- Helen is sitting in a subway car reading Don Quixote when Nat Pearl appears before her.
- He says he hasn't seen her in a while, and asks if he offended her.
- No, she says.
- She regrets not having realized that Nat had wanted to sleep with her, but offers nothing more.
- Helen figures she's too poor for him. She's had sex with him twice and has since stayed away.
- Eager to be away from him now, she gets off the train before her stop.
- People stare at her as she makes her way through a park, returning to her neighborhood.
- She passes by Sam Pearl, Nat's father, at his candy store and pretends not to see him.
- Next she passes the liquor store run by Julius and his son Louis. They seem to be doing well.
- The Bobers had been the first to move into the neighborhood, followed by Karp and then Pearl. They were all poor until Karp changed his store from shoes to liquor in the aftermath of Prohibition. It proved to be a smart move.
- Helen enters the grocery, announcing herself so that whoever is behind the counter won't think a customer has arrived. No use in giving false hope.