Nate and Dan confirm that they, yes, will be at the opera. Together? Sort of but not exactly. "You know, for a while, I couldn't take Vanessa anywhere really nice, because of the whole no money thing?" Class. Exactly. I love you, Nate Archibald, and your complete lack of weird emotional shit about money. He saw a DVD box set of Der Ring des Nibelungen at her house, and thought that might translate into her enjoying a night of champagne in his family box. This is because of the same Rich People Stuff Goonie mistake, but from the other side of a more intellectual poverty: It's not that Vanessa likes opera, it's that she likes incredibly long, boring shit that she can sternly force herself and others to experience for hours at a time. The "P" in "NPR" doesn't stand for "passion." Dan says that yes, she made him watch the whole thing, without subtitles. That's like sixteen hours. Even if he's kidding that just makes me hate her so bad.

"If you've ever seen A Clockwork Orange you know how that ended up," Dan says, which is actually funnier than you think, because Anthony Burgess also wrote a book called The Worm & The Ring that is about the Ring Cycle at a prep school, the same way this show is all about classic romance literature at a prep school. Meanwhile, Nate's a few steps behind and looking great as usual: "Wait. What's A Clockwork Orange?" Dan rolls his eyes at the curious holes in Nate's brilliance, gets a text, and loses his balance, reaching out instinctively for one Archibald deltoid before he drops.

Lily's looking at a beautiful red dress -- when you're going there, go large; "this is my boyfriend Rufus, and this is my awesome slut dress" -- when Chuck comes in, feeling stymied and acting even more Heathcliff than usual: "I'm trying to do something. I really wanted to do it on my own, but that's not working. I'm thinking you're the only person left who can help." Her face is like, "That's almost sweet, how you view me as a tool and an object and nothing more. How I have missed you."