What did Johnny do at the school in We Were Liars? Explored in depth

In We Were Liars, Johnny starts with a harmless prank but it ends with serious consequences. It begins after a tennis match, when the rival team messes with his team’s belongings. Johnny and his friends flood the rival team’s court to get back at them. That seems silly at first, but the prank takes a violent turn.

Johnny attacks another student named Delgado as he tries to stop them, and the student ends up in the hospital. This one action changes Johnny’s life at school and beyond.

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His family’s money hides the problem without fixing it

Johnny’s mother uses money to make the situation go away. She pays Delgado’s family, the school, and even the doctors, so no one talks about it. This keeps Johnny from facing real consequences at school.

It also shows how We Were Liars explores how rich families sometimes protect their reputation instead of teaching responsibility. Instead of admitting what happened, the family's response deepens the problem by hiding it.

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The school incident reveals a deeper struggle for Johnny

That violent moment isn’t just about a prank gone wrong. In the story, Johnny also meets someone from the rival team named Blake Beaumont. He develops romantic feelings for Blake, which adds tension and fear around his identity.

Blake keeps a video of the attack and uses it to blackmail Johnny, adding pressure and fear to Johnny’s life. This shows how We Were Liars uses one action to explore guilt, secrets, and fear.

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The incident fits into We Were Liars’ theme of money hiding the truth

The way Johnny’s family handles the incident without assigning blame mirrors other plotlines in We Were Liars. The Sinclair family repeatedly hides their problems, covering up fights, secrets, and even the fire that destroys their mansion.

Johnny’s violent moment at school is just one example. It shows how wealthy families in the story protect their image, at the cost of real justice and truth.

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That school incident sets the stage for later tragedy

Episode 5 of We Were Liars uses Johnny’s violent moment as a turning point. The guilt he feels, the blackmail, and the family cover-up all push him toward the final events.

By the finale of the show, a fire breaks out at the family mansion, and Johnny dies along with his friends Gat and Mirren. His school actions echo throughout the story, making the tragedy feel even more tragic because it began with a thoughtless prank.

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Johnny’s choices at school teach readers about consequences and guilt

The scene of a school incident in We Were Liars does not merely act as a side narrative; it becomes the indicator of the change of personality in Johnny. He is caught between assimilation, fear of coming out of the closet and fear of being perceived as weak.

His mother protects him, and this is not helping him do something to grow because he is further trapped. Such scenes allow the readers to know why he behaves as he does later on and why he becomes so filled with guilt.

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In We Were Liars, Johnny’s school incident ties into bigger ideas like wealth, secrecy, and guilt. A moment meant to be a harmless prank turns into violence, blackmail, and a family secret covered with money.

That moment shapes Johnny’s story and helps drive the events that follow. This shows how one mistake, if ignored or hidden, can lead to much greater consequences down the line.