The music changed to The Blue Danube Waltz, and the couples, unsmiling, their backs rigid, waltzed past her in a large circle, their coordinated feet chasing one another, intent on perfecting the task.

Lulu began to fuss and whimper. Nola brought out a bottle, and at the sight of it, Lulu clasped her fingers around it and closed her mouth on the nipple. Nola cradled her in her lap, but a few minutes later, Lulu's arms became heavy, and Nola took over holding the bottle.

On the bench next to her, a fat green caterpillar gathered itself, then stretched, gathered itself again, then stretched once more. Its stunted limbs, dark protrusions against the bright green of the body, seemed useless, yet this low life-form moved with purpose. In a short while, it had covered the width of the bench, then halted, half its body poised in the air. Swaying to and fro, unseeing, it searched for a foothold. Its limbs found the curve in the stone, and the body contoured around it, then rolled into a ball. A second later, it exuded some goo and hung itself on a strand that became longer as the caterpillar lowered itself down. Once on the ground, it wriggled, straightened and continued on its way.

Nola watched it disappear in a rose bush. A diminutive, blind, limbless and mindless creature had conquered life’s tribulations. “We can do it too,” she said to Lulu, then on second thought, added, “We have done it.”

Yet how had she gotten to this low point? Which fork in the road had she missed? Or hadn’t she? She had been depressed and had given up on passionate love by the time Wade had made his amorous overture. She had been fearful of losing him when all she had was wrapped around him. She should have taken her time. No matter. The next decision had been about Lulu, and from the first moment, it had felt right as though predetermined.

Lulu's lids drooped, then closed. Only her mouth kept working with vigor, when a gnat landed on her cheek, then another and another. In an instant, a cloud encircled Nola and Lulu. Nola swatted them away, but in the waning light another cloud of gnats hovered above as though planning their next attack. They moved in unison, like an army of skydivers, and descended. Again they levitated to evaluate their next target. Soon the dancing couples lost their composure and were swatting at the gnats.

Whipping a washcloth in the air around Lulu's head, Nola jumped to her feet and retied her sling, but even after she marched away from the plaza, the cloud of gnats refused to let go. Undeterred by Nola's wild swinging, mocking her, they dive-bombed onto Lulu's face, neck and hair, feeding on dried lactose. Tiny red dots appeared on the porcelain skin.