Summary

A young woman is unable to watch as her boyfriend attempts dangerous maneuvers in tunnels and on the Brooklyn Bridge, calling “Think I can make it?” (27). She recalls how they met at a dance, where he took her out to a park and convinced her to jump off a rock. She lands poorly and feels a twinge in her ankle, but they are both proud of her attempt. Throughout the story, the litany repeats: “Only once do you know that kind of man, they say. Only once” (28). She shows him her childhood home and feels that everything “was forgiven” (29). He convinces her to jump off another rock and catches her just in time to prevent her breaking her ankle, but the hazard pleases him and does not slow him down. He greets everything with ecstasy, from flowers to love letters to dangerous...