Emma, a young woman who grew up moving between her uncle's farm and New York City, does not feel like she fits in with the people in her social circle now that she's moved to the city full-time. For the past year, she has been trying to avoid them, drinking alone in bars and taking long walks in order to be tired enough to fall asleep at night. However, one Sunday when she's visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art, she sees Alfred Eisenburg, one of her old acquaintances. He is looking at a painting that Emma wants to see, but she decides to go elsewhere to avoid confrontation. She goes to the balcony overlooking suits of armor and watches two teenage boys below as she contemplates her current situation. She sees Alfred and his milieu as intellectuals who throw cocktail parties and discuss a wide range of topics. At one of the parties, Emma had briefly flirted with Alfred. Though she is college-educated, Emma hasn't had the same exposure to literature and the arts that the others have, so she feels like a rube, seeing the world in a slightly different way from the others. When one of the boys below disturbs a suit of armor, Emma decides to leave in case a crowd comes to investigate the noise. She recalls that Alfred was one of the last people she had seen before she became a recluse. They had met outside when Emma had been going for a walk. She remembers how awkward it had been for both of them. Then she realizes that this may have been because, as she later learned, Alfred had lost his job. He was also in the middle of a divorce and slipping into poverty. This realization made her want to see Alfred again. After looking through the galleries, she could not find him. Disappointed, she begins to leave, but pauses at the telephones. She feels so lonely that she almost calls anyone in her address book. Just then, Alfred finds her in the crowd. They make small talk, then Alfred invites Emma to go get a drink. She accepts, glad to have someone to commiserate with and excited about the possibilities for the future of their relationship.