Summary

The narrative picks up 35 years later in Karachi, Pakistan, where Hiroko and Sajjad have lived since being denied entry back in to India following their honeymoon. The couple has had a happy marriage together, although the texture of their day-to-day life has been different from what they had expected. Sajjad has been unable to continue working in law, but has instead found a stable career running a soap factory. The couple have a 16-year-old son, named Raza, who is a bright student, and who aspires to enter the legal field. Hiroko had also worked as a teacher before she retired. One day, Hiroko gifts Raza the same jacket that Sajjad had been wearing on the day that he had first met Hiroko.

The time comes for Raza to take an important national test that will dramatically influence his placement in university. Even though...