Delilah Green Doesn't Care

Claire arrives home with Ruby to find that Delilah and Iris have let themselves in with her spare key. Claire shows everyone a recent gift from her mother, a large set of tarot cards featuring women authors. Claire offers her guests beer, and Ruby asks for one too. Claire knows Ruby is angry at her because she has yet to agree to a camping trip with Josh, who already promised the outing to Ruby without consulting her. Delilah breaks the tension by asking to see Ruby’s room. Claire explains the source of her stress to Iris, who points out that Claire could always go on the camping trip. Claire is reluctant, privately afraid that being alone with Josh would result in their sleeping together again. Iris pointedly adds that Delilah was not at all reluctant to come to Claire’s house. Claire struggles to hide her pleasure.

Claire and Iris are both dismayed that Astrid seems to be deliberately ignoring any of their attempts to reach her. Delilah returns, casually mentioning that Ruby’s camping plan sounds fun, especially the hot springs. This adds to Claire’s anxiety, as Josh did not tell her about any plans to swim. Iris suggests that all of them go camping to help Claire and convince Astrid to call off her wedding. Delilah is shocked at being included in such a personal outing. Delilah points out that Astrid may be unenthusiastic, but Iris is undeterred, declaring that she and Astrid both know about Claire’s habit of sleeping with Josh when they are alone together. Iris insists that, in light of this, Astrid will definitely come camping for “moral and sexual support” (195). Claire is mortified that both of her friends have guessed her secret and that Delilah now knows as well. Claire decides that Iris is right and agrees to ask Astrid to come camping.

Delilah is restless and feeling off-balance due to her enmeshment with Claire and Iris, and she feels especially jealous of the revelations about Claire and Josh. While this evokes her history with Jax, Delilah reminds herself that she and Claire are not partners and that she is thinking irrationally. She is upset about another person having power over her emotional state. She wonders if sleeping with Claire will bring back her equilibrium somehow.

Delilah is tempted to leave Claire’s house, but Ruby is eager to spend time with her, so she stays. She notices that Ruby has drawn an elaborate rose on her arm and compliments her skills, asking to see more. Claire smiles at Ruby’s obvious delight, telling Delilah, “You just made her year” (201). Delilah looks at Ruby’s sketches, and Ruby asks if Delilah can teach her photography, confessing anxiously that she has seen her Instagram. Delilah takes Ruby to the backyard for photography practice.

Outside, Delilah observes the casual setting, which reminds her of her early childhood with her father. She suggests that Ruby photograph anything that strikes her, and Ruby settles on an abandoned birdbath with a white flower floating above the debris. Delilah helps Ruby edit her work, and Ruby invites her camping. Delilah, noticing Claire, promises Ruby that even if she is not there, they will still work on her photos. Ruby embraces her in response. Delilah, overcome by the gesture, hugs Ruby back.

Claire is also moved by the rapport between her daughter and Delilah. She tells Ruby that her friend Tess has invited her for a sleepover. Ruby runs off to pack after thanking Delilah. Claire watches the other woman, overwhelmed by the realization that they will soon be alone together. Claire is certain that the attraction is more than just physical, as “even just thinking about Delilah, Claire [feels] young and wild” (209). Claire tells herself that it is time for her to try a casual physical relationship. Just as she invites Delilah over for a glass of wine, Delilah speaks over her, asking if she should leave. The two laugh, and Delilah agrees to stay.

Claire begins to wonder if Delilah senses the unresolved tension between them too. Finally, she breaks out the set of tarot cards her mother sent to do a reading for Delilah. When Delilah pulls a card off the deck, it is a praying mantis. Claire ponders if this means her demise, realizing too late that “praying mantises only bit[e] off their lovers’ heads” (212). The sexual tension gives way to humor when Claire draws the same card. Delilah’s reading for herself suggests that she is looking for romantic insight from famed lesbian writer Gertrude Stein. Delilah reads Claire’s, which reveals erotic and sensual desires. The two laugh when Claire breaks the tension by declaring, “So I’m extremely horny, so what?” (216).

After more readings and chatting, the topic turns to the camping trip. Delilah is reluctant to go given the historic tension between herself and Astrid. She turns frosty when she suggests that Josh is on Claire’s mind. Claire is flattered by Delilah’s obvious resentment of Josh having any claim on her. She comes closer to Delilah in her kitchen, asking if they should discuss their prior kiss. Delilah suggests that there is nothing to discuss given Claire’s ties to Josh. Claire says that they have not been a couple for years and asks Delilah why she is concerned. They embrace. Delilah falls back on her trademark detachment, declaring, “I don’t care” (219), as Claire finally kisses her.

The kiss soon turns passionate, and Delilah pulls Claire onto the kitchen counter, unbuttoning Claire’s shirt and marveling at her body. They move to the bedroom, and Claire becomes self-conscious about her size and stretch marks, but Delilah asks, “Do you know how sexy you are?” (222). They have sex and marvel at the intensity of their chemistry. Claire takes in Delilah’s wild hair as she kisses her again.

Delilah wakes to the sound of a ringing phone. Claire answers and speaks to Ruby, who is upset. Claire hangs up and begins to dress, explaining that Ruby and her friend had a fight, so she needs to bring her home. She trails off without saying more, and Delilah senses that she does not want Ruby to know about their relationship. Claire insists that she stay, but once Claire is gone, Delilah realizes too late that her shirt is still in the kitchen. Claire and Ruby arrive, and Delilah hears Claire convince her daughter to sleep alone. Claire returns, and they both agree that it will be less awkward if Delilah leaves now. Delilah is uncomfortable with the obvious sense of transgression and secrecy.

Claire tries to argue that it is not personal, as she routinely keeps her dating life from Ruby. Delilah gets more upset when Claire points out that their arrangement is obviously casual, angrily pointing out that Claire’s real concern is protecting Astrid and accusing Claire of wanting to keep her in the closet. Claire stops Delilah from leaving, telling her that she does not want their time together to end. They agree that they would like to continue having sex. Claire asks if it would really help if Astrid knew. Delilah realizes that the affair would end immediately if her stepsister found out, which would jeopardize the new sense of relaxation she feels with Claire.

When Delilah says that she understands her lack of desire to disclose that “the ghoul of Wisteria House is in [her] bed” (234), Claire looks at her with compassion, clearly uncomfortable with this reference to the past. Claire tells her that she does not regret anything about her decisions, but being enmeshed in Delilah’s history with Astrid is daunting. Delilah takes off her clothes and lies down. She says that her relationship with Astrid is actually straightforward: Isabel never wanted her, and Astrid felt the same way, resenting Delilah’s grief and eccentricity as an affront.

Claire responds that her version of Astrid is a loving friend, and she wishes Delilah knew that person. Delilah points out that Astrid chose distance, and this extended to her history with Claire and Iris. Claire apologizes, but Delilah tells her not to, especially not if this is only because of their new intimacy. Claire insists that she could have been more emphatic and encouraged Astrid to do the same. Delilah rejects the idea, suddenly full of grief where she would usually rely on anger. Breaking the silence, Claire gently asserts that she does want a real relationship with Delilah in the present. Claire kisses her softly, and Delilah realizes that she has been uncharacteristically vulnerable. To distract them both, Delilah initiates sex. Near dawn, Claire sleepily asks Delilah to come camping, saying that it will please Ruby, and Delilah agrees.

Later that same morning, Claire is ambivalent about her recent decision to invite Delilah camping, knowing that she will struggle to keep their relationship casual. She is soon relieved to see Delilah arrive with Iris. She reiterates to herself that however emotional she feels, Delilah does not have a life in Bright Falls. Iris notices Claire’s fatigue, which Claire attributes to Ruby’s sleepover. Iris tries to set up a strategy where the three of them will sleep in a tent with Astrid, only for Astrid and Spencer to arrive together.

In the forest, Astrid continues to avoid any real conversation. Josh tells Claire that he is interested in living in the woods someday himself, turning cold when she is skeptical. He sends Ruby away to get towels and angrily asks Claire why she has ruined his plan to camp with their daughter alone, bringing along relative strangers like Spencer and Delilah. When Claire tells him that she is only worried about Ruby, Josh accuses her of judging him unfairly. He stomps off, leaving Claire alone with her anxieties.

Delilah struggles with her jealousy over Claire’s preoccupation with Josh. Iris notices, telling her that Claire deserves better than him, “someone who really sees her” (247). Delilah and Iris make sarcastic comments about each other, but the two of them clearly enjoy their rapport. Astrid interrupts, demanding that they go hiking.

Delilah banters with Claire and Iris about possibly losing Spencer in the woods, suddenly uncomfortable with their new connection. She insists to herself that her most authentic life is in New York, not Oregon. Iris goes to find her hiking gear, so Claire takes the opportunity to kiss Delilah, telling her that she wishes they were alone. Delilah reciprocates, but Claire soon turns sentimental, telling Delilah that she wishes they could have a real conversation. They briefly discuss Delilah’s photography and upcoming show. As she holds Claire, Delilah realizes that “maybe this [i]s the first time she’[s] ever felt this seen, or no, not this exact moment, but every tiny moment with Claire” (201). She soon backs away, suddenly overwhelmed.

Claire regrets her earlier confessions, certain that Delilah may reject her as too attached. Privately, Claire is re-evaluating her entire adolescence in light of Delilah’s confessions, realizing that Delilah’s estrangement from Astrid makes sense to her, and she no longer sees Delilah as the villain. She is drawn to Delilah’s humor and sense of self, reasserting that a sexual fling is exactly what she needs to relax. She watches Spencer force Astrid into a kiss, and Iris gripes, “Is it too much to ask for a large rock to just, I don’t know, fall on his head?” (255). Delilah stays back from the hike, and Claire finds herself near tears between this casual rejection and her argument with Josh. She abandons the hike, overcome.

Claire retreats back to the campsite, telling a curious Delilah that she changed her mind and is going to see Ruby and Josh. She ducks into her tent to cry, relieved at the outlet for all of her complex feelings about her various relationships. Delilah enters, notices Claire crying, and asks what happened. Claire tries to downplay the conflict but admits that she and Josh are struggling with coparenting. Delilah asks what she can do, and Claire asks her to come with her to the hot springs. Delilah brings Claire to orgasm and, when Claire moves to reciprocate, tells her that they can prioritize going to see Ruby first. They kiss gently, and “Claire [swears] she [sees] a spark of something that look[s] like happiness in Delilah’s expression” (261).

As they walk to the springs together, Claire laments that Iris will be furious with her for abandoning the hike and the plan to oust Spencer. She and Delilah bounce prank ideas back and forth in hopes of alienating him. She pulls Delilah back to camp when the perfect prank occurs to her.

Delilah continues to feel unsettled by her sense of intimacy with Claire. Claire takes her hand but drops it when Ruby might see, and Delilah realizes that she is increasingly upset by the secrecy. While Claire and Josh talk about their fight, Delilah teaches Ruby how to edit her photo of the abandoned birdbath. Delilah feels a kinship with Ruby, complimenting her on her perspective. Later, Claire thanks her for her kindness to Ruby. She and Claire begin to wonder if something happened to the others, who have not returned from the woods.

Spencer angrily storms up, followed by an unhappy Astrid and Iris. Iris explains furiously that Spencer insisted they wander off the trail, so they ran out of water and were briefly in the path of a bear. Iris upbraids Claire for leaving her, noting that Spencer was particularly cruel about her unmarried, childfree status. Iris is relieved that Grant is at work and missed the exchange. She softens when Claire apologizes for leaving her. Iris is worried that Astrid is upset with her, not Spencer, but she reveals that Spencer invited himself on the trip by claiming that Astrid would be in danger without him, frustrating her. Iris and Claire resolve to talk to Astrid that night. Delilah inwardly insists that she is relieved to be excluded from this plan.

Over a dinner of campfire chili, Delilah watches Josh attentively listen to Ruby’s vision for her photos, while Astrid avoids talking. Suddenly, Spencer starts twitching and clutching his groin, leading Delilah to point this out to Claire. Spencer’s strange behavior continues until he yanks off his shorts and runs into the tent yelling for water. Iris begins to howl with laughter, clearly in on the prank: Delilah and Claire put Josh’s cayenne pepper in Spencer’s underwear.

Delilah reflects on the evening while Iris and Claire sleep, insisting to herself that she “d[oes]n’t care that Iris had sat next to her near the fire and leaned her cheek on Delilah’s shoulder” (274). Claire had promised Delilah sex by the campfire once Iris fell asleep but was too exhausted. Delilah, restless, goes out to the fire to get a beer from the cooler, but she’s startled to find Astrid there alone. Delilah wonders if the usually unflappable Astrid is drunk, noting that she already has a beer in her hand. She sits by the fire, asking about Spencer. Her usual resolve to irritate Astrid has faded, and she only notices her stepsister’s obvious fatigue. As they sit in silence, Delilah’s racing thoughts show her shifting priorities: Her usual ambition to escape and prove that she is more than Isabel’s abandoned stepchild competes with thoughts of Claire and Ruby.

Astrid notices Delilah’s discomfort, but Delilah denies that anything is on her mind. Astrid tells her that this is “bullshit,” but Delilah points out that Astrid is the one alone and apart from her fiancé. Delilah finds herself thinking that Claire would be warm and open, but there is no precedent for that in her interactions with Astrid.

Astrid asks Delilah if she remembers Isabel’s attempts at adolescent sex education. Delilah laughs, pretending to imitate her stepmother’s stiff approach. Astrid confesses that her main memory is Isabel’s insistence that the key to a happy marriage is perpetual acquiescence to your husband. Delilah says that she ignored most of the advice, already aware that she would never marry a man. Astrid confesses that she often thinks her purpose in life is to “be calm and poised and controlled and just say yes” (280). This challenges Delilah’s preconceptions that Astrid shared Isabel’s worldview. She tries to say more, but Astrid returns to her tent, insisting that Delilah cannot possibly be invested in her problems.