Summary

Patrick goes to an upscale restaurant in a state of mental and emotional turmoil. He seeks to distract himself from his thoughts and emotions through various sensations of pleasure. Patrick briefly contemplates the idea of suicide. Patrick orders and drinks excessive amounts of alcohol, and he also orders many expensive food items. Patrick tries hard not to think about heroin, although heroin seems to him to be the only substance that fully relieves him of pain, even if only temporarily. Patrick thinks about love, which seems to him to be a destructive force in life. Patrick thinks of Pierre, a Frenchman who lives in New York City and sells heroin. Patrick usually buys drugs from Pierre whenever Patrick is in New York. Patrick looks at the other people in the restaurant and mentally catalogs his reflexive reasons for immediately disliking them. Patrick eats desert...