Play It As It Lays

Maria dreams that she has had the baby and is living with Ivan in New York. The narrator juxtaposes this fantasy with Maria’s memory of Ivan calling her lasciviously in the middle of the night. Ivan used sex to control Maria.

Maria visits Kate’s medical facility unannounced, and the nurse reprimands her for disrupting Kate’s adjustment to her new treatment. Kate clings to the nurse and does not look at Maria. The next morning, Maria steels herself for the abortion, reassuring herself that afterward, Carter will no longer control her.

On the morning of the abortion, Maria waits anxiously for the phone call that will tell her where to meet the man who will drive her to the location. When the call comes, the man on the phone tells Maria to meet him in a Thriftmart parking lot off the Ventura Freeway. As with everyone else who has spoken with Maria throughout the process, the man’s manner is abrupt and dismissive.