Page 212
(Book club night in Molly's kitchen in Portland. Four people, six chairs, one cake.)
Molly: Okay. So. The Ice Harbor. We're here to discuss the ending, and I hated the ending.
Sven: You hate every ending.
Molly: That's not true. I liked the one we read in March.
Sven: You said it was fine.
Molly: Fine is a strong word from me.
Sven: Well, I loved this one. Especially the last page.
Molly: There's no last page. He walks out of the house and the book just stops.
Sven: He walks out of the house, and then there are two more pages. He gets on the boat.
Molly: What boat?
Sven: The boat, Molly. In contrast to some people, I read all of it.
Molly: Give me your copy.
(Molly turns to the back of Sven's book. Then she turns to the back of her own.)
Molly: Mine stops at page 212.
Sven: Mine stops at 214.
Molly: I bought mine for fifty cents at the library sale.
Sven: So either you get a boat or you get a bargain. You can't have both.
Molly: I still dislike the ending. Both endings, actually.
Sven: Cake?
Molly: Cake.