Audition

One month into Xavier’s stay, Tomas asks the narrator if she would be comfortable with Xavier bringing a friend named Hana over to live in his room. Still eager to please, the narrator agrees to the request.

Hana arrives with Xavier late one night, just before the narrator and Tomas are about to go to bed. The narrator registers that Hana has an alluring personality and a sense of curiosity that Xavier alone cannot satisfy. Hana expresses her admiration for the narrator’s work, especially Parts of Speech, stating her sense that the narrator’s performance represented her. The narrator intuits that Hana is trying to make her feel uncomfortable, even though she believes that Hana is being sincere. The narrator behaves graciously but squeezes Hana’s hands to subtly return some of the discomfort to its sender. However, she immediately realizes that her performance of graciousness inadvertently characterizes her home as a hotel.

Early the next morning, the narrator encounters Hana in the kitchen and invites her to go on a walk. Hana dresses up and shows contempt at the narrator’s decision to go out clad in her pajamas and a coat. The narrator tries to learn more about Hana’s situation, but Hana evades by talking about her own relationship with Xavier, which is growing more serious.