Xavier and Samantha sit at the top of the Ferris wheel on the Santa Monica Pier. Samantha, afraid of falling, clings to Xavier while he tries to keep the gondola steady and reassure her. He is amused and moved by her closeness, noting how natural their rapport feels despite the uncertainty about where their relationship is headed.

Xavier admits to himself that he wants to kiss Samantha but holds back because she is anxious. He enjoys the iconic scenery and sensory details of the pier and the ocean, feeling invigorated by the new environment and by being with her. He also recognizes a possessive streak, realizing he would be jealous if she shared such moments with someone else, even as he struggles with the fact that he does not live in California.

To distract herself from the height, Samantha offers to talk about her family. She describes her sister Jeneva, who is thirty-two, divorced after discovering her husband’s sex addiction and financial betrayal, now a devoted mother and cook who is lactose intolerant. She outlines Tristan’s pattern of drifting: artistic talent, viral cake-decorating fame, a series of abrupt relocations and jobs, debts, and likely future disappearances.

Samantha then talks about her grandmother, a seventy-seven-year-old first-generation Mexican American and former hippie who met Samantha’s grandfather at Woodstock; the grandfather owned a palm tree farm that became the family business. Samantha explains she speaks a little Spanish because her father did not, and that her mother, Lisa, an only child, ran the business after the grandfather retired until her condition worsened and the family sold it. She shares that mature palms can sell for high prices, that her grandmother keeps an organic garden and disdains food coloring, and humorously notes the grandmother keeps a Super Soaker filled with Tabasco instead of a gun.

When Xavier asks about Samantha’s father, she recounts how her parents met: after a party where Lisa’s then-boyfriend injured himself, Samantha’s father, delivering newspapers, offered Lisa a ride; they finished his route together, went to Norms, and started their relationship. The gondola pauses, easing Samantha’s fear, and she points out a riptide below, teaching Xavier how to recognize it and explaining that survival means not fighting it but letting it carry you because it is stronger than you.

The lesson resonates with Xavier as he absorbs the unfamiliar ocean safety detail and the broader idea of surrender. He reflects on the improbability of his day—starting in Minneapolis at work and ending on a Ferris wheel over the Pacific with Samantha—focusing on how the moment feels. He holds her, breathes the salty air, and concludes that the emotional imprint of being with Samantha will endure more than words.