In Belly Conklin's defence—here's why she doesn’t deserve the hate she gets

The Summer I Turned Pretty has officially come to an end with a very happy ending for *spoiler alert* Bonrad fans. And while everyone is celebrating the happiness—including Jeremiah fans because of his storyline (we won’t spoil this one)—we can’t help but think about all the Belly haters who’ve thrashed and gutted the character for her very human choices. I mean, put yourself in her shoes and think about it, we’ve all been 16, we’ve all had questionable romantic choices, and we've all made some poor decisions about them. Do we regret it? Yes. Do we hate ourselves for it? Hell nah! Because we grew up, learned from the mess, and carried those lessons forward.

Now, we know this alone won’t erase the Belly hate—but maybe it’ll soften it a little. So let’s take a look at some of the supposedly horrible things she's done and break them down from her point of view. Here are a few scenarios:

The real question should be: What is wrong with the brothers? Jeremiah knew that Belly had a crush on his big brother for the longest time. And from the looks of it, everyone, including Susannah, Steven, and maybe Laurel too, knew about it. So in what scenario did he think hitting on her would be a good idea? Especially when Susannah herself has said that Jere was like a big brother to Belly. But it’s not just him swooping in—whether it was during that summer in the first season or after Belly and Conrad broke up in the second season—it’s the fact that he sabotaged them even before they got together. Remember the fireworks on the deck in season one? Straight up toxic. 

And then there’s Conrad. Just FYI, I’m Team Connie, but even I can’t ignore his bad timing and ill choices. After all, why should Belly get all the hate? Now we know he was going through it after Susannah’s death, but treating Belly like crap and not dealing with his problems is no way to go. You can’t really blame Belly for moving on (even if there’s a small part of us questioning the “who” bit) and then deciding to confess your love a day before your brother’s wedding; that's just asking for drama. 

Belly kept stringing Jeremiah along

Belly broke Conrad’s heart

The narrative also leaned heavily on Belly being cruel to Conrad, dangling feelings, breaking him down, and ultimately “choosing wrong.” But Conrad wasn’t exactly the tortured saint fans wanted him to be. His walls weren’t just about grief. He was cold, dismissive, and emotionally unavailable at the worst moments. He pushed Belly away repeatedly, only to lash out when she drifted towards Jeremiah. And post-breakup, he wasn’t above pettiness, taunting Jeremiah about Belly’s choice, throwing shade, and slipping into toxic “you’ll regret this” energy. It’s easy to frame Belly as the heartbreaker, but Conrad’s inability to communicate and his passive-aggressive jabs made him just as complicit in the chaos.

Belly made everything about herself 

Ignoring the fact that the show was literally about her, yes, Belly does often make things about herself, but isn’t that the universal teenager experience? Back in season one, her choosing to be a part of the debutante ball wasn’t just about tradition or the fact that Susannah was pushing her to do it; it was about Belly wanting her own moment after years of being seen as the dorky little sister. Sure, her deciding to confess her feelings to Conrad right as he was crumbling under Susannah’s illness was not ideal. But she didn't do it because she didn’t care, but because she hadn’t yet learned how to step outside her own emotions in the middle of someone else’s grief.

At Susannah’s funeral, Belly and Conrad ended up fighting, turning a moment of collective loss into personal drama, which can, agreeably, look selfish to some, like she couldn’t stop making Susannah's death about herself. In reality, it was the mess of teenage grief clashing with heartbreak. Belly wasn’t trying to overshadow Susannah’s memory; she was a 16-year-old who hadn’t figured out how to separate her pain from everyone else’s.

Of course, it’s frustrating to watch. But it’s also painfully real. At 16, your world revolves around you. But while most of us lived our main-character phase in private, Belly’s had to unfold on screen, in all its cringey, complicated glory.

Belly ran off to Paris and had a rebound after her wedding got cancelled 

Can we talk about how iconic the Paris escape actually was? Her engagement didn’t just quietly fizzle out; it collapsed in full view of family, friends, and what felt like the entire Cousins Beach community. Everyone had an opinion, from Laurel’s protectiveness to Taylor’s unsolicited pep talks, and Jeremiah himself oscillating between guilt-tripping and tantrums. The gossip, the pity stares, and the constant reminders would have been suffocating for anyone. So, Belly booking that flight was survival, not selfish. 

And yes, she had a rebound in Paris. Messy? Of course. But let’s be real, who hasn’t clung to the wrong person just to prove they could move forward? It was no different than Jeremiah using a ring to erase his infidelity with Lacie Barone or Conrad hiding behind his moods. Belly’s only "mistake" was choosing to stumble forward somewhere new, with croissants and café au lait in hand, instead of sulking in her childhood bedroom while everyone dissected her love life. But can you blame her, really?

Belly is a bad friend to Taylor

This criticism cuts deep because Taylor is Belly’s ride-or-die—but let’s not pretend Taylor always played fair. Sure, Belly sometimes ditched her for boy drama, like during the debutante summer, but Taylor also crossed lines. Like we mentioned above, Taylor kept pushing her opinions of Conrad onto Belly, insisting that Jeremiah was the better option, and that she deserved someone “safe” and “reliable,” even when Belly made it clear she didn’t see him that way. That’s not guidance, that’s pressure.

At the end of the day, Belly isn’t perfect, and that’s the whole point. She’s messy, selfish at times, and prone to bad decisions, just like the rest of us were as teenagers. But instead of hating her for it, maybe we should see her for what she really is: a teenage girl figuring it out in real time, mistakes and all. And honestly, would anyone watch the show if it were all sunshine and roses? 

Lead image: IMDb

Also read: The summer she turned petty: Why Belly was and still is the problematic one

Also read: Your guide to ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ book series