In the three months since Ai-Ming’s arrival, Marie grew very close to her. She learned that Ai-Ming once got into Tsinghua University, “the most prestigious scientific university in China” but in a “reckless” move had decided not to go (50). Marie enjoyed learning all that Ai-Ming knew about math and science, however, and often asked her to elaborate. They also often talked about what Marie would be when she grew up.

Ai-Ming had been feeling “invisible” lately and was anxious to start her life over (49). She made plans to join a friend in San Francisco and then to apply for legal residency in the U.S. Marie and her mother could not afford to “sponsor Ai-Ming’s immigration to Canada” so though neither of them wanted her to leave, they had to let her go (51). On one of their last nights together, Marie used some of her Chinese New Year’s money to take Ai-Ming out to eat at Marie’s “father’s favorite restaurant” (49). Sitting down to eat, Marie finally asked Ai-Ming to tell her about the protests at Tiananmen Square. Ai-Ming had taken part in the hunger strike and slept on the street with her friends. The experience was an awakening.