Dream State

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of illness, death, mental illness, and addiction.

Cece sets the central conflict in motion when she makes a momentous choice to end her brief marriage to Charlie in order to be with his best friend, Garrett. Cece is a warm, smart, and caring person whom people are drawn to. Ironically, she is initially wary of Garrett, finding him dull and negative, and she responds to him with witty sarcasm. However, her feelings quickly change in a way that Cece herself cannot explain but decides to trust. Despite her genuine love for Garrett, however, she spends her life weighing the consequences of her decision, attempting to gauge whether she has made the right choice by breaking off her relationship with Charlie. Often, she finds herself disappointed and frustrated by her marriage, which, as she ages, seems increasingly mundane and passionless as an inexplicable emotional distance grows between her and Garrett. This distance makes her long, at times, to discover the life she could have had with Charlie—even though she feels guilty for thoughts that betray Garrett. Indeed, her adult life is frequently defined by guilt as her loyalties shift between the two men.