Falling Leaves

After Adeline divorces Byron, her career flourishes despite an environment of sexual discrimination in the workplace. In solidarity, she befriends Alcenith, an older female ophthalmologist at the hospital. Alcenith identifies with the romantic loneliness Adeline feels, explaining, “women doctors gave unhappy marriages because in our minds we are the superstars of our families. Having survived the hardship of medical school, we expect to reap our rewards at home. We had to assert ourselves against all odds […] It takes a special man to be able to cope” (207).

Alcenith introduces Adeline to just such a man: a Chinese American professor at UCLA named Robert Mah. When they meet, Robert warmly tells her to call him Bob, and he related the story of his family, who immigrated to San Francisco before he was born. His father died when he was young, and his mother had no choice but to go on welfare. He and his siblings thus grew up supporting one another emotionally and financially. Adeline admires and envies this kind of familial support. Feeling a strong affinity toward Bob, Adeline pours out her family history as he sits, holding her hand.

They marry and move into a house in Huntington Beach.