Summary

Thandi realizes that "love and marriage are completely unrelated enterprises," especially since Peter begins to change physically and emotionally (182). Peter gains weight and wants Thandi to make him feel better but she refuses. The frustration in their marriage reaches a point where he becomes almost violent, shoving M in Thandi's face in the middle of the night, exclaiming he "can't do anything right" (184). During Aminah's father's funeral, Thandi cries into the handkerchief of Keith, a nice boy from her high school, and after, while Peter sleeps in front of the TV, she has a dream in which Keith is comforting her. M learns words he hears from Peter, including "shit," who is continually frustrated in his work and marriage. Thandi is asked to go to a conference in San Diego, and Peter is brusque and rude while dropping her off at...