On the way home, Kemal was silent.

«What am I going to do with you?» Dana asked. «Why are you always getting into fights, and why do you use words like that?»

«I didn't know she spoke Serbian.»

When they reached Dana's apartment, she said, «I'm going to have to go back to the studio, Kemal. Will you be all right here alone?»

«Word.»

The first time Kemal had said that to her, Dana had thought he had not understood her, but she quickly learned that it was part of the arcane idiom spoken by the young. «Word» meant «yes.» «Phat» described members of the opposite sex:p rettyh ota ndt empting. Everything was cool or sweet or tight or rad. If there was something they didn't like, it sucked.

Dana took out the report card that Mrs. Kostoff had given her. As she studied it, her lips tightened. History, D. English, D. Science, D. Social Studies, F. Math, A.

Looking at the card, Dana thought, Oh, Lord, what am I going to do? «We'll discuss this another time,» she said. «I'm late.»

Kemal was an enigma to Dana. When they were together, he behaved beautifully. He was loving and thoughtful and endearing. On weekends, Dana and Jeff turned Washington into a playground for him. They went to the National Zoo, with its spectacular array of wild animals, starring the exotic giant panda. They visited the National Air and Space Museum, where Kemal saw the first Wright brothers plane dangling from the ceiling, and then walked through Skylab and touched moon rocks. They went to the Kennedy Center and the Arena Stage. They introduced Kemal to pizza at Tom Tom, tacos at Mextec, and southern fried chicken at Georgia Brown's. Kemal loved every moment of it. He adored being with Dana and Jeff.

But…when Dana had to leave to go to work, Kemal turned into another person. He became hostile and confrontational. It was impossible for Dana to hold on to a housekeeper, and sitters told horror stories about evenings with Kemal.