In this chapter, we learn that the narrator's brother is dead, and that he was the father of the daughter of a client of the company where the narrator works. We learn that this is the first time the narrator has heard of his brother's death, and we also learn that he has been rejected for a job at a client's company. The narrator, however, is determined to get married, even though he knows that he will lose his place in society if he doesn't do so. He tells us that he used to want to live with his ex-boyfriend simply because he loved him, but now that he's a teenager, he can't get over his feelings for his ex. He also says that his parents don't seem to accept him as gay, and he wonders why he hasn't spoken to them about his feelings. He says that when he was younger, he also wanted to be with a boyfriend, but he didn't want to be associated with a public image that would hurt his family's reputation. This is why he broke off his relationship with his former lover, he tells us. He adds that adults are "idiots," and that it is tiresome to lose your social position if you are honest about it.