I couldn't face their questions before I had the answers myself.
-- Narrator (Pages 1 -74)

Importance: After Maggie and Jon break up, Maggie feels isolated and insecure. Although she has a group of close friends, she decides not to tell them that her partner of 10 years has moved out. In this moment, she is explaining her reasons for withholding this information from Clive, Amirah, and the Laurens. The line reveals Maggie's fear of vulnerability. She wants to present herself as the stable and confident divorcée, and thus decides to hide from her friends until she has come to terms with the breakup.

It was my first time, ever, living alone.
-- Narrator (Pages 1 - 74)

Importance: Because Maggie and Jon have been together for 10 years, their breakup unmoors Maggie. After Jon moves out of the apartment, Maggie feels especially disoriented and unsettled. She confesses that this is her first time on her own: an admission that indicates her lack of...