Bear wishes the woman he loves would love him back. The wish comes true — and her devotion becomes a violence neither of them can stop.

1. Scenes 1–9

   Bear in his comfort zone of quiet, unspoken longing for Nicky, grieving his cat and coached by Ian to stay silent rather than confess.

2. Scenes 9–13

   Bear needs Nicky to love him back, sharpened by trivia night's proximity to her and Ian, and the purchase of the willow as an almost-joke wish object.

3. Scene 13

   Bear breaks the willow and makes the wish, crossing from wanting to actively, magically pursuing Nicky's love.

4. Scenes 14–30

   Bear adapts to Nicky's escalating strangeness, paying the cost of denial and rationalization as the relationship forms under increasingly disturbing terms.

5. Scenes 25–31

   Nicky confesses her love and the relationship becomes real — Bear gets exactly what he wished for, at the exact moment the cracks (the dad lie) start to show.

6. Just before
7. Scene 35

   Ian corners Bear for a ride home, needling him to talk about Nicky.

8. Scene 36

   In the car, Ian pushes Bear to explain the relationship and warns him it looks like he's taking advantage of Nicky, ultimately inviting him to a boys'-only night without her.

9. Scene 37

   Bear comes home to find Nicky standing in her own vomit and urine, having waited all day by the door; he extracts a promise from her not to do that again, then caves and lets her come to Ian's party after all.

10. Scene 38

    This scene