The scene opens with a flashback to a time before the events of the previous chapter. In this scene, we are introduced to a young woman who is engaged to be married to a man named Thackeray. The young woman, who is called "Thackeray," is in love with the man, but she does not know how to express her love to him. She does not want him to know how much she loves him, and she is afraid that he will be jealous of her love for him. However, she is also afraid that she will not be able to express it to him because she is so young and inexperienced in the art of love.