In which Rickie’s hopes of Italy give way to a spring spent in Ilfracombe, where strained social encounters and the odd companionship of the eccentric Mr. Jackson provide a backdrop to quiet domestic unease and reflections on art and life. Returning to the school term, Rickie finds himself both immersed in familiar routines and subtly shadowed by a growing sense of unreality, much to the concern of his observant wife.