Ava meets with her close friends Jules, Stella, and Bridget at The Morning Roast for their weekly Tuesday coffee catch-up. Jules entertains the group with an exaggerated retelling of Alex's confrontation at Owen's boudoir photoshoot. Ava feels guilty about Owen being dragged into the situation and reflects on her job at the McCann Gallery, where she works alongside Owen. She also reveals that her father tacitly disapproves of her photography career and refuses to fund her equipment, so she pays for everything herself. A text from someone named Liam appears on her phone, which she quickly swipes away without letting her friends see.

The conversation turns to Alex's unusual display of emotion during the photoshoot incident. Jules argues that Alex—widely considered emotionless by the group—actually showed anger over Ava, which is remarkable. Stella even calls Alex a psychopath for being so controlled, though Ava feels oddly compelled to defend him. Jules proposes "Operation Emotion," a scheme to test whether Ava can provoke various emotions in Alex, including happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, and jealousy. Bridget, a real-life princess of Eldorra eager for distraction from her royal duties and family troubles, is intrigued. Despite Ava's repeated refusals, Jules's persuasiveness wins out, and the group agrees Phase One will begin in three days.

Bridget's background is revealed: she is second in line to the throne of Eldorra, a small wealthy European country, and insists on living as a normal college student at Thayer. Her bodyguard Booth accompanies her everywhere. She mentions her grandfather King Edvard is sick and her brother Crown Prince Nikolai is acting strangely.

That night, Ava has a vivid, terrifying nightmare of drowning in a lake as a small child, calling for her mother who doesn't come. She wakes at 4:44 a.m., noting the ominous significance of the number four in Chinese culture—its phonetic similarity to "death." She reveals that these drowning nightmares are recurring and she suspects they may be real memories from before "The Blackout," the divide at age nine before which she has no memories.

Jules comes to comfort Ava, bringing thyme tea and hugging her. Ava feels guilty for waking Jules but is grateful for her unwavering support. After Jules leaves, Ava lies awake, unable to shake the lingering chill and dread from the nightmare, sensing that her forgotten past will not stay buried.