Summary

Whenever anyone compliments the Teacher on her work, she silently responds with a rebuttal. She does not believe she is as great at her job as people say.

When Bea does not show up to school, “the Teacher is afraid” (49). She knows school is “a relatively safe place” for Bea to be during the day (49). She fears what will happen to Bea if she finds “other safe places for the day” (49).

The Teacher has a difficult day. She is so frustrated, she wants “to throw a tantrum” (49). She had been so proud of her students. Now everything she teaches feels meaningless without Bea there.

The Teacher tells her husband about her day over dinner. The tablecloth is meant “to put her in the spirit of their honeymoon” (49). However, she cannot align the man in front of her with the man she fell in...