Seventeen | Anastasia

Morning after their first night together, Anastasia discovers bold hickeys and spars with Nate’s teasing while preparing to teach. She hides the marks under a turtleneck and declines his request to watch her lesson but agrees to see him later in the week. Nate persistently negotiates time together via texts, landing on a joint Halloween costume trip.

During a post-lunch pickup, Anastasia opens up to Nate about being adopted, the pressure to excel, anxiety, therapy with Dr. Andrews, and how a childhood sticker chart evolved into her meticulous planner. Nate listens, reassures her, and frames their connection as friendship at minimum, earning a reluctant compliment from Anastasia before they share an extended kiss.

Back home, Aaron notices the slipped collar revealing hickeys and scorns her, guessing she’s sleeping with Nate. Sabrina defends Anastasia, and Aaron retreats, beginning days of sulking that chill their apartment. Anastasia throws herself into study sessions with Henry, whose blunt warmth and comments about Nate’s reliability steady her.

At Thursday practice, Nate watches from the stands. Aaron’s hostility and tight movements leave the pair out of sync, producing a poor session that rattles Anastasia. Nate approaches gently, offers to “kick his ass,” then instead proposes scrapping the mall trip for takeout, ordering costumes online, and a sleepover at his well-stocked place to give her space from Aaron.

Feeling seen and soothed, Anastasia accepts. The chapter closes with their shared decision to prioritize calm, private time, signaling deepening intimacy and a fragile respite from Aaron’s escalating negativity before sectionals.