24. Ophelia

Ophelia and Alex spend Christmas together in a rented car at a hiking car park, exchanging gifts and becoming intimate for the first time. The chapter shifts to their aftermath as they settle into a relationship, but darkens when Alex calls his father Cain to investigate her parents' deaths—revealing Cain ordered the hit on Ophelia's parents to protect blackmail material, and that the person behind the blackmail worked at Sorrowsong University.

Ophelia and Alex drive away from her family home on Christmas Eve, where Alex has arranged an elaborate setup in a rented Land Rover with fairy lights, blankets, and heating. After multiple failed attempts to buy food from local shops, they settle for instant ramen at an off-license. During their evening together, Ophelia confesses her virginity and they become sexually intimate in the back of the car. The narrative jumps forward four nights into their relationship, revealing Alex has publicly posted about Ophelia and she's become an internet sensation. While Ophelia prepares for a therapy call, Alex calls his father Cain, supposedly about investigating her parents' deaths. During the encrypted call, Cain casually reveals he ordered the hit on Ophelia's parents—a woman named Annabel (or Anna) and her husband—as payment to delete compromising videos of himself with someone's PA. He mentions the blackmailer worked at the university and is otherwise insignificant. Alex conceals his rage and ends the call, leaving Ophelia stunned and uncertain about who at Sorrowsong is responsible.