1. Frenemies

This is a brief opening chapter featuring an epigraph from Marcel Proust that sets a philosophical tone for the novel. No plot events occur; the chapter consists only of a quotation.

Chapter 1 presents a single epigraph attributed to Marcel Proust: "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but seeing with new eyes." This quotation serves as the thematic preface to the novel, suggesting that the story ahead will involve discovery and transformation through altered perspective rather than merely through physical travel or conquest.