Summary

Ariel's mother will not let her eat junk food as a child. Instead, she teaches Ariel how to cook. Despite being feminist enough to attend regular women's consciousness-raising groups, Ariel's mother is solely responsible for the household cooking, even when her father is between jobs. Ariel's mother (who remains nameless) has a special friend named Marcus who visits regularly, leaving his own wife and children behind. Ariel's mother visits him as well, and sometimes the two meet without their spouses or children present.

When Ariel gets a little older and first learns about sex, she suspects her mother and Marcus of having an affair. Her mother denies it, but Ariel feels paranoid none-the-less. A few years later, Ariel's father moves away for work and they give up the pretense that Ariel and her mother will follow.

Ariel turns 14 and gets a boyfriend. As teenagers...