The People We Keep

On the road, April mails a postcard to Carly. It is the first piece of mail she has sent Carly since leaving Ithaca. As she drives, she decides to stop in Asheville, North Carolina, because she has heard that it is a lot like Ithaca. April plays her guitar in a park for a few hours, making a little over $30. Afterwards, a man named Ethan approaches her; he loves her music and wants to buy her dinner. April hesitates, but as she cannot see any similarities between him and Ray, she agrees.

Over dinner, Ethan reveals that he is an artist, and she sees that he can vicariously live an artist’s life through her. Ethan introduces April to the restaurant’s owner, Robert. After a brief conversation in which Ethan praises April’s talent, Robert offers April a gig the following night. April agrees to play, and Ethan offers her a room at his house. She insists that she cannot pay for room and board and that she has to leave after the show anyway, but both Ethan and Robert insist. Ethan has recently gone through a bad breakup and needs someone else in the house.