The It Girl

Hannah takes a call from Emily. The women catch up on each other’s major life events—Hannah’s pregnancy and Emily’s professorship at Oxford’s Balliol College. Since graduating from Pelham, Emily and Hugh have seen the most success in their careers. Hannah feels guilty for allowing her friendships with Emily and Ryan to deteriorate. She attributes her closer relationship with Hugh to the fact that he remains Will’s best friend and also lives in Edinburgh. Emily asks Hannah whether Geraint Williams, a reporter and friend of Ryan’s, has contacted her. Geraint believes that Neville is innocent.

Hannah and April have become best friends despite their differences in wealth and family upbringing. April’s uniquely elegant wardrobe, flippant yet relaxed and fun attitude, notoriety as a prankster and a daredevil, and stunningly beautiful appearance all contribute to her reputation as Pelham’s It Girl. Other students assume she’s not intelligent and attribute her good grades to her father’s donations to the school. April does nothing to dispute these rumors; she encourages them. Hannah knows that April is more intelligent and talented than she allows her other peers to see, though Hannah also thinks April can be cruel and can go too far with her jokes.