The narrator returns to the school where she works as a librarian. She has overheard a conversation between a student and her teacher, and she is disturbed by the teacher's behavior. She asks the teacher to give her a lift to the top shelf of the library, but the teacher refuses, saying that she is too busy to do so in the heat. The narrator tries to find a place to place her books on the shelf, but she is unable to find them. The teacher asks her to lower her hands to shake hands with her, and the narrator is confused by this request. She is afraid that the teacher does not trust her as a teacher. She tells the teacher that she has been hit on the head by the student, and that she wants to know if the teacher is okay