- Jim Nightshade lies in bed waiting. He is "marbled with dark," a boy who has "talked less and smiled less as the years increased" (9.4).
- We learn that Jim is incapable of looking away from the world. He absorbs it always, leaving him much older than his thirteen years. Will, in contrast, is the exact opposite.
- Jim's mother comes into the room.
- We learn that she once had three children but lost all of them except for Jim.
- Jim tells his mother he's never going to have children. He tells her there's no use in making people because people die.
- After a pause, he asks his mother about his father.
- After a short chat about life and kids, Jim's mother leaves him to sleep.
- Jim raises his window and looks into the night for the storm. He spies the shadow of the lightning rod on his roof and decides to take it off. He wants to see what will happen.