This 'The Summer I Turned Pretty' Theory Involving Belly and Jeremiah Has Fans Seriously Divided

First, let's pull up a few receipts from season one. After arriving at Cousins Beach with her family, Belly notices something off about her childhood crush, Conrad. He's moodier, closed off and mysterious. And she eventually learns that it's because of his mom's health issues. To be fair, this is a lot to deal with alone. However, his fluctuating moods and negative attitude towards Belly are rude and unnecessary, considering that she is only trying to be supportive. (Yes, Conrad, we get that you're hurt, but does that give you license to brush Belly off? Or embarrass her in front of the family by pretending you forgot her birthday?)

Another detail worth pointing out is that Conrad knows how Belly feels, but still goes after Nicole (Summer Madison). He only changes his approach toward Belly after noticing that other guys (aka Cam and Jeremiah) show an interest in her, proving he just likes her attention. And the fact that his mom has to beg him to ask her out to the debutante ball says a lot.

But all it takes for Belly to come back around is a heartfelt apology. Despite her connection with Jeremiah (we'll get to this in a sec), she can't resist fulfilling her childhood dream of being with Conrad.

Fast-forward to season two and it feels like history is repeating itself. Conrad is spiraling, pushing away the people who care for him most as he struggles to handle family drama on his own. Belly, ever so loyal, still does what she can to help. And Jeremiah—although initially resentful towards Belly for leaving him hanging—clearly has lingering feelings for his bestie, judging by the way he looks at her.

Perhaps Belly doesn't see it yet, but the right guy has been right under her nose the whole time. Jere is by no means perfect. (Him giving Belly the cold shoulder after his mom's death is seriously harsh...) But he is Belly's best friend and he knows her better than anyone. They're close enough to share secret wall knocks and poke fun at each other. Heck, even Cam is observant enough to notice that they give off a romantic vibe, prompting him to eventually confront Belly about it.

Now, just four episodes into season two, Belly and Jere have finally made up after months of not speaking—and it's almost as if they never stopped talking because the chemistry is so solid. Sure, Belly still thinks of Conrad and the good times they've shared, but it doesn't change that he's a troubled soul who isn't ready to commit to a relationship and, quite frankly, isn't sure of what he wants just yet.

See, the starry-eyed, younger version of Belly focused on Conrad's charm, but now, it seems like she's finally ditching the rose-colored glasses. Conrad may have won her over, and he may be a sweet boyfriend to Belly for a short time, but he can't sustain that relationship for very long. And we're willing to bet that Belly will realize that Jere—her childhood BFF who spends countless summer days forfeiting his plans to keep her company while she is sick—has been the one for her all along.

Not surprisingly, fans have been sounding off on about this love triangle since season one. And if you take a look at any Reddit thread involving Team Jere or Team Conrad, you’ll see that fans are pretty divided. In one post, someone said, “Conrad. I am not the biggest fan of the whole emo, broody love interest trope, but I feel like this is an exception since he was carrying all of the emotions associated with his mother's cancer returning and trying to protect Jeremiah from what he was going through.”

In defense of Jeremiah, however, another fan wrote, “Team Jeremiah all the way. His honesty about his feelings was such a big contrast against Conrad’s moodiness. And after the chemistry in the pool scene and the car scene, there’s no way that I could see Belly and Conrad in a relationship." Ditto.

The first four episodes are now available to stream on Prime Video, with new episodes airing weekly until the finale on August 18.