Summary

In Chapter 4, K remembered telling Sumire about taking a trip around Hokuriku when he was 18 years old. He met an older woman while he was traveling and had sex with her. He apologized for being a clumsy lover and the woman made an analogy about driving, stating that she would rather have an attentive and inexperienced driver behind the wheel than an inattentive experienced one. Sumire asked how one becomes attentive and K told her he sometimes thought about “a cucumber in a fridge on a summer afternoon” (42). Sumire told K she thought about cucumbers to stay calm while talking to Miu. Miu took Sumire to her apartment and gave her some new clothes.

Sumire began working for Miu, and they often had dinner together at the end of the day. One evening, Miu told Sumire that something had happened to her 14 years...