The narrator is on his way home from work when he slips and falls. He realizes that he has been alone for a long time, and he has forgotten the feeling of "loneliness" that comes from being in someone else's company. When he stops to pick up his things, he notices that the person behind him has a tongue and a blister on his foot. He thinks that he is used to being in the company of others, and that no one cares if he is in trouble. But when he is alone, he realizes, he is not lonely.