Belly Conklin is gearing up for an exciting and emotional new summer adventure when Prime Video’s The Summer I Turned Pretty returns for its highly anticipated second season in July. The series, based on Jenny Han’s book trilogy, takes place across various summers for the Conklin and Fisher families and is a look at first love, true love, and the most beautiful love you can share with a person: unconditional love, both romantic and platonic.
Across the pop culture realm, a few people are synonymous with the word love, one of them being music icon Taylor Swift. So it surprised no one when many of her tunes were a part of the iconic soundtrack for The Summer I Turned Pretty, and they helped create fan-favorite scenes across the seven-episode first season. Everything from moments between best friends to missed kisses and romantic dances had Swift songs playing softly in the background, and every time we hear them now, we think of the show we just can’t get enough of.
While season one laid out a lot of the storyline for us, introducing us to characters we’d soon fall in love with and helping weave a beautifully detailed picture of lifelong friends and life-changing romance, season two is going to be emotional in a different way. We’re positive we’ll hear more Swift lyrics to help us through it, and we recommend getting your best TSwift playlists ready now and grabbing as many tissues as possible.
For now, here’s how Taylor Swift helped narrate the television series that stole all of our hearts with the addition of some of her most iconic and beautiful songs.
Belly and Taylor talk about summer wishes — “Cruel Summer”
While Belly is gearing up to head to the summer beach house and see Conrad for the first time during a very important summer, she’s also sharing a chat with her friend, Taylor. Taylor has been Belly’s bestie for years, and while Taylor intends to visit her over the summer, they will miss one another.
Talking about Belly’s summer wishes and how she’s not going to Cousins Beach as the same Belly she was before, Swift’s “Cruel Summer” plays in the background, hinting to fans that it’s not going to be a smooth path for Belly when she sees the boy she’s always loved.
“Killing me slow, out the window
I’m always waiting for you to be waiting below
Devils roll the dice; angels roll their eyes
What doesn’t kill me makes me want you more
And it’s new, the shape of your body
It’s blue, the feeling I’ve got
And it’s ooh, whoa, oh
It’s a cruel summer
It’s cool; that’s what I tell ’em
No rules in breakable heaven
But ooh, whoa, oh
It’s a cruel summer
With you“
Sometimes cruel summers can be the most exciting, and even though Swift’s song isn’t about picture-perfect romance, it’s a song that anyone who has felt a passionate bond with someone can relate to.
Belly has heart eyes for Conrad — “Lover”
One of the most iconic moments in The Summer I Turned Pretty is that in which Belly sees Conrad for the first time during the summer; she intends to make all of her dreams come true. The way they look at one another is one of the most telling things we’ve seen in recent pop culture history. We haven’t rooted for a couple this hard since Peyton and Lucas or Elena and Stefan.
Belly and Conrad see magic when they look at one another, and there’s no better song to have been playing at this moment.
“We could let our friends crash in the living room
This is our place; we make the call
And I’m highly suspicious that everyone who sees you wants you
I’ve loved you three summers now, honey, but I want ’em all
Can I go where you go?
Can we always be this close forever and ever?
And take me out, and take me home (forever and ever)
You’re my, my, my, my
Lover“
Belly has loved Conrad for three summers now and, honestly — for many more, too.
Belly and Conrad almost kiss — “False God”
The moment when Belly and Conrad almost share their first kiss is a big moment for fans for several reasons. Belly has been getting mixed signals from Conrad all summer, and she’s growing frustrated with playing the waiting game. This is the moment she’s been waiting for, and the person who ruins the moment for them is Conrad’s brother, Jeremiah.
This is also the moment when Jeremiah makes the conscious decision to move forward in his affection towards Belly, and we have to admit, we’ve never been on Team Jer.
“We were crazy to think
Crazy to think that this could work
Remember how I said I’d die for you?
We were stupid to jump
In the ocean separating us
Remember how I’d fly to you?
And I can’t talk to you when you’re like this
Staring out the window like I’m not your favorite town“
So yeah, at this moment, “False God” feels like the right song for everything Belly and Conrad are experiencing. Firework or no firework, he should have gone right back to that moment and kissed her!
Conrad sweeps Belly off of her feet — “Taylor Swift’s ‘”The Way I Loved You”
Talk about a perfect moment! If you were to ask anyone who has watched The Summer I Turned Pretty what their favorite moment of the series has been; it would likely be this one.
Belly has longed for moments like this with Conrad, seeing him in a suit, herself in a white gown — sharing a romantic dance. She wants this big love together; she hopes to have moments like this forever, and while her date to the Debutante Ball was Jeremiah, Conrad is the one who stepped up in this big moment.
“I miss screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain
And it’s 2 a.m., and I’m cursing your name
So in love that you act insane
And that’s the way I loved you
Breaking down and coming undone
It’s a roller coaster kind of rush
And I never knew I could feel that much
And that’s the way I loved you“
“The Way I Loved You” sums up every feeling Belly has ever shared with Conrad, and it’s in this moment that Belly will be in the dark for the last time; the next time we see them together, Conrad is able to take the weight off of his shoulders and Belly allows herself to see him through a more understanding perspective.
Belly and Conrad finally get their big kiss — “This Love (Taylor’s Version)”
To wrap up the first season of The Summer I Turned Pretty, we hear the most perfect Taylor Swift song at the most ideal moment. Conrad is talking to Belly about feeling better, about how he hopes for so many things, wants to tell her so many things, and wants to do so many things…Belly gets standoffish for a moment, wondering if she’s taking advantage of the situation they find themselves in.
Conrad tells her that it’s not about that, he needs Belly in his life, but Belly doesn’t want Conrad to need her; she wants him to want her. Conrad says the perfect thing as the song kicks in, and they finally share a kiss. Conrad tells Belly he does want her, and the moment is tangible. It takes you back to your own first romance and how it almost felt like every moment was life or death, somehow.
“This love is good
This love is bad
This love is alive, back from the dead…
These hands had to let it go free, and
This love came back to me…
This love left a permanent mark
This love is glowing in the dark…
These hands had to let it go free, and
This love came back to me…
Your kiss, my cheek
I watched you leave
Your smile, my ghost
I fell to my knees
When you’re young, you just run
But you come back to what you need“
You come back to what you need; that’s what happened for Belly and Conrad, they came back to each other at just the right moment. We couldn’t have asked for anything better. You can watch the romantic first season of The Summer I Turned Pretty on Prime Video now; season two is slated to premiere in July.