Summary

Ever since the narrator learned he was Black, The Kid has been visiting him more often. While "sitting together," he tells The Kid that adulthood "isn't built for believing in the existence of other people" (113). It is too dangerous to "believe in everyone," because "then we have to care about them" (113). The Kid does not understand. The narrator says that caring about others makes a person fearful. He rambles on about fear, moxie, and survival (114). The Kid talks about his mother and all she taught him. When he asks about the narrator's mother, the narrator ends the conversation. Instead, he wants The Kid to use his imagination to see what he sees.

The narrator loved his parents and Daddy Henry. Though he has dated, he does not like being in relationships. Writing has saved him in many ways, but "the page never answers...