Lydia is the wife of Verne Miller, Harry's boss at the store. Lydia is playing the role of Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire. She has played opposite Harry many times, and is the one who notices that Helene is falling in love with him. She provides the reader with a different perspective on Harry, since she is a woman and has found herself under his spell in the past. Like the narrator, Lydia is concerned enough to try to reason with Helene to help her, but ultimately backs off when Helene refuses her advice.