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I Love You, Man · 2009 — Chapter 17 of 19 · 2'27" · B2

Zooey Leaves Peter Before the Wedding, Explained: good faith

Peter admits he lent Sydney money without telling Zooey, and the secret lands harder than the money: "We're getting married. You can't just keep stuff like this from me." When he also can't explain why he wants to marry her, Zooey decides to stay with friends two weeks before the wedding.

What happens

Sydney gets into a fight with Lou Ferrigno on Peter's behalf, which costs Peter the Ferrigno commission and the development property he wanted to buy. Back home, Peter confesses that he loaned Sydney money, and Zooey is furious he hid it from her. When Peter can't say why he is marrying her, she leaves to stay with Denise and Barry.

Couple fightsMarriage troubleConfrontingConfessingCoupleB2fastamerican
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on my wayhotheadafford itgood faith

00:00 / 02:27
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Phrase of the scene

good faith

honest intention

Zooey suggests writing a check to show the sellers Peter is serious.

They paid a deposit in good faith.

Also in this scene

  • on my way

    heading there now

  • hothead

    a quick-tempered person

  • afford it

    have enough money for it

  • keep stuff

    hide things

  • take it back

    retract what was said

Everything marked in this scene

25 notes across 49 lines

Phrase · B2get out of someone's face

back off from someone

Look, please get your hand out of my face and stop calling me Hulk.
Soundout of my

Link out of my into one smooth run.

Look, please get your hand out of my face and stop calling me Hulk.
Phrase · A2be on one's way to somewhere

heading there now

Peter tells Zooey on the phone that he is already heading to the marriage bureau.

I'm on my way to the marriage bureau.
Slang · B2Fuck you

a heavy insult — A heavy insult for rage; never in polite speech.

Fuck you, Lou Ferrigno!
Slang · B1shit

damn, oh no — A swear for sudden trouble; too crude for work.

Oh, shit.
Slang · B2sleeper hold

a wrestling choke hold — Wrestling jargon, often borrowed as a joke.

-Easy. Don't fight it. -The Hulk has me in a sleeper hold, -and I don't think I can take him. . . -Easy. That's it.
Slang · B2the fuck

an intensifier swear — A crude intensifier for disbelief or anger.

Why the fuck would anyone get in a fight with Lou Ferrigno?
Phrase · B1stand up for someone

defend someone

Sydney's a hothead. He thought he was standing up for me.
Phrase · B1be able to afford something

have enough money for it

Peter tells Zooey that without the commission he cannot afford the property.

Without the Ferrigno commission, I'm not gonna be able to afford it.
Phrase · A2save up

put money aside

You have some money saved up.
Phrase · B1write someone a check

pay someone by check

Can't you just write them a check, you know, to show your good faith?
Phrase · B2show good faith

honest intention

Zooey suggests writing a check to show the sellers Peter is serious.

Can't you just write them a check, you know, to show your good faith?
Grammar · B1Can't you just

rhetorical question: Can't you just frames a suggestion as a mild challenge.

Can't you just write them a check, you know, to show your good faith?
Phrase · B1be short on money

not have enough money

I mean, it's just I'm gonna be short. That's it.
SoundYou lent

Link you and lent, stressing lent to show the catch.

Wait. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. You lent Sydney money?
Phrase · B2be tied up in something

locked into something

For an investment. All his money's tied up in equities.
Phrase · A2be getting married

about to wed

Why do you think we're getting married?
Grammar · B1do you think

embedded question: Do you think sits inside the question and asks for the other person's view.

Why do you think we're getting married?
Phrase · A2marry someone

take me as a spouse

Two weeks before our wedding and you don't know why you're marrying me?
Phrase · B1take something back

retract what was said

Peter regrets his question and asks Zooey to pretend he never said it.

Just forget. . . Take it back 1 0 seconds before I asked it, and let's live in that time.
Grammar · B2I wish you would have

wish + would have: Wish plus would have marks regret about the past that cannot be changed.

But I wish you would have answered the question before you proposed to me.
Phrase · B2for all someone cares

someone does not care at all

I'm gonna go stay with Denise and Barry, and you and your bud Sydney can hang out and beat up Lou Ferrigno and go to Rush concerts and ride a tandem bicycle down the Venice Boardwalk for all I care.
Phrase · B1beat someone up

attack and hit someone

I'm gonna go stay with Denise and Barry, and you and your bud Sydney can hang out and beat up Lou Ferrigno and go to Rush concerts and ride a tandem bicycle down the Venice Boardwalk for all I care.
Soundfor all I

Blur for all and land the stress on care.

I'm gonna go stay with Denise and Barry, and you and your bud Sydney can hang out and beat up Lou Ferrigno and go to Rush concerts and ride a tandem bicycle down the Venice Boardwalk for all I care.
Slang · A2bud

buddy, pal — A casual word for a friend, sometimes sarcastic.

I'm gonna go stay with Denise and Barry, and you and your bud Sydney can hang out and beat up Lou Ferrigno and go to Rush concerts and ride a tandem bicycle down the Venice Boardwalk for all I care.

Zooey Leaves Peter Before the Wedding, explained

What's really going on

The fight with Ferrigno is the visible disaster, but the real one is quieter: Peter has been keeping his problems to himself. He hid the loan to Sydney, and when Zooey confronts him, the issue is not the money but the secrecy — "You can't just keep stuff like this from me." Then Peter makes it worse by repeating Sydney's question about why he is marrying her, and admitting he never thought about it. Zooey's exit line lists everything she is tired of losing him to. What looked like a friendship subplot has become the thing threatening the wedding.

Theme

MarriagePeter's secret loan and his inability to explain why he is marrying Zooey put the wedding in doubt weeks before it happens.
TrustThe fight is less about money than about secrecy: Zooey cannot accept that Peter kept something important from her.

What you'll learn

  • Defending a friend can cost you more than a fight.
  • The hidden loan matters less than the hiding.
  • Doubting the wedding is what truly wounds Zooey.
  • Anger here turns into exaggerated, weary humor.

Listen for

  • out of my — Link out of my into one smooth run.
  • You lent — Link you and lent, stressing lent to show the catch.
  • for all I — Blur for all and land the stress on care.
We're getting married. You can't just keep stuff like this from me.

Zooey's core complaint: as a couple about to marry, Peter should not be hiding financial decisions or problems from her.

Two weeks before our wedding and you don't know why you're marrying me?

Zooey's shocked response to Peter's admission that he couldn't answer Sydney's question about why he loves her.

I'm gonna go stay with Denise and Barry, and you and your bud Sydney can hang out and beat up Lou Ferrigno and go to Rush concerts and ride a tandem bicycle down the Venice Boardwalk for all I care.

Zooey's exit speech, listing everything she feels Peter now prioritizes over her and saying she is done caring.

The thing is, Peter, I get why you would wonder that. I do.

Zooey acknowledging that Peter's doubt is understandable, even as she is hurt that he only faced the question now.

Questions about this scene

Why does Zooey get so upset about the loan?

It isn't only the money — Peter hid an important decision from her right before their wedding, and she sees that secrecy as a break of trust.

Why does Peter bring up Sydney's question about marriage?

Sydney had asked why Peter is marrying Zooey, and Peter couldn't answer; the doubt follows him home until he repeats it to Zooey at the worst moment.

What does 'good faith' mean?

It means honest intent or sincerity; writing a check in good faith shows a buyer is serious without needing a full contract yet.

Where does Zooey go after the fight?

She says she will stay with Denise and Barry, leaving Peter two weeks before the wedding to spend time with Sydney instead.

Why does Zooey mention a tandem bicycle?

She is listing the things she imagines Peter and Sydney doing together; when Peter says they never rode bicycles, it shows how far her jealousy has run.

I Love You, Man · 19 chapters

All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 18sick ofPeter Confronts Sydney Over Billboards
Chapter 1put a down payment onPeter Proposes to ZooeyChapter 2take the leapPeter Misses the Joshua Tree TripChapter 3strike up a conversationPeter Tries to Make FriendsChapter 4get the hang of itPeter's Awkward Man-DatesChapter 5let one ripPeter Meets Sydney at an Open HouseChapter 6in a jiffPeter Calls Sydney for a Man-DateChapter 7Hands downPeter and Sydney's First Man-DateChapter 8wet my beakTevin Tries to Wet His BeakChapter 9man cavePeter Tours Sydney's Man CaveChapter 10squeeze inPeter Bonds with Sydney Over MusicChapter 11rock your worldPeter Introduces Zooey to RushChapter 12smoking hotPeter Introduces Sydney to His FamilyChapter 13between you and mePeter and Zooey Fight About PrivacyChapter 14bail onSydney Tempts Peter to Skip HBOChapter 15weirded outZooey Confronts Peter About SydneyChapter 16hit it offPeter Asks Sydney to Be Best ManWatching · Chapter 17good faithZooey Leaves Peter Before the WeddingChapter 18sick ofPeter Confronts Sydney Over BillboardsChapter 19broke the moldPeter and Sydney Make Up
Chapter 17 of 19 · about 10 min to go