The following morning, the narrator's lawyer, Mr. Shine, came to their house looking very tired and sad. The narrator's mother had confidence in Mr. Shine since he had previously helped them with problems related to the narrator's father. After a few hints from their mother suggesting they leave the adults alone, the narrator decided to go fishing at Snake Creek. There, he remembered a time he had helped a homeless woman by giving her a fish, but she wasn't there this time. While fishing, he met Jasper Jr. and his friend, Bull, who made fun of him, leading to a fight where Jasper punched the narrator. Even though it hurt, the narrator didn’t fight back, surprising Jasper with his toughness.
Later, during another confrontation, Jasper disrespected the narrator again by spitting in his face, but the narrator held back as he believed his father thought fighting wasn't always the answer. Instead, he cleverly snagged Jasper with a fishing jig, causing chaos in their johnboat, which eventually tipped over. When the narrator got home, his sister Abbey noticed his black eye and was worried about their mother’s reaction. After speaking with a reporter about their father, Noah discovered his sister was upset about their mother’s discussions with a lawyer about a possible divorce. This situation brought more stress to their family as they all faced the reality of their father's legal troubles and the potential breakdown of their family.