What happens in Chapter 3 of One of Us Is Lying?
Chapter 3 shifts focus to Addy Prentiss, the quintessential "beauty queen" of Bayview High, as she grapples with the aftermath of Simon Kelleher's death in detention. Addy reflects on that afternoon from her perspective: the five students in Mr. Avery's classroom, Simon's unexpected allergic reaction after sipping from a cup of water, and the frantic but unsuccessful attempts to save him before the paramedics arrived. Once she’s home, Addy deals with her mother’s stifling expectations and her boyfriend Jake’s controlling nature, as he tries to dictate how she should present herself to the investigators. She plays the part everyone expects—grieving yet composed, loyal girlfriend, obedient daughter—though cracks begin to show in her facade. She privately remembers details about Simon's gossip app, About That, and the anxiety it caused among students with secrets to keep. The chapter ends with Addy alone in her room, feeling the pressure of unspoken worries weighing down on her carefully crafted exterior.
Analysis
Karen M. McManus uses Addy's chapter to explore the cost of performing femininity. While Bronwyn's chapter focuses on academic anxiety and Cooper's on athletic pressure, Addy's life revolves around appearance and approval—her inner thoughts are shaped by how others perceive her rather than her own feelings. McManus conveys this through free indirect discourse: Addy’s thoughts are consistently filtered, cautious about judgment, as if she is narrating her life for an audience even in her private moments.
The motif of the cup—the everyday object that turns into the murder weapon—takes on new significance here. Addy notices it but brushes it aside, a narrative choice that introduces doubt without resorting to melodrama. McManus trusts readers to pick up on what Addy isn’t ready to face.
Jake's dialogue serves as the chapter's sharpest tonal tool. His instructions to Addy about what to say to the police come off as caring, but the language is imperative rather than collaborative: he directs, she absorbs. McManus refrains from editorializing; the threat is entirely structural, rooted in who speaks and who listens.
This chapter also subtly advances the novel's central irony: Simon's weapon of social destruction, About That, poses a threat to everyone in that detention room. Addy's fear of exposure—vague at this point but more defined later—establishes her as a character with motive, even while she is portrayed as the least likely suspect. McManus is already engaging in the genre's shell game, and Addy's polished exterior is the most convincing shell of all.
Key quotes from Chapter 3
“Jake squeezes my hand and says, 'Just tell them you don't remember much. That's basically true anyway, right?'”
Jake coaches Addy on what to tell police investigators, framing his control as reassurance.
“I've gotten very good at looking fine.”
Addy reflects on her own capacity for emotional concealment as she prepares to face her mother after returning home.
“Simon knew things about everyone. That was the whole point of About That—to remind you he could ruin you whenever he felt like it.”
Addy considers Simon's gossip app and the ambient dread it produced among Bayview students, including herself.
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