Luke found Nicky Wilholm and Harry Cross joking around over a game of HORSE, while Helen Simms played double-deck War with Avery Dixon. Luke asked after Kalisha Benson and briefly panicked before Helen said Kalisha was only showering. Avery blurted that Kalisha had been subjected to a rectal thermometer; Helen and Luke defused the humiliation with crude humor, leading to a shared bout of laughter that momentarily lifted the group’s mood.

Helen fled inside laughing and saying she was peeing herself, nearly bumping into George, who arrived eating candy. Luke sent Avery to the trampoline so he could talk privately with George. George remarked on Avery’s immaturity despite his ESP and asked Luke if he believed the Institute’s claim that their parents were okay. Luke hedged, and George admitted he feared learning the truth because it could break him, though he could not stop wondering.

Luke asked about the Stasi Lights. George confirmed everyone gets the lights and standard medical tests but said he had not had a seizure. George described being sat at a table where Dr. Evans and staffer Priscilla ran a telepathy card test. He referenced prior testing with Rhine cards at Princeton’s Anomalies Research, where he had mostly failed, and said his TK was modest and inconsistent.

George recounted that during the Institute’s card test he guessed common Rhine symbols, was accused of lying by Priscilla, then joked that the next card was a photo of Priscilla’s breasts, earning a hard slap before being sent back to his room. He said the staff seemed perfunctory, as if only completing paperwork. Luke floated the idea he might have been a control subject but dropped it.

When Luke asked if the colored dots returned after testing, George said no and asked if they had for Luke. Luke denied it, hiding his concern about his own seizure and afterimages. George then questioned the Institute’s purpose, citing a book about mid-20th-century CIA psychic experiments that yielded little. He concluded their abilities were minor, joking about their limited TK feats. Luke replied that Avery could be useful for espionage, which made George smile.

Luke began to raise the topic of their parents again, but Kalisha returned from her shower and invited everyone to play dodgeball. The group, including Luke and George, joined, ending the scene on a moment of collective activity.