes up, but instead she finds him watching her. He tells her he worries he likes her too much and doesn’t want to scare her off. He asks if he works too much, but Lily admits that she finds his commitment to his work sexy. Ryle tells her that he loves how she accepts him for who he is.
Lily continues to appreciate the direction her life is taking. During Ryle’s initial conversation with Lily on the roof, he was adamant that his prioritization of work was incompatible with any true romantic future. While he still worries that he will be proven right, Lily continually shows him that his drive and intelligence are what she most loves about him.
Themes
Lily joins Ryle on the couch, and he listens to her heart with his stethoscope. He kisses her, trying to get her heart rate to climb. He continues to playfully check her heart rate while they have sex. The cuddle on the couch after, and Ryle gets a call from his mother. Lily asks more about his parents. He tells her his mother is fierce and religious yet loving. His father is also a doctor—a psychiatrist. Ryle tells Lily he may need to come with him on his next trip to visit them in London because his mother is eager to meet her. He plays the voicemail she left. In it, his mother checks to make sure he hasn’t ruined things with Lily. Lily asks about Ryle’s brother, and he tells her that his name was Emerson.
Ryle and Lily’s sexual connection remains as powerful as it was at the beginning of their relationship. Their emotional bond and sex life are deeply intertwined; this is intensely fulfilling for them when their relationship is healthy, but it may have the potential to turn problematic should future conflict arrive—as it inevitably does in any relationship. The couple’s conversation about Ryle’s parents and brother reveals more about his upbringing, characterizing his family as one that is loving, yet stern with high standards. Learning these things about Ryle amounts to another step Lily is taking toward full immersion into his life.
Themes
