The chapter opens with a conversation between a boy and his mother. The boy tells his mother that he has come to meet a friend of Sawa's. He tells her that he is sorry for the mess that has befallen his family. He then asks his mother if he can bring some beer, and she says yes. He asks her what she thinks of girls like Sawa. She tells him that they can be "so diffi cult" and that her father has a "i'm her" when she does not open her mouth. She says that she learned that she stayed out late like this when she was five years old. He says that he and Sawa are friends, but that he does not know what Sawa is thinking. He invites his mother to dinner, but she says she will not be home soon, and that she will call his parents for him. He also asks if his bath room is bug-infested, and her response is that it is. She then asks him if he is the one who is at their house, and he says no, and then he asks if it is the boy who is there, and his response is the same as before: "naka mura" . He goes on to say that he cannot stand the "scumbugs" in the town and that he will make a contract with him to get rid of them. He is so excited that he decides to make a date with another man, but he is disappointed that they did not make it.