Naturally, I Assumed...

Connie notices that Eugene has developed a precise daily habit: just before four o’clock, he rushes from Whit’s End to Campbell College, where Katrina Shanks finishes work at the library. Eugene insists that he and “Trina” are merely friends, but Connie is certain that he is smitten. Whit accepts Eugene’s explanation, leaving Connie amused by what she regards as his inability to see the obvious.

Eugene and Katrina have been meeting regularly after her library shift, sharing conversations they both enjoy. During one visit, Katrina calls Eugene cute and notices him blushing. Then she says she must hurry to a five o’clock engagement because she dislikes keeping “him” waiting. She also asks Eugene to stop meeting her at the library, since their conversations make her late. Eugene assumes that another young man has taken his place.

At Whit’s End the next day, Connie quickly draws out the truth. Eugene likes Katrina as more than a friend but does not know whether she feels the same. Since Katrina has rearranged their time so she can meet someone else, he believes he has a rival. Connie offers herself as Eugene’s expert guide to romance and recommends giving Katrina something she will appreciate.

Connie also coaches Eugene on how to present the gift. His first attempt sounds like a formal report, so she demonstrates an emotional speech and makes him practice it with her. Eugene awkwardly speaks of his racing heart and deep affection while pretending to hand Connie a present. Whit enters the open office at exactly that moment. Embarrassed by what he has overheard, he quietly assumes that Eugene and Connie’s relationship has changed.

Eugene finds Katrina and tries to deliver both Connie’s speech and his gift. His memorized words become hopelessly tangled, and he finally hands her a replica edition of Emerson’s essays. Katrina genuinely appreciates the book but is late to meet Darren and rushes away. Eugene returns to Connie more convinced than ever that another man has won Katrina’s interest.

Connie is astonished to learn that Eugene has never actually told Katrina how he feels. Eugene believed his daily attention made his affection plain, but Connie says his behavior communicates little beyond his love of information. She sends him back to start over with unmistakably romantic gifts: candy and flowers.

Unable to wait, Eugene arrives at Katrina’s home at seven on Saturday morning. The carnations immediately trigger her allergies, and she breaks out in hives. The candy is no better, since she avoids its high sugar content. Eugene tries to explain his feelings between her sneezes, but Katrina retreats for medicine before he can finish. He interprets the disaster as a complete rejection.

Connie comforts him at Whit’s End and urges him not to give up. Eugene thanks her for trying and gives her the unwanted candy and flowers as tokens of friendship. Whit sees the exchange, which appears to confirm everything he has already assumed about the two coworkers.

Katrina arrives with Darren McGibbs, whom she wants Eugene to meet. Before Darren enters, Connie angrily accuses Katrina of being insensitive to Eugene’s feelings and letting a good man slip away. Katrina then introduces Darren: he has recently moved from England, and his parents have hired her to tutor him while he adjusts to the United States. He is not her boyfriend. Katrina never told Eugene because Eugene never asked - the same reason Eugene never told Katrina that he liked her.

Katrina sends Darren upstairs to meet his supposed rival. He asks Eugene to recommend a college tutor, and Eugene generously suggests Katrina before realizing who Darren is. Katrina joins them and explains that Connie has revealed their misunderstanding. Eugene had assumed Katrina knew his feelings and was rejecting them; Katrina had assumed Eugene understood that work, study, and tutoring left her little time; Connie had built further assumptions on Eugene’s mistaken conclusion.

Both Eugene and Katrina admit that they should have spoken directly instead of expecting the other to understand unspoken feelings. Darren reduces the lesson to two words: “Never assume.” Before leaving, Katrina asks Eugene to call her later, giving their friendship the opportunity Eugene feared he had lost.

Whit then cautiously tells Connie and Eugene that romantic relationships between coworkers can lead to hurt. They are baffled until he explains what he heard in the office and saw with the candy and flowers. Whit has been worrying about Eugene and Connie all along. As the two stare at him, he begins to realize that he has made one final assumption of his own.