Study Guide

Big Little Lies Chapter 13

By Liane Moriarty

Chapter 13

Celeste, Perry and the twins are going to pick up school uniforms.
And, this time, their life doesn't seem amazing and envy-provoking.
Celeste feels tender and detached, the way she always does "the morning after an argument."
Uh-oh. What kind of argument?
The night before, the kids were staying at grandma's. Celeste had made a seafood dinner.
Everything was going great.
And then...the computer froze. Perry offered to fix it…but he couldn't.
From there, everything went sideways. Celeste and Perry fight until five a.m. and then have tearful make-up sex.
We don't learn exactly what happens during the fight, but we know that Perry hits Celeste. He hits her hard enough that her shoulder is bruised and sore the next day.
And we learn that this happens often.
Every time it happens, Perry brings Celeste a piece of expensive jewelry. She never wears it, because it's tainted with violent memories.
Back in the present, Perry, Celeste and the twins run into Renata. She wastes no time in talking about Jane and Ziggy—she says Ziggy choked Amabella, and that Jane is a delusional woman who can't accept blame for her kid's actions.
Perry seems very concerned about the twins hanging out with Ziggy. He doesn't want them to be in the presence of a bad influence.
The guy seems completely unaware of how hypocritical he's being.
Celeste imagines asking Renata, point-blank, "Does your husband hit you? My husband hits me."