Carry On

Carry On
Chapter	31 of 127 (list of chapters)
Published	February 4, 2007 (2007-02-04)
Page count	6
Major characters	Mike, Lucy, Daisy, Augustus, Katie
Minor characters	Paulo, Abbey, David, Tess, Gym Teacher (High School)
Locations	Roseville High School, Roseville Middle School
Collected in	Volume One, Omnibus 1
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Swim class stirs up more than pool water. Augustus makes his debut by telling Daisy she's beautiful, a flashback shows why Lucy won't go near a pool, and somebody is watching her from behind a tree in the woods.

Synopsis

At swim class in the Roseville High School pool, an older Siamese student, Augustus, takes an interest in Daisy. When she insists she's ugly because her curls frizz in water, he answers, "Well, I think you look beautiful," and leaves her blushing. Across the pool, Katie badgers Mike over why Lucy gets to skip swimming, and he'll only say it's private.

Katie's question gets its answer in a flashback to the spring of seventh grade, when Roseville Middle School opens its newly renovated pool. The gym teacher refuses to make any exceptions, and Lucy falls apart at the water's edge. She remembers Mike being swept away and the two of them sinking, fearing most for him: "What if HE can't get out?" She goes unresponsive and faints, and Mike catches her just before she tips into the pool.

At lunch, Augustus seeks Daisy out again and asks to sit beside her. When she asks if he really meant what he said, he answers, "Is this the first time ANYONE'S told you you're beautiful?" Tess glares at Augustus on sight, which only confuses Paulo.

Walking through the woods, Lucy stops at a river and tries to face her fear, remembering Mike urging her to trust that she'll be okay. She manages a few steps toward the bank before she starts to faint again. Jolting awake, she gives up, telling herself, "I don't need his promises. I can handle it. By avoiding it." She walks off without ever noticing Augustus, who watches her from behind a tree with a smile.

Augustus, doing some very casual standing behind a tree.

Character dynamics

• Augustus and Daisy: They start the day as strangers, more or less — Augustus claims he only remembers Daisy from her middle-school cheerleading days. Over one school day he calls her beautiful at the pool, then seeks her out at lunch to insist he meant it. Daisy finds the attention flattering and a bit unnerving ("What do you want to sit here for..?"), and his compliments land squarely on her worst insecurity. She now has an attentive older admirer, whether she asked for one or not.
• Lucy and Mike: Mike has been coaxing Lucy toward the water for a while now, promising she'll be okay if she trusts it. He isn't there to see her try at the river, and he isn't there to see her fail. Lucy decides on her own that his promises aren't needed, and that avoiding water will do just fine.

Trivia & observations

Veronica's rough draft of the chapter's final page, shared alongside her confirmation of who's behind the tree.

• The watcher on the final page is hard to make out on-panel. Veronica confirmed on Tumblr in 2019 that he's Augustus, not Mike, adding "God Volume 1 was so freaken edgy".
• Augustus's story about a little brother who played middle-school soccer was invented. In Veronica's words, "Augustus was a damn slimy liar!!"
• Veronica has said Augustus was introduced in this chapter as "a pseudo-unwanted love interest to Daisy, who would be the opposite of Abbey".
• Veronica's commentary under the fifth page shares that she really was excused from high-school swimming for her period, and that because hers ran over a week, she was later made to swim while still bleeding.
• Per Veronica's commentary under the third page, Mike was unconscious for much of the original water incident and "didn't think what happened was that big of a deal, but it really took a toll on Lucy".
• Oliver's commentary under the final page nicknames Augustus "Final Fantasy Cat".

Related chapters

• Follow Me: The chapter that comes directly after this one. Once you've seen Augustus lurking behind that tree, the title alone is enough to raise an eyebrow.
• Love My Way: According to Veronica, the authors' old favorite arc was Daisy's self-confidence arc, which starts around this chapter and culminates in Love My Way.
• Pillow Talk: Veronica has said Augustus was originally planned as a sinister antagonist, and stayed on that track until scripting Pillow Talk revealed his chemistry with Lucy.