56 pages • 1 hour read
Barbara DeeMaybe He Just Likes You
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2019A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 1-10Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 1 Summary: “Pebbles”
One warm September day, Mila and her friends Zara and Max prepare a birthday surprise for their friend, Omi. They create a giant “O” out of pebbles on the blacktop at their school to honor Omi and represent a “Circle of Friendship.” Omi arrives and is thrilled by the surprise, and she shares a hug with her friends. However, a group of boys who were playing basketball nearby join in on the group hug, which makes Mila uncomfortable, especially when one of the boys, Callum, “clamp[s] the fuzz of [Mila’s] green sweater” (6). When the boys leave, Mila explains her discomfort, but Zara dismisses her and says that the boys were “just being friendly,” and Mila shouldn’t be “such a baby” (6).
Chapter 2 Summary: “Swish”
Mila plays the trumpet in her school band, and she loves the feeling of peace and relief when she gets lost in the music. On the day of Omi’s birthday, section leaders are announced, and Mila is unsurprised to learn that Callum earned first chair in the trumpet section. Callum stands to take a bow along with the other section leaders, and his hand “swishe[s] across [Mila’s] shoulder” (12) during the motion. Mila is confused, especially when Callum doesn’t apologize or acknowledge the touch, and Mila tries to let it go and join in on the applause.
Chapter 3 Summary: “Dinette”
Every day after school, Mila is responsible for walking her dog Delilah and getting her six-year-old sister Hadley off the bus while her mother works full-time. Mila’s father left the family years ago, but her mother always makes time to hear about the girls’ day. Over dinner that night, Mila tells her mother about Omi’s birthday surprise and how “these stupid boys came over and ruined everything” (14), but she quickly changes the subject.
Chapter 4 Summary: “Sweater”
Mila thinks about her summer growth spurt and how money is too tight at her house right now to ask for new clothes. Instead, she wears her fuzzy green sweater most days because it still fits. When Mila’s mother notices that her daughter has been wearing the same sweater a lot, she reluctantly promises to take the girls shopping at Old Navy. Mila’s mother mentions that her boss has been “giving [her] a hard time” (19), but she doesn’t want Mila to worry. As they leave for work and school, Mila promises to wash her sweater when she gets home.
Chapter 5 Summary: “Hug”
Mila’s band teacher gives her second chair in the trumpet section, which means that she has to sit to Callum. Mila realizes she forgot her music folder at home, so she heads to the band room early to grab an extra copy of the sheet music. She is followed into the band hall by Callum, Leo, and Dante, who are “laughing in a rowdy way that for some reason [makes] [her] stomach knot” (21). Dante asks if Mila will hug Leo for his birthday, and they tell her that Zara already hugged Leo. Mila feels uneasy but relents when she realizes the boys are blocking the door. She hugs Leo, who comments on her “fuzzy sweater” (24) with a grin.
Chapter 6 Summary: “Moths”
Mila feels uneasy about the hug and worries about what Zara will say. Mila feels “this fluttery-moth sort of thing” (25) in her stomach, but she asks Zara if she hugged Leo. Zara says she didn’t and tells Mila that Leo’s birthday is months away. Mila hesitates, and then decides not to tell Zara about what happened in the band room because she knows that Zara won’t be supportive.
Chapter 7 Summary: “Truth”
All day long, Mila keeps replaying what happened in the band room. She blames herself for not seeing through the boys’ lies and giving in to their request. Mila begins to wonder why she didn’t tell Zara about what happened. Although she tells herself that she didn’t want to hurt Zara’s feelings because Zara has a crush on Leo, Mila knows the real reason she didn’t say anything: “If [Zara’s] feelings were hurt, she could be nasty” (29). Mila decides she doesn’t want another “weird conversation” (30), so she doesn’t plan to tell Zara.
Chapter 8 Summary: “Luck”
Mila tries to go about her day and forget about the strange interaction in the band room. She notices, however, that Dante seems to bump into her on purpose in the hallway, and while Mila and Omi talk about Omi’s birthday celebration with her family, one of the boys—Tobias—runs over to Mila and asks for a hug “like [she] gave Leo” (33). Mila reminds Tobias that she only hugged Leo because he lied and said it was his birthday. Tobias tells Mila that the basketball boys have decided that Mila’s green sweater is “magic,” and the boys just want to touch it for good luck. Mila is momentarily relieved and amused, but she tells Tobias she will not hug him. She offers to let him touch her sleeve, but when he moves in to touch it, he “[throws] his arms around [her] chest and squeeze[s] so hard that for a second [she] lo[ses] [her] breath” (35), and the basketball boys cheer. Mila feels angry and violated, and as Tobias runs away, Max and Zara join them and ask about what just happened. Omi suggests that Tobias might have a crush on Mila. When Mila complains that Tobias hugged her without her permission, Zara implies that Mila let Tobias hug her, and she could have stopped him if she really wanted to.
Chapter 9 Summary: “Bus”
The day’s events weigh on Mila, and when she boards her bus to go home in the afternoon, she thinks she can finally relax. However, the basketball boys board the bus and surround Mila. During the ride home, Mila notices that Dante sits so close to her that he keeps touching her, and when their bus hits a pothole, “his arm [flies] across [her] chest” (40). Mila asks Dante to move over, but he ignores her request. When the bus reaches her street, Mila asks Dante to move so she can get off, but Leo insists that she can squeeze past him. Mila tries to push past Dante, who “[throws] his legs in [her] way as if he [is] blocking [her] from scoring a basket” (41). As Mila gets off the bus, Callum tells her to wear her fuzzy sweater tomorrow, which makes the other boys laugh.
Chapter 10 Summary: “Mirror”
When Mila gets home, she stands in the bathroom and stares at herself in the mirror. She wonders what the boys are seeing and why they are messing with her. Her sweater is not tight or revealing, and her body isn’t that different from any of the other girls in her grade. She thinks she is very average, “smack in the middle when it [comes] to seventh grade girls” (42), and she wonders if there is something the basketball boys see in her that she can’t see in herself.
Chapters 1-10 Analysis
In Chapter 1, Dee establishes the key conflicts in Maybe He Just Likes You. After the strange hugging incident on Omi’s birthday that left Mila feeling trapped, she has a gut feeling that something isn’t right with the basketball boys’ behavior. Although Zara quickly dismisses Mila’s discomfort, Mila’s instincts tell her that something feels off. Mila loves her friends, but she and Zara have different ideas about what constitutes a “normal” interaction with a boy, and Zara is so smitten with Leo that she is quick to excuse him and his friends’ behaviors, even if they make one of her best friends feel uncomfortable. Mila remembers how, over summer vacation, Zara lashed out at her and called her immature because Mila tried to tell Zara not to worry about what Leo thinks of her. This flashback hints that Zara might be jealous of Mila’s ability to laugh things off and not worry about what boys think of her, and this insecurity fuels the conflict between the girls. Mila’s innate understanding of Zara’s mean streak causes her to withhold information about the other incidents with the basketball boys.
Throughout the first chapter set, Dee demonstrates the power of multiple small interactions. At first, Mila tries to shake off her gut feeling and tells herself that she is being paranoid. However, the boys keep pushing her and finding small ways to violate Mila’s bodily autonomy. Mila attempts to set clear and firm boundaries, but the boys are not listening. She tells Tobias that he may touch the sleeve of her sweater, but he violates this boundary by forcing a hug anyway. This is the first glaring example of the basketball boys’ inability to respect Mila’s wishes, and they begin to treat Mila like she is a thing to be conquered and objectified. On the bus home, the same thing happens: A boundary is established when Mila asks Dante not to touch her and to let her off the bus, but the boys ignore it. Instead, they act like Mila is overreacting, which causes her to once again question her perception of what is happening. Mila is confused and unnerved by these events, and she even turns to the mirror to look for any sign that she is the one causing these problems with the basketball boys. Even though it has not yet been named in the book, these interactions illustrate the theme of Sexual Harassment and Bullying.
Dee also establishes the fact that Mila’s family finances are tight. Because Mila’s mother is the sole breadwinner for the family, Mila is expected to take on more responsibility at home, and her mother rarely has time or money to spend with her daughters. Having little money means that Mila also has to wear clothes that are too tight, and her green sweater—the only thing that still fits her—becomes the very thing that the basketball boys fixate on. In comparison, Mila talks about Omi’s family, where money never appears to be in short supply, and Omi is showered with attention, affection, and gifts from her grandparents and relatives. Omi wants for nothing, and Mila can’t help but long for the same security and support. After all, if Mila had a support system like Omi’s, the novel’s events might have unfolded differently.
