Overview

In a past timeline when Hallie was nineteen, she learned her father had non-Hodgkin lymphoma and grappled with whether to move to Chicago with Rio. Seeking to tell Rio, Hallie instead discovered her mother Stephanie having an affair with Rio’s father, Marco DeLuca, and was pressured to keep it secret to protect her ill father. The discovery shattered Hallie’s trust and set up the secrecy that would later devastate multiple relationships.

Full Summary

Hallie, aged nineteen and freshly planning a move to Chicago after Rio was drafted in the first round of the NHL draft, was consumed by research on non-Hodgkin lymphoma after her parents told her and her brother Luke that their father had cancer. Overwhelmed, she vacillated between her commitment to Rio and a desperate need to stay close to her father. She resolved to tell Rio about her fears and possible change of plans.

Unable to focus at a coffee shop, Hallie returned to the DeLuca house to wait for Rio after his training session. Using the family’s spare key, she went upstairs toward Rio’s room. As she reached his door, the DeLucas’ bedroom door opened and Stephanie, Hallie’s mother, stepped out disheveled. Moments later, Marco DeLuca appeared behind Stephanie, confirming Hallie’s worst suspicion of an affair.

Hallie confronted Stephanie with anger and disbelief. Stephanie admitted the affair started the previous fall after Hallie left for college and attempted to justify it by saying things had changed with Hallie’s father. Hallie rejected any excuse, pointing out the betrayal of both her father and Mia DeLuca, and recognizing that this would devastate Rio, whose view of love was tied to his parents’ marriage.

Stephanie claimed she had been “ending it” and begged Hallie not to tell Rio or Mia, insisting that revealing the affair could endanger Hallie’s father’s health during cancer treatment. The plea shifted Hallie’s fury into fear for her father, leaving her torn between honesty with Rio and the risk to her father’s wellbeing.

The scene ended with Stephanie pressing Hallie to keep the secret to protect her father, while Hallie stood paralyzed by the potential consequences of disclosure, establishing the origin of the concealed truth that would ripple forward.

Who Appears

• Hallie — narrator; age 19; learns her father has non-Hodgkin lymphoma; discovers her mother’s affair with Marco DeLuca; feels compelled to keep the secret for her father’s health.
• Stephanie — Hallie’s mother; revealed to be having an affair with Marco DeLuca; begs Hallie not to tell to protect Hallie’s father; claims she was ending it.
• Marco DeLuca — Rio’s father; caught with Stephanie; appears disheveled and retreats when confronted.
• Hallie’s father — Hallie’s dad; newly diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma; central reason Stephanie cites for secrecy.
• Mia DeLuca — Rio’s mother; not present on-page but directly implicated as the betrayed spouse.
• Rio DeLuca — Hallie’s boyfriend; off at training; referenced as first-round NHL draft pick and as someone Hallie intended to tell about her father’s illness; potential victim of the secret.
• Luke — Hallie’s brother; emotionally checked out after the diagnosis; mentioned on the phone with his girlfriend Sarah.
• Sarah — Luke’s new girlfriend; mentioned only.