Part 21 - classy French restaurant, swinging discotheques and more of those overbearing pinkos

Shane,

After the slow build up of the past few sections, I keep on hoping that my five pages will be the one to break the tension. James Kee will throw something at Rowan; someone will have sex; grapefruits will be smashed against walls... Something to clear the humidity and heat from the air. But no. It's another interminable look into our Rowan's inner psyche. Oh thank god I'm not 24 anymore. I hope to God I wasn't so inane. The girl spent half an hour in a 'reverie while drying her hair'. Dreaming about Matt Cater's arms or something.

My section opens with Rowan packing alone and trying to will her way out of her situation, much like a small child would hope that if she thought about things hard enough, they really would come true. And I agree about reading the crossed out portions of text; as well as not being allowed insight into Rowan's grapefruit cutting skills we are also not allowed to find out what she had for lunch after packing (it was consomme and a salad - notice I refuse to use the accent?). She has another unpleasant encounter with James Kee, whose "quintessential Oriental reserve" continues to make her feel uncomfortable. He passive-agressively attacks her about her friendship with Milly the housemaid, who was as you may remember, injured by the mysterious glass needle. This of course puts Rowan's panties in a twist - her letter to her fiance! It's with Milly! And by the way, is this a current fiancee or a former fiancee?

Rowan waits anxiously for Milly to return from her lunch break in order to see if she was stopped by James on her way out. In fact nothing of the kind seemed to have happened - Milly went out for lunch with her mysterious boyfriend (who drives a battered panel truck), and is all giggly upon her return; mission letter-delivery accomplished. Operation sex-up Milly-the-maid accomplished as well, it seems.

I do think we should keep up the field trips though - I have a feeling that the expedition Reshevsky takes her on this momentuous evening will be a fun one to replicate. It's decided! Instead of my usual weekend brooklyn-based debauchery, I will instead demand that my man take me to some frou-frou French restaurant followed by a visit to a discotheque. And the name of this restaurant must be 'Chez Giselle'.

Unfortunately for Rowan though, James is the designated driver and chaperone for the evening, leading Rowan to contemplate whether this was a deliberate ploy on her aunt's part to spy on her... Frankly I'm disappointed with my five pages. Again none of the relevant questions were answered, and for someone who is desperate to get out of her aunt's house, she seems to be quite happy to go on elaborate excursions with Reshevsky, a man who she is supposed to feel mild repulsion for. Oh to be twenty-four again.... trapped in your aunt's house and the subject of an elaborate smuggling scheme concocted by Chinese Reds....