One of Us Is Lying Season 1 Episode 5 Recap – One of Us Is Cracking

Bronwyn and Robyn go to the interrogation room to meet Detective Wheeler. Flashback: Bronwyn struggled in a chemistry experiment. Mr. C told her she couldn‘t get the extra credit for it anymore, but she insisted on staying for half an hour more. Mr. C left to find a janitor who could lock up after her because it’s way past school hours. He left the room. Bronwyn took the opportunity to steal the exam questions from his filing cabinet.

Back to the present, Bronwyn explains to Detective Wheeler the four of them met because they wanted to talk to someone who knows what it’s like. When asked about the cheating post, Brownyn says she studied hard. Detective Wheeler then shows her footage of her confronting Simon and pushing him multiple times. Before she can even defend herself, Robyn asks where the detective got the footage. Detective Wheeler reveals they recently obtained a copy of Simon’s hard drive. She says it also contained an unpublished draft of Simon’s post about Bronwyn. Robyn tells the detective the conversation is over.

Addy arrives at school sporting her new boy cut. She confidently walks even when everyone laughs at her until Jake passes by and laughs at her too. He kills her vibe. Bronwyn approaches Cooper and asks him to meet her. Jake sees this and warns Cooper he can lose everything by being friends with the rest of the Bayview Four.

Brownyn sends Nate a string of messages but gets no reply.

At a diner, Nate sits at a booth with his mother. She explains she tried reaching out to him and his father, and she owes him many apologies for not protecting him from her illness. She asks if it was Bronwyn he was with the other night and says she looks the same. Nate tells her Bronwyn thought she was dead because it is what he told people. She says she knew her presence was harmful to Nate back then, so she had to leave, but now she wants to do right by him.

Cooper arrives at an abandoned amusement park and sees Bronwyn and Addy already there. Bronwyn tells them Nate might not come. She also says the cops have a copy of Simon’s hard drive. Addy asks if they found the laptop, but Brownyn says they only have the hard drive. Cooper asks how it was possible just as Nate comes. Bronwyn confronts him for not answering her messages, so Cooper and Addy think something is going on between them.  Bronwyn and Nate deny it.

Nate tells them his mom is back in town. Cooper and Addy get shocked to learn his mother is still alive, and he has been lying about it all along. Nate lashes out at Bronwyn because he wouldn’t have to tell them about his mother if not for her. He says he doesn’t owe anyone an explanation. Bronwyn tells them he cannot blame them for freaking out when he lied about a big thing. He then says since they’re talking about lies, he’ll reveal who stole Simon’s laptop. Cooper and Addy freak out even more upon learning this. Bronwyn explains she took it, but she was going to give it back, yet she cannot do it without looking suspicious. She says Simon knew Cooper’s real secret, and he was ready to post it, but someone changed it.

Addy calls Bronwyn a liar and calls her out for giving them orders from the start pretending like they were a team. She also calls out Nate for letting Brownyn manipulate them. Cooper tells them meeting them was a mistake and leaves with Addy. Bronwyn tells them she asked to meet so that she can warn them because the cops are going to question them too.

Cooper arrives home. His father tells him Detective Wheeler wants them at the station the next day to ask some questions. Copper tells his dad she might bring up some gossip about him. “It’s not true, but for some reason, Simon might have thought that I was, like, into guys,” he says. His father reveals he had an inkling for some time already, given what happened in Mississippi, and he knows Cooper was hiding something from him. “So, you and Keely, is that for show?” he finally asks. Cooper nods, and his father tells him he is proud of him for doing what he had to do to make sure his future stays intact.

Bronwyn explains to her mother and Robyn that the footage was from when Simon wasn’t pulling his weight on a project. Robyn tells her she shouldn’t be lying to the police at that time because they are close to making an arrest based on circumstantial evidence. She urges Bronwyn to tell her more, but Brownyn walks out.

At school, Addy asks Cooper what she’ll tell the police if they ask about him. She asks if she should tell them she knows about Keely and him. Cooper tells her not to mention Keely at all. Addy tells Cooper whoever changed his secret must be trying to protect him, and it could be Keely. Cooper tells her it couldn’t have been her because it was lunchtime when the post went live, but the timestamp says 3:13 PM. Addy says she could have changed it to throw them off. Cooper tells her they’re being paranoid and tells her not to talk to Bronwyn and Nate about it because he doesn’t trust them.

In the interrogation room, Detective Wheeler asks Cooper who he was talking to at the parking lot after his showcase. He says he talked to many people that day and cannot remember. The detective pries more and tells him it might be someone he’s involved with. Cooper’s father tells her she must have mixed things up. Detective Wheeler tells Cooper they might talk to him, whoever he was, because they have evidence that before Simon died, he intended to out Cooper to his peers. She also says they know somebody changed the post, and his secret was the only one altered. She explains his secret could jeopardize Cooper’s future in the major leagues, and they’re talking about millions of dollars, so he has a mighty good reason to keep the secret hidden in any way he could. Cooper tells her he would never hurt anyone.

Detective Wheeler then tells them they have obtained a court order to unseal his juvenile record in Mississippi.

Cooper goes to Kris, who is in the middle of trying to get his computer to work. He tells Kris there is a chance the police will talk to him even though he did not give them his name because someone saw them talking after the game. Kris tells him he’s got a lot on his plate: midterms, work, and his term paper evaporated out of nowhere. He does not have time to worry about the police coming to ask him about an illicit relationship with an underage high school student who happens to be a murder suspect. He says he’s done.

Cooper tries to get Kris’ computer to work. While waiting, Kris asks him if his father already knows about them. Copper tells him his father wasn’t surprised, and he was proud of him for keeping it a secret. Cooper gets Kris’ term paper back; Kris lights up. Cooper asks him if they’re still celebrating his birthday together, and Kris tells him he has already bought his birthday present.

Nate’s mother tells him to consider coming with her to where she lives because it is off the grid. He tells her running would make him look guilty, but she tells him he’ll look as guilty as he would be in handcuffs. His father tells him he won’t be a fugitive if he leaves before an arrest is made. When asked about what is there for him to stay, he stares at his phone and calls Bronwyn.

Bronwyn ignores Nate’s call because she is busy preparing for school. Maeve asks her why she threatened Simon on tape. Flashback: Bronwyn goes to Maeve’s room to use her printer, but the room is empty. She proceeds to open Maeve’s computer and sees a message from Simon: “Damn. So hot.” Another message: “The first pic is still my fav though….” This enrages Bronwyn, so she goes to Simon’s house and confronts Simon. Hence, the recorded video that the cops showed her earlier.

A new post goes live on AboutThat. It’s the footage of Bronwyn confronting Simon, and the caption reads: “Cheating was just the beginning for good girl gone bad Bronwyn Rojas. Looks like she had quite the temper too. Ladies and gentlemen, have we found our killer?”

Bronwyn goes to school, and sure enough, everyone is talking about her. Addy approaches Cooper. He asks her when the police are talking to her and informs her there might be some stuff the police might bring up about him. He asks her to let him explain and trust him.

“You look 30% less like an asshole,” Janae says to Addy. She explains she doesn’t have an online account, so she has to do it personally if she wants to comment. This takes Addy by surprise that she couldn’t talk right away. Janae starts to walk away when she says she was a dick and she’s sorry. She asks if Janae has any plans for that night and tells her she has a new theory about the case.

Bronwyn practices for a debate when Maeve enters her room. Maeve tells her she knows the video of Bronwyn threatening Simon was about her because the date was right when he started ghosting her. Bronwyn tells her it was not smart of her to let Simon talk her into sending nudes. Maeve tells her she wanted the photos to be out there because she finally has something to show off, and she wanted to be seen as something other than the sick child who underwent chemo and stayed long in the hospital.

Bronwyn tells Maeve she’s trying to protect her and their parents because they are not as strong as she thinks. She says they cannot handle another crisis. Maeve asks her to tell the truth because it will be another crisis when Bronwyn ends up in jail. Bronwyn tells Maeve it won’t make any difference, and at least that way, her parents would still have one child who’s not messed up.

While they’re at her house, Janae tells Addy it cannot be Keely because she wouldn’t be posting anything about Cooper at all if it was her. Addy shares she’s going to be questioned by the police soon. Janae tells her no one thinks she did it. Addy takes it as an insult and asks why she is being written off when she can totally be a killer, and she would be the most dangerous one because no one would see it coming. Janae laughs and tells her she’s scared. Addy takes another look at Janae’s computer and panics when she sees the time: 11:09 PM. Janae says she keeps it on NY time when her father’s there because he hates it when she calls him after he’s in bed. Addy realizes it’s Janae who posted their secrets. She asks Janae to make her coffee while trying to sneak out of the house with Janae’s laptop.

Janae catches her and asks her what she’s doing. Addy gets a knife from the kitchen and points it at Janae while saying her phone is tracking her location, so if she ends up like Simon, they will know. Janae says he was her only friend so that she wouldn’t kill him. Addy says Janae posted their secrets, which is why they’re timestamped 3 hours after they actually dropped. Janae admits to this but says she only posted the first ones because she wants the police to know the four of them had a motive because she thought one of them actually killed Simon. She says she knew the consequences of the posts being life, so she changed Cooper’s secret because she’s not going to out him — she’s not a monster. She adds she did not post the photo at the cinema and the video of Bronwyn. She says somebody got into the app, locked her out, and changed all the passwords. She begs Addy to believe she did not kill Simon. Addy runs out the door.

His mom tells Nate they got a call from the detective asking them to come in for questioning. She reminds him they’re running out of time, but Nate tells her he’s not leaving. She says if Nate did it, it’s her fault and not his.

The next day, Addy and Ann get into the interrogation room. Detective Wheeler asks Addy about Cooper and tells her whoever was posting the secrets changed Cooper’s. She tells her Cooper did not do it. The detective tells her the other members of the Bayview Four are not her friends, and if she withholds any pertinent information, she can be charged with obstruction of justice. She adds they’ve discovered Cooper’s troubling past, so she should tell them if he’s forcing her to lie. Addy breaks and tells Bronwyn had the laptop, and Nate saw her with it.

Bronwyn is about to compete at the debate competition when Robyn tells her the news: Addy told the police that she and Nate had Simon’s laptop. The debate starts. Bronwyn’s opponent, Alex Ross, starts his argument. Flashback: Bronwyn confronts Simon and tells him possession of child pornography in California is a felony, so unless he wants to be registered as a sex offender for the rest of his life, he needs to delete the photos right away. She tells Simon to stay away from Maeve or she’ll kill him. Simon informs her he knows she cheated, but he was willing to let it slide and make her family a solid, but he asks her to worry about herself after what happened.

Back to the present, Alex uses Bronwyn and her footage of threatening Simon as an example for his argument, but before he can continue, his time runs out. Bronwyn was about to begin her argument when someone from the audience shouts: “Don’t worry, Bronwyn. You’re gonna murder it!” followed by laughter. This ruins Bronwyn’s momentum, and she’s unable to start.

From the audience, Maeve stands on a chair and introduces herself as Bronwyn’s sister. She explains she sent Simon some bathroom selfies, and Bronwyn thought Simon would post them, as he usually does. She tells everyone in the room that her sister is not a murderer, and she wasn’t bullying Simon. She adds that Brownyn was just scared everyone would eat her alive, just like what everyone is doing to her. Lastly, she tells Alex to check his facts before using them in his argument.

Nate comes in for questioning and denies he’s aware of Bronwyn having Simon’s laptop. Detective Wheeler reminds him that a kid died, and whoever’s responsible will be tried as an adult whether they are 18 or not. She adds that most of her colleagues think he did it, so he might save himself if he tells them the truth.

Addy receives a string of text messages from TJ. She replies once, saying he should stop texting, then blocks him. Janae comes to Addy’s house and thanks to her for not telling the police about her. Addy says she’s not welcome because she made her life hell, but she thought Janae had been through a lot too, and she didn’t want to make her life hell unless she was sure. She tells Janae she checked the timestamps of the latest posts too. Janae tells her she’s smarter than most people think. Addy is about to close the door when Janae tells her she needs to tell her something about the day Simon died. She tells Addy she thought it was not important at first.

Nate packs his things. His mother thought he was going with her, but Nate tells him he’s leaving but not with her.

Addy texts Bronwyn and Cooper and asks them to meet at the same spot because she has new information.

Bronwyn receives the text but ignores it because they are in the middle of a discussion with her family. Robyn tells them what Maeve did earns Bronwyn a little sympathy but gives her another motive. She also informs them Nate corroborated Bronwyn’s story about the laptop not being in her possession. Letting out a sigh of relief, Bronwyn tries to call Nate. But Nate left without his phone, so it rang in his room; no one answered.

Kris and Cooper wait for Cooper’s birthday. Kris tries to get intimate with Cooper, but Cooper asks him to slow down. He then shares what happened in Mississippi. He says he got involved with a guy named Kyle, and the next morning, when he thought he was meeting him again, Kyle’s older brother showed up. He blamed Cooper for Kyle being a pervert, and he started punching him. He fought back and broke his nose, and when the police showed up, they easily believed Kyle’s brother when he said Cooper started the fight out of nothing. Cooper says he knew better than to say anything because, in baseball, he can come back from beating guys up, but not for kissing them. He says he was so scared, and it was so ugly. He receives the text from Addy and ignores it too, as he tells Kris that with him is where he wants to be.

Addy goes into their old spot, and no one shows up. She hears a noise nearby. She panics and runs until she stumbles and whoever was there catches up with her.

Our Thoughts

Oh, wow, this episode was intense! First, we finally know what happened in Mississippi. It turns out not to be that serious. Well, at least not as serious as we thought it would be. We also weren’t expecting the chill demeanor of Cooper’s dad about his secret, but we are thankful Cooper didn’t have to worry about him anymore.

We admit we were annoyed with Maeve because she seems to complicate things. But now we understand where she’s coming from, and we salute her for standing up for Bronwyn. That was epic. We’re sad Nate has to leave to protect Bronwyn. He has been judged by the police repeatedly based on his past. His mom was right, he deserves a second chance, and we hope he gets it.

Lastly, what could Janae have said to Addy about the day of Simon’s death, and more importantly, who was chasing Addy? Let’s go find out!