Summary

“Early September. It’s raining outside. A different accessible apartment. In Jersey City, NJ. A largely empty one, in transition and under-loved” (25)

Ani, a quadriplegic in a wheelchair, comes in. Eddie follows, holding the umbrella over her. He tries to settle her in her chair and in the apartment, chattering about the different things she can do to make it feel more like home that might also make her feel better – paint in brighter colors, turn the bed to face the window, do more physical therapy.

Ani, meanwhile, becomes increasingly angry at all of Eddie’s well-meaning but ultimately clumsy attempts, asking him why he was waiting outside her apartment for her. Conversation reveals that Ani is still covered by Eddie’s medical insurance, and that Eddie has been thinking of her – although her anger at his suggestion, and her comment that it...