The American Roommate Experiment

Rosie reflects on recent events, chagrined by her vulnerability (her crying out of frustration) in front of Lucas; her tendency to rely on him is a stark departure from her usual role as a source of support to others. As she struggles to write, she is interrupted by a call from Lina. Despite Lina’s assurance that sharing problems won’t diminish her enjoyment of her honeymoon, Rosie does not reveal her living situation with Lucas. She does share her writer’s block, openly pondering a return to engineering. Lina reminds Rosie that she is talented and that her entire family loved Rosie’s first book, especially Lucas’s sister, Charo; the second book involves the heroine’s best friend from the first book exploring modern dating. Lina suggests Rosie do the same, despite Rosie failing to find men who truly value her. She then suggests approaching dates as research—“Field work. As if you were running an experiment” (115)—until Rosie finds genuine romance.

Rosie’s anxiety increases when she realizes Lucas likely overheard her conversation, due to being on speaker. Lucas presents her with a box of Cronuts, which she regretfully recalls mentioning “after [she’d] informed him [she] was on [her] period, and right before [she’d] covered his sweatshirt in snot” (118).