Expiration Dates

Jake is the primary love interest. He is a 35-year-old Jewish man who works in Los Angeles as a television executive. Jake is a widower who lost his wife to illness six or seven years prior. He is earnest, sweet, and considerate, and he tells Daphne early into their dating relationship that he is only interested in something deep and serious. One of Jake’s primary narrative functions is to illustrate Daphne’s resigned, passive attitude to her romantic life because of the notes: Jake actively moves their relationship forward, and Daphne passively agrees to his suggestions, including that they move in together and get engaged, despite her doubts.

Jake has a quirk of writing down in a notebook every time he sees someone wearing black Doc Martin boots, which he interprets as a sign that his deceased wife is watching over him. He also has a defective old Chevrolet that he keeps despite its constant mechanical issues because it was a gift from his wife. Though Daphne does not at first recognize it, Jake is still deeply wounded by the loss of his wife and partially motivated to “save” Daphne because he failed to save her.

Jake and Hugo are foils. Where Daphne’s love for Jake feels safe and comforting, her relationship with Hugo was fiery and passionate. Daphne’s reflections on her relationships with the two men help her understand what kind of love she wants. Though Daphne breaks off her engagement with Jake, he shapes her character development by forcing her to make a difficult relationship decision for the first time in her life.

Hugo is Daphne’s best friend and the secondary love interest of the plot. He is a real estate executive who works primarily with wealthy investors in commercial property. Daphne and Hugo date for three months, at which point Daphne breaks up with him despite his protests because of the note she received at the start of their relationship. After their breakup, Daphne and Hugo become best friends.

At 40 years old, Hugo is attractive and self-confident. He is familiar with all the coolest places in Los Angeles and seems to know everyone. He dates frequently and seems to be seeing a different woman every time Daphne talks to him, but he still has feelings for Daphne, hinted at early in the novel through his jealous, possessive behavior when he first meets Jake. In a variation that combines the common “friends to lovers” and “second chance” romance tropes, the novel ends with Daphne leaving Jake and returning to Hugo.

Hugo is responsible for the novel’s inciting event: the note that tells Daphne that she will be with Jake forever, which Hugo later admits he wrote to show Daphne what it feels like to have to make a romantic choice. His decision instigates the novel’s romantic conflict and Daphne’s character growth. As a foil to Jake, Hugo embodies epic, tumultuous love—the kind of love that Daphne ultimately becomes brave enough to pursue.

Tae is Daphne’s college boyfriend. He is a pre-med student, and they meet in a biology course, at which point Daphne receives the note that declares that they will date for two years and two months. Daphne describes him as handsome, with a serious and precise personality. Just as they are beginning to see each other, Daphne suffers a major heart failure and is diagnosed with the heart condition that will likely kill her. Tae remains by her side through the initial diagnosis, surgeries, and treatments. Though Daphne knows that they have a time limit because of the note, she falls in love with him and hopes that they will have more time. Having stayed by her side throughout the progression of her illness, Tae says that he cannot stay with her after she begins to recover. Daphne is devastated and vows never to doubt the note’s predictions again.

In addition to deepening her faith in the notes, Daphne’s relationship with Tae leads her to form a deep-seated connection between her health and her romantic prospects as she grows to believe that telling romantic partners about her condition will cause her relationships to suffer; this belief is one that she struggles to overcome throughout the novel.