Arboretum Kiss — Champagne, Confession, Goodbye
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
They encounter Secret Service agent Jamie, revealing Zoey's unexpected presence at the Arboretum.
Charlie finds Zoey waiting for him, leading to a charged conversation about their relationship and her impending departure.
Zoey unexpectedly kisses Charlie, revealing her confusion about her feelings and concerns about leaving.
The moment is broken as Zoey admits her turmoil about Jean-Paul, her father's wellbeing, and her confusion about Charlie.
Charlie acknowledges the temporary nature of the moment, prompting Zoey to leave for her party after a final kiss.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Mildly exasperated and worried — trying to be supportive while also deflecting tension with humor.
Josh stumbles through the brook with Charlie, provides anxious, teasing banter, steps into the water and stays behind while Charlie approaches Zoey, offering comic relief and peripheral emotional support but not intruding on the private exchange.
- • Back up Charlie and make sure the situation doesn't escalate.
- • Lighten the mood so Charlie can act without being paralyzed by emotion.
- • Friends should show up and help each other through awkward moments.
- • A little humor can diffuse tension and protect people from making bigger mistakes.
- • Charlie needs a push to do the right, practical thing.
Longing and nervous restraint — visibly moved and tempted but governed by duty and the knowledge of Zoey's imminent departure.
Charlie navigates the dark Arboretum, exits the brook, crosses a bamboo bridge, locates Zoey, tries to perform the buried-champagne ritual, receives two kisses, accepts the bottle, restrains himself from turning the moment into a relationship, and watches Zoey walk away.
- • Deliver the buried champagne as a meaningful goodbye gesture.
- • Protect Zoey from impulsive decisions and not complicate her life before she leaves.
- • Maintain propriety while privately expressing care.
- • Small rituals (showing up, the champagne) matter and can provide emotional closure.
- • He believes he is not in a position to advise or hold Zoey back from her choices.
- • Showing up is itself a moral act that affirms his integrity.
Professionally attentive and cautious — focused on duty rather than the private feelings being played out.
Jamie calls out to confirm presence, identifies himself as a Federal Officer, radios in Charlie's approach ("P-3, Charlie Young's coming"), and thus maintains perimeter awareness and procedural reporting while remaining physically distant from the emotional exchange.
- • Ensure the security detail knows an unauthorized approach is occurring.
- • Maintain the protective perimeter around the First Daughter and report movements to the detail.
- • Protocol and clear communication minimize risk to protectees.
- • Unannounced visitors in restricted grounds are a potential threat and should be logged.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The National Arboretum perimeter wall is implied when Charlie mentions having to climb over it to reach the meeting place; narratively it explains Charlie's physical effort and separation from the sedan and public world, reinforcing the clandestine, liminal quality of the encounter.
The 'Paeonia Japonica' sign is passed as Charlie crosses the bridge through bamboo; it functions as a concrete, anchored landmark that orients the characters and the audience in the Arboretum's nocturnal geography while heightening the scene's stillness.
Zoey's Concorde is referenced as the instrument of her imminent departure (she's leaving on the Concorde tomorrow), functioning narratively as the ticking clock that makes the night's exchange urgent and transient.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The brook itself is a pragmatic obstacle the characters stumble into (Josh and Charlie), creating comic physicality that defuses tension and marks the transition from clumsy search to solemn intimacy when Charlie reaches the bank.
The National Arboretum brook bank is the stage for the private exchange: moonlit, shadowed by bamboo, and acoustically defined by water. It gives Zoey a place to sit apart from the party scene and allows Charlie to approach across natural obstacles — a liminal place between public duty and private feeling.
The bamboo area surrounds the exchange and muffles sound, creating a private acoustic pocket that isolates Zoey and Charlie from the techno-party world and amplifies the intimacy of their conversation.
The bridge through bamboo is the narrow path Charlie crosses to reach Zoey; it channels movement and frames his arrival, amplifying isolation and anticipation before the private exchange.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Charlie's personal mission to retrieve the champagne bottle for Zoey is revisited when he and Josh go to the Arboretum at night."
"Charlie's personal mission to retrieve the champagne bottle for Zoey is revisited when he and Josh go to the Arboretum at night."
"Zoey's kiss with Charlie leads to her confession about her confusion."
"Josh and Charlie's humorous banter contrasts with the seriousness of their mission."
"The discovery of Zoey at the Arboretum leads to her conversation with Charlie."
"Zoey's photo of her father contrasts with her confused feelings for Charlie."
"Zoey's photo of her father contrasts with her confused feelings for Charlie."
"Zoey's photo of her father contrasts with her confused feelings for Charlie."
"Zoey's kiss with Charlie leads to her confession about her confusion."
"Josh and Charlie's humorous banter contrasts with the seriousness of their mission."
"The discovery of Zoey at the Arboretum leads to her conversation with Charlie."
"Zoey's departure from the Arboretum leads to her arrival at the nightclub."
"Zoey's departure from the Arboretum leads to her arrival at the nightclub."
Key Dialogue
"ZOEY: "I'm honestly-- I'm-I'm worried a little about my father. My leaving for three months isn't exactly going to do him any favors. And I'm confused about you.""
"CHARLIE: "Well, I can't advice you on that.""
"CHARLIE: "Because I think this is tonight, and tomorrow you're on the Concorde.""