Such a Fun Age: Chapter 6 Summary & Analysis

Alix has begun to look at the notifications on Emira’s phone when Emira leaves it unattended to charge in the front vestibule. Alix knows it’s a bad habit, but she never unlocks the phone—she doesn’t know the password—and only scrolls through the notifications on the home screen. It’s now been a month since the Market Depot incident, and Alix has developed something of a weird crush on Emira—she’s excited when Emira arrives for her shift and disappointed when she leaves.

Through her snooping, Alix has learned that Emira is always texting Zara (labeled Kween Zara). She’s also learned a lot about Emira’s musical tastes. Some artists she recognizes. But others, like Childish Gambino and Tyga, she has to Google. Alix has also discovered that Emira is seeing a guy—she’s labelled him Kenan&Kel in her phone.

One night, Alix decides to see if Emira will open up to her about her love life. It’s October, and they’re sitting in the kitchen while Briar colors a picture of a ghost. Alix lights some candles, turns on some music and pours Emira a glass of wine. She tells Emira, who is about to give Briar a quick bath, that she can take the wine into the bathroom with her. When Emira emerges, she tells Alix the wine is really good—Emira likes wine but is mostly used to boxed wine. Alix laughs but tells Emira that she rarely pays for wine, since she gets companies to send it to her for free in exchange for writing reviews.

Alix gets down to business and—unbeknownst to Emira, referencing a text she saw earlier—asks Emira if she has any fun plans for the evening. Emira smiles as she admits that she’s going to dinner with a guy. She lies and says they met on a train. She doesn’t admit much else besides the fact that he’s tall and cute. When Alix asks if the relationship is serious, Emira shrugs and says she’s “not tryna get like…wifed up anytime soon.” Emira’s words make Alix “squeal inside.” She wants to tell her that her own mother had gotten married at 25. She also wants to ask Emira if she’s ever had any serious relationships before. But she doesn’t say anything besides “Good for you.” She also tells Emira that she can take the rest of the wine with her to dinner.