The Beginning of Everything

The night after the tournament, Ezra breaks tradition and flashes “HELLO” to Cassidy first. She replies with “SORRY” and “FORGIVE ME,” to which Ezra replies, “ALWAYS.” The following morning, Ezra’s mother wakes him with the news that Cassidy is downstairs, chatting with his father. In front of Ezra’s parents, Cassidy convincingly reminds Ezra about a fictional team breakfast she’s hosting at her house. Ezra gets ready quickly and leaves his house with Cassidy and Cooper, not sure where they are going. As a way of apologizing, Cassidy takes Ezra on a “treasure hunt,” geocaching around their local hiking trails. Ezra is thrilled and knows that “simply saying sorry was too normal for a girl like Cassidy Thorpe” (174). Once they finish, the game’s app prompts them to leave their names on the leader board. Cassidy puts in her brother’s name, Owen, explaining to Ezra that they always used to do this, with library cards, blogs, all kinds of things, just to “mess with the universe” (175). Cassidy prompts Ezra to enter a fictional character, but he sticks with reality and enters his name. Cassidy, disappointed, says pointedly, “I’d think you of all people would want to escape” (175).

That night Ezra replies to Cassidy’s Morse code with a text. He asks for her address and then drives over to pick her up. When she asks where they are going, he jokes, “You forgot about the team dinner” (176). Laughing, she gets in the car and goes along with the surprise. Ezra takes her to a spot where they can see the fireworks at Disneyland, and they sit together on the roof of Ezra’s car, holding hands. Ezra finally leans over and kisses Cassidy. After a few more lingering kisses on the roof, Cassidy leads Ezra into the backseat of his car.

Ezra and Cassidy fall into a comfortable routine. Ezra picks her up every morning with two mugs of coffee, and they drive to school. Ezra finally collects the elevator key that the secretary set aside for him, seizing the opportunity that the elevator presents for him and Cassidy to make out privately.

A flash mob/silent rave is happening that Friday in LA. Cassidy explains that strangers gather and, at the exact same time, turn on their headphones and dance to their own music. Ezra has never heard of this kind of thing but is eager to try, so Toby, Austin, Cassidy, and Ezra pile into the Fail Whale after school and make the two-hour drive to the mall. Ezra has made a playlist as a gift for Cassidy so they can dance to the same music. He gives it to Cassidy, who gently tells him that he is missing the point of the flash mob: No one is supposed to know what anyone else is listening to. The tension in the mall builds as the start time approaches; then, on cue, everyone hits play and hundreds of people start dancing. It is magical. Ezra embraces the moment, resisting the urge to record the scene on his phone. He watches Cassidy lose herself in her music, dancing as if no one is watching. After the flash mob, the four friends go to eat and wander around Santa Monica. Eventually, they head back to the Fail Whale and Toby drives them home, happy and tired.

Cassidy takes Ezra clothes shopping at a secondhand clothing store, helping him find his new style to go with his thinner figure and new interests. They have fun trying on unusual clothes before deciding on a leather jacket and black jeans. At one point, Cassidy makes a comment in German, and Ezra discovers that Cassidy likes to learn German sayings and insults, just for fun. One of these is backpfeifengesicht, which translates to “a face that cries out for a fist in it.”

Ezra’s parents are at work, so they go back to his house. Cassidy comments that Ezra’s room looks like a room that someone else has decorated for him, with its framed sailboat picture, tennis heroes, and books hidden under the bed. Ezra agrees with everything she says, eager to kiss Cassidy and take advantage of his empty house. Cassidy coaxes Cooper out of Ezra’s bedroom and climbs onto Ezra’s bed, inviting him to join her. Cooper’s whining at the door and Ezra’s catching his wrist brace in Cassidy’s bra almost ruin the moment, but they both seize the opportunity fully. They joke that they have engaged in “outercourse,” since Cassidy is “saving herself.”