Nora and Dylan have dinner at La Cantina, which prompts Nora to remember taking Dan there years earlier. She recalls Dan’s early dream of a country pub and his rudeness to a waiter, a red flag that later defined their relationship. By contrast, Nora notes Dylan’s tendency to love any place.

Over black bean tacos they talk about dogs and school. Dylan remembers Nora as a standout swimmer and recalls a school assembly honoring her, a moment that Nora associates with starting to withdraw from swimming and from friends.

Dylan also remembers seeing Nora in the school library during breaks, playing chess with the librarian, Mrs Elm. This shared memory warms the conversation and connects Nora to her past.

Then Dylan reveals he recently saw Mrs Elm on Shakespeare Road with someone in a nurse’s uniform, apparently heading into a care home. He describes Mrs Elm as very frail and old. Nora, who had assumed Mrs Elm was long dead, is surprised and moved, recognizing that the Midnight Library’s Mrs Elm is a preserved version from memory.