Poppy wakes up beside Alex in Nikolai’s sweltering Airbnb after they fell asleep together on the bed. Their bodies are tangled, Alex’s hand is on her thigh, and Poppy is flooded with desire and memories of Croatia, but she assumes Alex will regret the flirtation from the night before. When Alex wakes and their mutual attraction is briefly obvious, Poppy decides the day cannot continue in such a charged, confusing way because the wedding events start tomorrow and she wants this trip to feel safe and easy rather than destructive.

Trying to regain control, Poppy contacts Nikolai again about the broken air-conditioning, then pushes Alex to get moving. Outside the apartment, their teasing comes naturally, and the familiar rhythm of their jokes makes Poppy think that acting normal may be the best way to restore what they had. She directs Alex to the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, secretly planning to surprise him with giraffe feeding later.

At the zoo, they move slowly because of Alex’s back and the brutal heat. They watch reptile and bird presentations, brush goats in the petting zoo, and keep up a steady stream of private jokes. When Poppy mentions a cemetery tour from New Orleans and Alex does not seem to remember it, she is quietly hurt, because she wants their shared history to matter to him as much as it does to her, and that makes her even more determined for this trip to count.

After visiting more animals, Poppy and Alex get milkshakes and argue playfully about Alex choosing vanilla. Poppy then heads toward the carousel, but it is closed because of the heat, and Alex suddenly looks ill. He becomes dizzy enough that he has to sit down, so Poppy gets water and then waits in a long café line for a sandwich, watching the clock because the giraffe feeding ends at eleven-thirty.

Although Alex improves a little after eating, they arrive at the giraffe area too late and are told the feeding is over. Alex apologizes, but Poppy insists it is fine, even though she privately feels crushed. The disappointment is not really about the giraffes; it is about her need for this trip to prove that their friendship can still be saved. Nikolai finally replies that he will see what he can do about the AC, and Poppy decides they should go somewhere air-conditioned before the next stop.