Chapter 10 (SEVEN): Full Summary and Analysis

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

The chapter opens with Elias waking an hour before his alarm, sore from a brutal hit in the previous game against Dallas. His physical therapist has already seen him three times. On his nightstand sits the skipping stone Sage gave him, and the sight of it brings her laugh back to him. He reflects that she presents herself as carefree and open, but he suspects that her willingness to share traumatic parts of her life is itself a shield — a facade of honesty that hides more than it reveals. He rarely trusts people, but her passion for ballet convinced him she was not on their date to snoop or collect his number.

His phone is flooded with notifications. His teammates Kian Ishida and Dylan Donovan text him in a group chat called Bunny Patrol, having learned about his apparent girlfriend from the internet. Elias clicks the link and finds a tabloid article labeling the woman in a photo as his girlfriend. The image shows Sage handing him her heels and jumping on his back as he carried her to his car. He almost smiles before reality sets in: this is bad. He recalls what happened to Brandy, the team photographer, who had to disable her accounts after being pictured with him because the harassment became hateful. He knows he has to warn Sage.

He texts her, and they arrange to meet at Bliss Café beside her ballet studio on Brunswick Avenue at the University of Toronto. Elias is uneasy about being on a campus where his team beat the hockey team months ago, and he goes incognito — hoodie, hat, and sunglasses. When he arrives, he watches Sage teach a class through the studio window. Her students mirror her bright smile, and he recognizes in her the same all-consuming devotion to her craft that separates true athletes from those who merely work hard. Dancing, he thinks, is part of her soul.

When the class ends, Sage spots him and bursts into laughter at his disguise, even taking a picture of him. Inside the café, she pulls off his sunglasses and teases him about looking like a stalker. He tells her bluntly that her picture is in the tabloids. She checks her phone and finds it buzzing with messages and follow requests. Elias explains that this is the first time the media has written girlfriend instead of fling, but he is still worried about the harassment that will follow.

Sage, rather than being alarmed, sees an opportunity. She proposes they fake date. If the media believes he is in a committed relationship, they will stop scrutinizing him, and she can use the social media following to get her dancing noticed by the Nova Ballet Theatre. Elias refuses. She tries to persuade him — suggesting it is a clean break, reminding him the media has only ever lied about him, and offering a test drive. He refuses again and again, insisting he does not date and does not lie.

Sage grows offended. She interprets his refusal as a belief that no one would find their relationship believable because she is a mess — a gold-digging, washed-up ballerina trying to sink her nails into a famous athlete. Elias is stunned by her harsh self-assessment and tries to stop her, touching her arm, but she pulls away and leaves, saying Good luck with life, Eli. The nickname sounds wrong coming from her.

Before Elias can follow, a student approaches him for an autograph. The young man idolizes him, calling him an inspiration and joking about his million-dollar contract and unlimited girls. The words land heavily on Elias, extinguishing any warmth from the encounter. He signs the hat, mutters a goodbye, and drives away.

Key Events

Elias wakes sore from a game and notices the skipping stone Sage gave him, prompting reflection on her hidden depths.
A tabloid article labels Sage as Elias's girlfriend, with a photo from their date.
Elias's teammates text him about the news in the Bunny Patrol group chat.
Elias recalls how team photographer Brandy was harassed off social media after being pictured with him.
Elias meets Sage at Bliss Café near her ballet studio at U of T.
Sage shows him her phone filling with messages and follow requests.
Sage proposes a fake relationship to deflect media scrutiny and boost her ballet career.
Elias refuses multiple times, citing that he does not date and does not lie.
Sage becomes offended, believing Elias thinks she is a gold digger, and leaves.
A student asks for an autograph and makes comments about Elias's lifestyle that leave him uncomfortable.

Character Development

Elias is defined in this chapter by his guardedness. He admits he rarely trusts people, and his instinct is to protect Sage from the media storm rather than to use the situation to his advantage. His refusal of the fake dating proposal is not born of disdain for her but of a refusal to lie and a fear of letting anyone close enough to dig into his life. The chapter also reveals the burden he carries: he is humiliated that people talk about how much he plays outside the rink rather than how he plays on it. The student's comments about his contract and women land as a painful reminder of how the public reduces him.

Sage shows her ambition and her vulnerability. She is quick to see a strategic opportunity in the tabloid attention, but her reaction to Elias's refusal reveals a deeper insecurity — she assumes he finds her unworthy or believes she is using him. Her self-description as a gold-digging washed-up ballerina is harsh and self-deprecating, suggesting that beneath her confident exterior she carries doubts about her own value. Her exit line, Good luck with life, Eli, signals hurt rather than anger.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Media scrutiny and tabloid culture. The chapter centers on how a single photograph can reshape a person's public narrative. Elias has lived with this his whole career, but Sage is new to it, and the asymmetry of their experience drives the conflict.

Fake dating as a strategic arrangement. Sage's proposal reframes romance as a transaction — a mutually beneficial contract. Elias's refusal is rooted in his unwillingness to participate in a lie, even one that would protect him.

Facade versus hidden vulnerability. Elias explicitly reflects that Sage's openness may be a mask, and her outburst in the café confirms that she hides insecurity beneath her boldness. Elias himself hides behind his hoodie and sunglasses, both literally and figuratively.

Passion as authenticity. Elias's trust in Sage is earned not by her words but by watching her teach — her devotion to ballet convinces him she is genuine. This mirrors his own relationship to hockey.

Burden of fame. The student's comments about Elias's lifestyle show how the public reduces athletes to stereotypes, and Elias's reaction reveals how much that demeans him.

Miscommunication and hurt feelings. Elias's refusal is about his own boundaries, but Sage reads it as a judgment of her worth. Neither fully explains themselves, and the misunderstanding drives them apart.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is the turning point that sets up the central premise of the novel: the fake relationship. Sage's proposal — and Elias's refusal — creates the tension that will likely force them back together. It also deepens both characters. Elias is revealed as someone who values honesty and protects others from his own fame, while Sage is shown to be ambitious but vulnerable, quick to assume the worst about how others see her. The chapter also establishes the stakes of the media attention, giving the reader a clear sense of the world these characters inhabit and the cost of Elias's celebrity.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Elias refuse Sage's fake dating proposal, and what does his refusal reveal about his character?

Elias refuses because he does not date and does not lie, and he is unwilling to let anyone close enough to dig into his life. His refusal reveals that he values integrity over convenience and that his guardedness is a protective mechanism, not a rejection of Sage personally.

2. How does Sage's reaction to Elias's refusal reveal her insecurities?

Sage immediately assumes Elias's refusal means he thinks she is a gold-digging, washed-up ballerina. Her harsh self-description shows that beneath her confident exterior, she doubts her own worth and is sensitive to being perceived as using him for his fame.

3. What role does the media play in shaping the events of this chapter?

The tabloid article is the catalyst for the entire chapter. It forces Elias to warn Sage, leads to their meeting, and inspires Sage's fake dating proposal. The media also shapes how the public — including the student who approaches Elias — perceives him, reducing him to his contract and his romantic life rather than his skill on the ice.

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