Uglies Chapter 2 Summary

Best Friends Forever

  • At Garbo Mansions, where Peris lives, there's a big black-tie party going on. Everyone is in suits and fancy dresses.
  • This is what parties are like in the future: (1) someone uses a bungee jacket with hover technology to jump off (or fall off) a building—like with a bungee cord, he just bounces around, safely;
  • (2) people are setting off "safety fireworks" and being drunk. So the pretties have no rules and they have lots of toys that are designed to be safe for drunk people to play with;
  • and (3), at a black-tie event, Tally really sticks out in her pig mask since she's not dressed appropriately for this party. (So the future is just like the present in some ways.)
  • Tally tries to escape the pretties and just happens to find Peris in an elevator. (The elevator won't listen to Tally because she's not wearing an interface ring.)
  • Peris is pretty now, so we get to hear about how we're biologically programmed to enjoy prettiness: pretty eyes and skin means "trust me" and "I'm healthy" and "are you going to finish that sandwich?"
  • Peris is a little embarrassed about his ugly friend, it seems; and he doesn't even have the "best friends forever" scar on his hand because he got all new skin when they made him pretty. (Do you think they let you keep your old skin?)
  • So how can they get Tally out of the building without causing a scene? Her pig mask has dissolved, so Peris takes her to the roof where she can jump off wearing a bungee jacket.
  • But first, to get a bungee jacket, Tally sets off a fake fire alarm. And then she jumps off a building. In other words, a typical night.