The next morning, Luce ignores her intrusive thoughts of Daniel and Gabbe kissing so that she can attend the annual fitness exam. She did not return to the party the previous night.

Luce, Penn, and Gabbe are assigned the swimming portion of the assessment. While preparing to swim, Luce notices that Gabbe, Arriane, Molly, and Roland are all sitting together on the bleachers like old friends. Penn informs Luce that they always have notes to sit out of gym class. Luce wishes that Cam were there to invite her into the group and make her feel comfortable. She likes Cam’s attention and doesn’t want to push him away.

The coach instructs Luce to begin her eight-lap race with the other students, saying that she can use her choice of stroke. Luce enjoys swimming and dives in to catch up with her opponents. She is doing well until she hears Gabbe, on the bleachers, say the word “Daniel.” It stops her in her tracks, and she does poorly in the race, too preoccupied by whatever is happening between Gabbe and Daniel.

Roland hands Luce a towel and compliments her racing up until she stopped. Luce asks if Daniel and Gabbe are together, and Roland tells her to ask Daniel herself. On her way to the locker room, Luce peeks into the weight room. She watches Daniel jump rope and, for a moment, doesn’t think his feet touch the ground. A shadow forces her away from the door. Luce realizes that she dropped her key and spots it inside the weight room, so she sneaks in to grab it. Daniel stops abruptly to look at her. Luce says hi, and he returns the greeting. He asks if she won the race, and Luce says no. Daniel seems surprised and almost comments on her swimming talent but stops himself. Luce tries to get Daniel to say what he wanted to say originally, but he’s avoidant with her.

When Daniel tries to leave, Luce stops him and asks if he feels the same familiarity around her that she feels. Luce doesn’t believe it when Daniel says he doesn’t. He reiterates that they have never met before and leaves.

Cam convinces Luce to skip class so that they can picnic in the cemetery instead. His presence makes Luce feel better about what happened with Daniel. Cam enjoys reading the headstone inscriptions, and he and Luce laugh together. She enjoys just goofing off with a nice guy. The two flirt as they picnic. He rests a hand on her leg, which Luce welcomes; they hold hands and scoot closer. Cam admits to rushing to pack the picnic when he saw her crossing campus.

Cam acknowledges that Sword & Cross is “no Eden” while handing Luce an apple. He describes how bleak his childhood was, explaining that the hardships of Sword & Cross are nothing new for him. As Luce eats the apple, a snake rustles some leaves nearby. The snake is in the process of shedding its skin, which Luce has never seen before. She is terrified of snakes, but Cam comforts her. He takes the shed skin and holds it up for Luce to see. Cam makes her feel more comfortable, even in scary moments. He moves in to kiss Luce, but they are interrupted by Gabbe. Gabbe has been looking for Luce because Miss Sophia was worried when she missed class.

In the library, Miss Sophia has students researching their family trees. She does not seem concerned about Luce’s absence. Luce notices Daniel, and despite almost kissing Cam, she still feels ashamed and embarrassed by their conversation earlier. She can’t figure out why her negative conversation with Daniel felt more important than her positive date with Cam.

Luce thinks about her date with Cam more, acknowledging that Cam is interested in her, while Daniel is not. Still, when she opens the search engine on her library computer, she types Daniel’s name.

Penn visits Luce’s dorm on Saturday morning. She wants to help Luce do research on Daniel, having watched Luce spend the entire class searching Daniel’s name two days ago. Penn has access to the Sword & Cross records room. Although Luce is reluctant to stalk Daniel further, Penn convinces her that it will be okay. She’s always wanted an excuse to show someone around the records room.

Many students are out enjoying the weekend sun, playing soccer, or relaxing. Penn has placed dead batteries in the security cameras to avoid detection. They sneak into a small, Civil War-era basement filled with records. Penn notices that some things have been moved around since she visited last week.

Daniel’s file contains only a single page. He looks the same as in his intake picture three years ago. Luce feels that his photo looks familiar on a deeper level than that. He came from an orphanage, and his parents are unknown. His crimes are minor, like loitering and vandalism. Luce wishes that there was more to know about Daniel, but approaching footsteps force Luce and Penn to hide. Miss Sophia deposits two boxes of records onto an empty shelf and mumbles about having two more before she returns upstairs. Penn sends Luce out alone with directions and an alibi. Penn will return the record and leave on her own since she’s allowed to be down there. She promises Luce that they will keep researching.

Luce encounters Molly, who gives Luce a hard time about not staying away from Daniel. She reminds Luce of what happened with Trevor; Luce wonders how Molly knows. She follows Molly outside but realizes that she isn’t in the right emotional state to confront her. Molly goes to speak with Gabbe, making Luce more upset.

A soccer ball hits Luce’s head, and Daniel comes to make sure that she is okay. He makes a sarcastic remark about her learning to play soccer. Luce makes a sarcastic remark back about his girlfriend seeing him talk to her and gestures to Molly and Gabbe. Daniel clarifies that neither is his girlfriend. He takes Luce away from the quad to speak in private.

Daniel shows Luce a beautiful lake in the forest at the edge of campus. He seems more relaxed now. They swim to a mossy rock in the middle of the lake. Daniel swims gracefully and jokes with Luce about letting her win. Luce confronts Daniel again about feeling like she knows him somehow, and he sternly tells her that she’s mistaken.

Daniel admits that he’s been hurt in the past and that he’s not looking for anything with Luce; that’s why he’s been so standoffish. He wants to shut her down formally. However, Luce doesn’t think that Daniel’s story explains his strange, mixed-signal behavior toward her. Luce says that she feels like there’s still more he’s not telling her. Daniel replies that he doesn’t owe her his life story. He leaves in a hurry, leaving Luce alone on the rock. As he shakes off in the sunlight on the lakeshore, there appear to be glistening wings around him.