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Joe holds Beck in his arms as she drunkenly weeps and tells him about Peach. Joe is annoyed that her body has been found so soon, but he is relieved when Beck believes that Peach died by suicide. She recalls her experience in Little Compton, and Joe listens intently, pretending to know nothing. Then, Beck kisses Joe. They have sex, spend the night together, and wake up the next morning and spend all day together in a diner. Joe believes that they are “together now” (219).

Joe and Beck spend the next two weeks together in an intense flourish of intimacy. Joe is delighted, but, when Ethan reminds him that “the first few days of any relationship are intense” (222), he becomes anxious. He messages Beck, telling her that he loves her.

After Joe tells Beck he loves her, “something changes” (223) in their relationship. The intensity vanishes, and Beck seems emotionally distant. Joe is confused and hurt, especially when Beck seems to be writing an email that does not appear in her account. When she cancels her plans with him one evening, he cries.