After Ava falls asleep during their movie night, Alex carries her upstairs to his bedroom rather than leaving her on the couch or setting up a guest room. As he tucks her into bed, he finds himself noticing her physical beauty and reflecting on the shift in how he perceives her—no longer just Josh's baby sister, but a desirable woman. He recalls their earlier flirtatious exchange and acknowledges the mutual attraction between them, even as he recognizes it as dangerous territory.

Alex also reflects on his arrangement with Madeline, a woman he sees purely for physical gratification. Though Madeline is beautiful and sophisticated, Alex finds her company tiresome outside the bedroom. Her annoyed reaction when he canceled their date to stay with Ava confirms his decision to end the arrangement. He changes into sweats and climbs into bed beside Ava, unable to sleep as usual due to his chronic insomnia.

His mind drifts to a memory from Thanksgiving 2013, when Josh first invited Alex to celebrate the holiday with the Chen family because Alex had no family except his indifferent Uncle Ivan. Alex recalls meeting Josh's father Michael and then encountering a young, beaming Ava for the first time. He remembers thinking her bright smile wouldn't survive the harsh realities of the world, and he'd hesitated before shaking her small hand.

Alex is jolted from the memory by Ava's screams. He grabs his gun, thinking there's an intruder, but quickly realizes she's experiencing severe night terrors. He knows he can't wake or restrain her, so he keeps the lamp on and watches over her until the episode subsides after about thirty minutes. Afterward, he opens his laptop to work and exchanges a humorous late-night text conversation with Josh, who is also awake and bored. Alex glances at Ava sleeping peacefully now and feels a trickle of guilt about sharing a bed with his best friend's sister—but dismisses it, noting this is far from the worst thing he's done or will do.