Beth arrives at Gabriel’s house and, on their fourth day as lovers, they give themselves over to their renewed passion so completely that they do not even make it upstairs. Afterward, Gabriel notices that Beth has hurt her back on the stairs and tells her he never wants to hurt her, showing that their affair is not only lustful but also tender and protective.

Because the day is warm, Beth and Gabriel decide to go to the lake, even though Beth knows being seen with Gabriel in daylight is dangerous, especially after the journalist’s recent intrusion. At the lake they use the same blue picnic rug from the day they first met and reminisce about their teenage beginning. Remembering that past without pain makes Beth feel that the affair has restored the intimacy they once had and confirms for her why neither of them ever fully moved on.

As they sit together, united by the place where their love began, Gabriel says he would happily accept this moment as his forever. When it is time to collect Leo, Gabriel offers to fetch him alone because they both know Beth and Gabriel cannot safely be seen together at the school. Left by herself, Beth begins imagining an alternate life in which she and Gabriel stayed together, went to Oxford, became writers, and built the artistic and emotional partnership she once wanted.

Beth’s fantasy expands into an imagined family life with Gabriel and a little boy of their own. That dream feels almost real when Gabriel returns with Leo carrying picnic food. The three of them eat by the lake, cool their feet in the water, and listen to birds while Leo happily includes them both in the afternoon.

As Gabriel and Leo bond, Beth watches them like a mother watching her family. Leo tells Gabriel that he loves it when Gabriel is not working, and Gabriel promises they should do this more often. The afternoon leaves Beth with a painful sense of fulfillment: the affair is no longer just a secret romance, but a glimpse of the life and family she believes she lost.