Do Nate and Maddy get back together in Euphoria season 2 episode 3?

Nate and Maddy have had a very complex and toxic relationship since season 1. While it is quite easy to blame Nate and Cal’s parenting for this, I don’t think we can let Maddy off the hook too. She likes playing power games, and Nate likes feeling powerful.

While we all know through their backstories how it’s so much more than that, we do understand that in the end, they would just hurt and ruin each other’s lives.

At the end of season 1, the two break up for good. In season 2, it is revealed that it’s been about 3 weeks since the two have broken up. However, at the end of episode 3, Nate shows up with flowers where Maddy babysits.

So are Nate and Maddy getting back together?

Nate likely wants Cal and Jules’ CD from Maddy and decides to get back with her. However, he still has a secret relationship with Cassie. Furthermore, in his fantasy about Cassie, Jules appeared too, so maybe he is only in love with Jules.

We all know this entire love triangle between Nate, Maddy, and Cassie will not end well for any of them. Moreover, Jules’ appearance in his fantasy further complicates things and makes us wonder whom does Nate actually love.

While one can have feelings for more than one person, I think there’s more to Nate than meets the eye. We can also see signs of him following his father, Cal’s footsteps, and shows similar complexities. Here’s how:

Nate’s Complexes and True Love

I. Nate’s Relationship with Maddy

As mentioned in season 1, Nate wanted to have a virgin girlfriend. He considered that to be a sign of how ‘clean’ or ‘pure’ his girlfriend was. He even went on to ask Maddy if she was a virgin before having sex with her for the first time, and Maddy lies about it.

Nate seems to have inherited this trait from his father, Cal, who wants a clean and pristine reputation in the society he’s living in. As a result, he’s always trained Nate that way. To be the best in football and perhaps anything he ever does. I guess he wanted the ‘perfect’ son.

While this is due to Cal’s own complexes and how his father treated him, we can clearly see toxicity being passed down through generations.

Coming back to Nate and Maddy, he could either want to get back with Maddy because, after all, that has happened and how much his reputation has been tarnished, he still wants to have the perfect guy reputation.

On the other hand, he could just want the Cal and Jules’ disc from Maddy. So he might not care for Maddy anymore and just wants to get his father out of harm’s way.

II. Nate’s Relationship with Cassie

However, Nate’s nature seems to be more complex than just that. After his sexual encounter with Cassie, he doesn’t even seem to notice her in college, but the two are secretly meeting up and sleeping with each other every week.

Furthermore, we see him tell Cassie how much power she has over him and as Rue narrated in episode 2, Cassie could be his true love. So perhaps he is in love with Cassie but is still not ready to openly accept her as his girlfriend. This is indicated when he tells Cassie how he loves that she is his secret.

This is pretty similar to Cal’s behavioral pattern. Cal, too, couldn’t openly profess his love for Derek when he was young, which led him to have a secret sex life throughout his adulthood.

While we might think Nate is in love with Cassie, and Nate might think so too, we are missing the subtle hint we saw in his fantasy with Cassie – Jules.

III. Cal’s True Feelings for Jules

We see Jules appear in Nate’s fantasy for just two frames, but that could be a subtle hint that he actually loves Jules and neither Cassie nor Maddy. Furthermore, even Fez tells Cal in episode 3 that Nate loves Cassie. Considering Fez is someone who calls it as he sees it, he might be right.

If you’re wondering what Nate is doing with Cassie or Maddy then, I might have an answer for you.

This has got to make the behavioral pattern he shares with Cal. In season 1, we saw Nate threaten Jules of framing her for pedophilia if she ever told anyone about his dad. However, there could be a chance that he’s in love with her.

While there haven’t been any indications yet, we know that Nate wants the perfect reputation, as mentioned earlier. This becomes an issue if he is in love with Jules, a trans person.

Cassie resembles Jules with the blonde hair and maybe the makeup to a certain extent. She is the ‘perfect’ girl Nate has always searched for. Something his toxic masculinity can accept.

Once again, Nate got it from Cal, who might be gay, bisexual, or pansexual, but could never accept it. While Cal’s outlet became his secret affairs with all kinds of people, including trans people who resembled Derek in any way, Nate’s outlet seems to be his secret affair with Cassie now who resembles Jules.

This is perhaps why Nate might have real feelings for Cassie, which are not a circumstance of his complexes. However, since his complexes don’t allow him, he tries to find Jules in Cassie.

Conclusion

Nate’s intentions and feelings are still obscure to us as viewers, but I think he is likely getting together with Maddy for the Cal and Jules’ disc while also trying to find Jules in Cassie.

However, I guess we just have to wait for the upcoming episodes to find out more about him and what’s going on in his mind. Hopefully, Rue’s narration will give us more clarity, and we’ll finally have some solid answers.

About Euphoria

Euphoria is a teen drama on HBO that is loosely based on the Israeli series of the same name. The series is written by Sam Levinson and stars Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Maude Apatow, Jacob Elordi, Alexa Demie, and others.

The show revolves around Rue, a teen drug addict who is also suffering from Bipolar disorder. She meets Jules, a transwoman, and falls in love with her. Euphoria deals with themes of sexual violence, addiction, trauma, and self-identity.

The series was renewed for season 3 in February 2022.