Before I Fall

by

Lauren Oliver

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on Before I Fall makes teaching easy.

Patrick Character Analysis

Lindsay’s on-again, off-again boyfriend. The two of them have broken up thirteen times in the span of one school year at the start of the novel—and it’s only February. Lindsay is hot and heavy with Patrick, and says that Patrick is her “first and only,” but in reality Lindsay lost her virginity under suspicious circumstances when visiting her stepbrother in New York City.

Patrick Quotes in Before I Fall

The Before I Fall quotes below are all either spoken by Patrick or refer to Patrick. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Fate vs. Agency Theme Icon
).
Chapter 2  Quotes

Lindsay, Ally, Elody and I are as close as you can be, but there are still some things we never talk about. For example, even though Lindsay says Patrick is her first and only, this isn’t technically true. Technically, her first was a guy she met at a party when she was visiting her stepbrother at NYU. They smoked pot, split a six-pack, and had sex, and he never knew she hadn’t done it before. We don’t talk about that. We don’t talk about the fact that we can never hang out at Elody’s house after five o’clock because her mother will be home, and drunk. We don’t talk about the fact that Ally never eats more than a quarter of what’s on her plate, even though she’s obsessed with cooking and watches the Food Network for hours on end. We don’t talk about the joke that for years trailed me down hallways, into classrooms, and on the bus, that wove its way into my dreams: “What’s red and white and weird all over? Sam Kingston!” And we definitely don’t talk about the fact that Lindsay was the one who made it up. A good friend keeps secrets for you. A best friend helps you keep your own secrets.

Related Characters: Samantha Kingston (speaker), Lindsay Edgecombe, Elody, Ally Harris, Patrick
Page Number: 106-107
Explanation and Analysis:
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Before I Fall PDF

Patrick Quotes in Before I Fall

The Before I Fall quotes below are all either spoken by Patrick or refer to Patrick. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Fate vs. Agency Theme Icon
).
Chapter 2  Quotes

Lindsay, Ally, Elody and I are as close as you can be, but there are still some things we never talk about. For example, even though Lindsay says Patrick is her first and only, this isn’t technically true. Technically, her first was a guy she met at a party when she was visiting her stepbrother at NYU. They smoked pot, split a six-pack, and had sex, and he never knew she hadn’t done it before. We don’t talk about that. We don’t talk about the fact that we can never hang out at Elody’s house after five o’clock because her mother will be home, and drunk. We don’t talk about the fact that Ally never eats more than a quarter of what’s on her plate, even though she’s obsessed with cooking and watches the Food Network for hours on end. We don’t talk about the joke that for years trailed me down hallways, into classrooms, and on the bus, that wove its way into my dreams: “What’s red and white and weird all over? Sam Kingston!” And we definitely don’t talk about the fact that Lindsay was the one who made it up. A good friend keeps secrets for you. A best friend helps you keep your own secrets.

Related Characters: Samantha Kingston (speaker), Lindsay Edgecombe, Elody, Ally Harris, Patrick
Page Number: 106-107
Explanation and Analysis: