Katie, buoyed by her kiss with Hutch and determined to avoid the internet pile-on, focuses on real-world tasks and her self-compassion homework from Beanie, choosing to admire parts of her hand and adding positive notes about her thumb. Nervous about seeing Hutch after their kiss, she notices his unusually hard, distant frown when he picks her up for the flight, and he stays withdrawn and terse during the drive and preflight meeting.

During the briefing, Katie dreads having to announce her weight publicly, but procedures spare her the embarrassment. In the equipment room, pilot Mira privately weighs Katie and records the number discreetly, easing Katie’s anxiety. Mira offers practical tips about nausea, and Hutch, still all-business, quietly gives Katie an energy bar when he learns she skipped breakfast.

The scheduled training sortie becomes an actual rescue when Sector reports a capsized fishing boat with one person in the water. Katie films from the cabin while pilot Mira, copilot Noah, and flight mechanic Vanessa coordinate the hover and hoist. Hutch gears up in his swim kit, deploys into choppy seas from hover, reaches the survivor, signals for the basket, and helps secure the man for hoist. Vanessa brings the survivor aboard, then hoists Hutch; the crew returns to base as Katie captures footage. The rescued fisherman, shaken but seemingly uninjured, cries near landing.

Back in the hangar, Katie asks Hutch if survivors often cry. He finally meets her eyes and admits something is wrong on his end: he spoke to Cole for the first time in a year, and the call centered on Katie. Cole asked Hutch to agree to the “Day in the Life” mini-doc and explained the stakes for Katie’s job.

Hutch reveals he said yes. He frames the decision as doing what Cole needs, not what he personally wants, and says the call shifted his perspective. Katie protests that the project is intrusive and feels wrong, emphasizing its intimate, domestic focus versus professional filming at the base. Hutch, looking miserable, insists they should just get it over with and proposes doing it the next day, his day off.

Katie suggests refusing to protect him, but Hutch says she can’t without causing him more trouble with Cole. Resigned, he says he will text her his address, effectively committing them both to the invasive shoot despite their discomfort and the recent emotional closeness between them.