What happens in Chapter 20 of One of Us Is Lying?
Four weeks after Simon's death, Nate's chapter begins with him feeling the pressure of being a suspect in a murder investigation. He meets his probation officer, which highlights how fragile his situation is—one wrong move could land him back in juvenile detention. Nate spends time with Bronwyn, and their relationship grows stronger even as outside forces try to drive them apart. They share a rare moment of honesty, each acknowledging how much they mean to one another. At the same time, Nate hears unsettling news that the investigation is getting closer to the four suspects, and there might be someone trying to frame one or more of them. He thinks about his reputation as the school's troublemaker and how that makes him an easy target. By the end of the chapter, Nate is torn about whether he can fully trust Bronwyn and whether revealing certain details about that afternoon could either help or ruin everything he’s been trying to keep together.
Analysis
Karen M. McManus uses Nate's perspective in this chapter to create one of the novel's most striking tonal contrasts: it feels like a quiet romance while also tightening like a noose. While other suspects’ chapters delve into themes of social anxiety or moral guilt, Nate’s chapters are marked by a weathered sense of fatalism—he anticipates blame, and McManus allows that anticipation to build suspense instead of relying solely on plot twists.
The scene with the probation officer stands out as a noteworthy craft choice: it anchors the thriller's stakes in real-world issues. Nate isn’t just afraid of accusations; he fears a system that has already labeled him. This distrust of institutions reflects Simon’s gossip app on a larger scale—both reduce people to their most negative attributes.
McManus also handles the romance subplot with care in this chapter. The scenes between Nate and Bronwyn avoid the typical escapism of the genre; their tenderness is overshadowed by the awareness that intimacy brings vulnerability. Every moment they connect also exposes them further. The motif of reputation—who controls your story—flows through the chapter like an undercurrent, connecting Nate’s criminal past, Simon’s About That posts, and the killer’s unknown motives into a cohesive theme. The chapter ends on an unresolved emotional note rather than a cliffhanger, a deliberate choice that preserves Nate's humanity instead of reducing him to a mere plot device.
Key quotes from Chapter 20
“I've spent so long being exactly what everyone expects that I'm not sure I know how to be anything else.”
Nate reflects on his delinquent reputation while considering whether to open up to Bronwyn, crystallising the novel's central theme of identity versus imposed narrative.
“She looks at me like I'm worth something, and I don't know what to do with that.”
Nate observes Bronwyn during one of their private meetings, marking the emotional pivot point of their relationship in this chapter.
“The system doesn't care about the truth. It cares about a story that fits.”
Nate thinks about his probation situation, drawing a quiet parallel between institutional judgment and Simon's gossip-driven cruelty.
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