This chapter opens with a conversation between the protagonist and his employer. The protagonist tells his employer that he is recovering from his recent bout of cold and that he has been taking good care of him. He tells the employer that his dog has even cooked for him, and that the smell of the dog food makes him sick. He also tells the boss that the kitchen is full of cooked dishes, and he is unable to cook them because he can't. He asks the boss if he could just heat up the dishes instead of giving him dog food, and the boss tells him that he could have just done so. He then tells the protagonist that he had planned to raise a child, but a cold put him out of commission, and his kitchen could not survive its fate. He decides to search for the child's parents, and they agree to build a new kitchen for him.