Chapter 25 Summary

They sit in the kitchen on a dreary Saturday, sewing leather bags for crystals. It is Rena's latest moneymaking idea. They are smoking hash under glass while they work. Stoned, Astrid traces a pattern into a scrap of leather with an X-Acto blade. She's even better than her mother used to be. At first outraged that she's ruining the bags, Rena notices that the design is good and asks her to do all the bags.

Astrid spends whatever she makes on art supplies, food and dope. College has already vanished. She has lost too many pieces to make something elegant of her life. Sergei is visiting again. He smells the delicious broccoli-and-cheese casserole Astrid is cooking for Yvonne. Everyone eats except Rena, who smokes and drinks vodka. When she leaves the room for a moment, Sergei flirts with Astrid. Niki calls him a...