The People We Keep

April’s mother left her and her father at an early age, but Margo, April’s father’s ex-girlfriend, willingly takes on a maternal role in April’s life. Throughout the novel, Margo acts as a mother, offering support, kindness, and advice to the nearly constantly lost April. She exhibits unconditional love for April, forgiving her for leaving and not calling while always offering a shoulder to cry on. It may take April most of the novel to realize Margo’s contributions, but Margo’s influence is present throughout the narrative.

In Little River, Margo takes care of April by providing her with a job at the diner, as well as teaching her about the ways in which men may take advantage of and abuse women. April’s internal voice is often Margo’s, as when April first meets Adam and refuses to stay with him: “You don’t go home with men you don’t know. I am certain Margo would say that. […] Margo would also say you have to watch out about making men mad” (95). Margo has prepared April for her journey more than April’s father ever could, and her lessons guide April along the way.

It is in the final chapters that April finally realizes just how much of a mother Margo has been. Not only is she the person whom April calls home to, but she is also the person who always picks up April’s call. In the hospital, Margo makes it clear to April that she will always be there for her and that April must take advantage of that: “You don’t get to disappear anymore. You can’t go running off into the woods like a wounded deer. You lean on me when it hurts. That’s what we’re here for—to lean on each other” (342). Margo has always had to watch from afar as April struggled, but now that April’s father is dead, Margo can fully and unapologetically step in as April’s mother and Max’s grandmother.

Carly is April’s first real, fully platonic friend. Though April initially considers Matty a friend, their relationship is also sexual and romantic, adding layers of societal norms and personal expectations. With Carly, these complicating factors are absent, freeing April to get to know Carly and show Carly who she herself is. They bond and grow to like and care for each other. Despite only knowing each other for a short amount of time, their friendship is so strong that even after years of separation, Carly supports April through the birth of Max.

April and Carly meet while working at Cafe Decadence in Ithaca but don’t truly become friends until Carly’s breakup with Rosemary. April learns of how stressful and traumatic the breakup was, with Rosemary’s insistence that Carly come out causing Carly’s family to cut her off. April and Carly bond as they discuss their traumatic family lives, seeing glimpses of themselves in one another; April, for example, recognizes that Carly is “[d]isappointed in herself, the way [April] was every single time [she] thought [she] could win [her] dad back from Irene by memorizing Dylan songs or sewing the loose buttons on his work shirts” (169). Both women must contend with parents who will not accept and support them, and this brings them closer as they accept and support one another.

This closeness makes April’s departure from Ithaca even more heartbreaking for April. Three years later, however, April returns to Ithaca and secretly delivers letters that she has been writing to Carly for years. Before Carly can read them, April slips away to the campground. When April goes into labor, it is Carly who finds her and brings her to the hospital, making it clear to April that they are still friends and always will be. April is further convinced of this when she sees that Carly’s new tattoo is the one April intended to get three years prior. Carly tells her that the tattoo, a mayflower, represents “the good stuff that comes after too many storms” (347). Carly proves to April in this moment that their friendship is based on their connection and care for another. It is not something that will crumble because of the bad moments but rather grow stronger in spite of them.

Like Carly, Ethan is a character who serves as a friend to April rather than a parent figure or romantic partner. Ethan, like April, has gone through a bad breakup that has left him feeling vulnerable. He is an expressive and kind-hearted person who has dealt with a lot of trauma, primarily due to the loss of his long-time partner. Like April, Ethan expresses himself through his art, although he prefers to paint rather than sing. While April stays with Ethan, she witnesses him work through the trauma of his ex-boyfriend’s attack by painting. The two quick become friends and establish a level of trust that April has never experienced.

Ethan becomes the ultimate support for April. She has never been able to open up to anyone like she does with him, and April recognizes that “Ethan listens to all of it and he still likes [her] when [she’s] done talking. He’s the only person [she’s] ever told everything to” (280). April has always been concerned about being honest with people because she thinks they will leave. Ethan proves her wrong by not only listening but embracing her. Moreover, the two enjoy each other’s company and have fun with each other.

Ethan is essential to April’s development. His support helps her accept the support of others, and it is through him that she feels as though she belongs and deserves to belong. This culminates in April’s making Ethan Max’s legal father. She makes this decision because Ethan has stood by her, even saying, “When are you going to get it through your thick little head that there is nothing you could do to make me stop loving you?” (350). Ethan gives April the love her parents couldn’t give her, and she wants to make sure that her son will have this.

Adam is April’s first romantic connection outside of Matty, and his character complements hers. The two construct a romantic relationship based on stability and help each other begin the process of healing from their past traumas. Nevertheless, Adam is significantly older than April, and though she lies about her age, this makes the relationship precarious.

April is wary of Adam at first, not understanding why he would offer his apartment to her other than for sexual purposes. However, Adam offers April the stability and warmth that she never received at home, and their routines and patterns soon draw April into their relationship. The same goes for Adam, who finds they fit together easily, offering each other what they lacked before. Adam was sexually assaulted by his stepmother, and when his father took her side, he developed intense trust issues and trauma surrounding sex. He tells April, “I think I’m conditioned to feel like if I have sex, something bad is going to happen. Like it’s just wrong no matter what. Scars only fade to a certain point, you know?” (140). This anxiety led to the dissolution of his last relationship.

April in turn feels comfortable with Adam because he is a mature partner who offers her a stable routine and healthy home life. Adam is patient and kind and cares about making April feel that his apartment is a home. April has never had this: Matty was nice, but he was always concerned with having sex. Adam helps April to begin healing by offering her the environment she needed growing up, but the fact that they are at different stages of emotional development makes him unsuitable for her as a long-term romantic partner. The two have a symbiotic relationship, but it is primarily driven by Adam guiding and setting expectations for April romantically. Adam gives April hope that she can find stability with someone who cares for her.