Content Warning: The source text and this section of the guide discuss death by suicide. The source text also includes outdated and offensive terms to refer to gay and lesbian people.

Sylvia has recently moved to Paris. She recalls living there with her family 15 years ago; at the time, she found the city to be a breathtaking contrast to her life in the United States. Now, Sylvia walks into a bookshop, A. Monnier, and speaks with the cashier, Adrienne Monnier. They bond over their love of literature, and Sylvia feels a mutual attraction growing between them. However, Sylvia is disappointed to learn that Adrienne already has a partner named Suzanne. Suzanne invites Sylvia to a reading of some French authors at the shop.

Later, Sylvia is distracted by the memory of Adrienne as she attempts to write, trying to fill her family’s expectation that she will one day become a writer. She thinks about her sister Cyprian’s success as an actress; they are both in Paris because Cyprian has a recurring role in a film series.

At the reading, Suzanne introduces Sylvia to her writer friends, Valery and Jules. Sylvia converses with them comfortably and feels her connection to Adrienne growing stronger.