What has happened to Mae and Annie’s relationship? Why do you think this has happened? How did Annie confuse Mae as it relates to PastPerfect? Why hadn’t Mae been told about Annie and PastPerfect?

At the start of the novel, Annie is Mae's best friend and coworker at the Circle. Annie, in fact, was responsbile for getting Annie her job. Annie's family is wealthy, and she holds a leadership position in the Circle. Mae's success, however, creates an unexplainable jealousy in Annie that effects their friendship. In addition to feeling threatened by Mae's rise, Annie discovers disturbing things in her family's history that cause her to have a nervous breakdown.