An unnamed girl goes to college in the city, where she meets her older cousin for weekly meals to talk about her life. When she returns from one such meal, she finds that she has a new roommate, Nina. Nina tells her that she is from the country, where she has two children from a teenage relationship, but has come to the city to earn a living for them. Instead of finding steady work, she entered into a relationship with a rich older man, and they had a baby who has since died. He lets her live at the college campus to sit in on classes, but has another woman watch her every move. One day, Nina asks the girl to attend a dinner with her lover, Mr. Purvis, in her stead when she’s feeling ill. The narrator agrees, but when she gets there, the older man has her strip naked and read to him. Unsettled, she returns to her apartment to find Nina completely gone. A few days later, Nina contacts her to say that she’s pregnant again and living with the girl's cousin, and they are now in a relationship. The girl, haunted by her roommate’s past and the memory of the naked dinner, anonymously reveals Nina’s location to Mr. Purvis. A few days later, the girl's cousin tells her that Nina has disappeared.