Summary

Vivian flashes back to the summer of 1940, when she was kicked out of Vassar after failing her classes her freshman year. She thinks about the things she has been good at, and remembers her Grandmother Morris who taught her how to sew like an expert. In boarding school, Vivian became popular for her ability to make clothing for the other girls. The same happened at Vassar before she was kicked out. Vivian's parents decided to send her to New York City to live with her Aunt Peg, who owns a theater in midtown Manhattan. As the chapter closes, Vivian is on the train to New York City.

Once in New York, Vivian waits in Grand Central Station for a long time waiting for her Aunt Peg. It is not her aunt who picks her up, however, but a woman described as older and...