From Josh's POV, he prepares his apartment for Aly's visit while Tyler hovers protectively. Josh learns Tyler has been screening dates to keep true-crime fans away from him, and that Tyler has no objection to Josh pursuing Aly. Tyler eventually leaves for his own date, and Josh hurriedly executes his deception plan: turning off the heat and opening windows to justify wearing fingerless gloves that hide his tattoos and stitched hand, hiding the thermostat behind a photo, locking his bedroom, and leaving his burner phone running an auto-response program.

Aly arrives, visibly attracted to Josh in person. He offers his injured right hand to shake; she squeezes hard, testing whether he's the masked stalker, but he masks the pain and deflects suspicion by joking that her grip is intimidation. He flirts, makes her coffee the way she likes (claiming he remembered from her stay), and reveals he knows enough small details to keep her off-balance.

Aly shows Josh his own social media profile and asks him to track down the man (himself). Josh fakes a hacking program that does nothing while explaining the work would take longer than her visit. They chat, with Aly briefly mentioning her mother as inspiration for nursing and Josh giving a half-truth about coding to hide from his abusive father. They play Would You Rather, growing visibly attracted to each other. Aly secretly texts the masked stalker; Josh's auto-response program replies convincingly, further easing her suspicions of Josh.

After Aly leaves, Josh calls his worried mother, briefly tells her about Aly, and reflects on a past girlfriend whose disappearance led to his arrest. He watches Aly at work via hacked cameras, intending to nap before her shift ends, but accidentally falls asleep at his desk. He's jolted awake by his door-camera alarm: Aly is already home, and he isn't there waiting. He grabs his supplies and races out.