Blaess writes to her parents about her holiday plans: she wants to take six full days off, her aunt wants her to go to Orgeval, but she and Norah want to go to Brittany...She is very tired and has dark rings around her eyes that she is hoping will disappear before she has to take her ID photographs. She is planning on buying a coat but is unsure of which one, she is trying different ones in several shops and hasn't decided which one to go for yet. There has been an alert that night but she didn't bother getting up. She met an American woman who sells book who she likes a lot. On the weekend she went to the cinema with Yolande and slept at her aunt's. The Polish doctor has been enlisted and Mme Lecolletier (Dillis's mother) is in bad shape again because he was the only one that could relieve her pain. The (older) women at her lodgings are jealous of Bleass because she gets along very well with the captain and he keeps defending her. On the subject of the captain, he is stubborn and wants to have the last word. He secretly researches on subjects Blaess brings up so he can argue with her. When she brings up something and he doesn't know anything about it, he will look it up and bring it up again the next day. He doesn't like when Blaess (a woman) argues or has "absurd" or "independent" ideas. Blaess mentions the new residents at her boarding house: a doctor that looks down on everybody and two nurses, one of them seems nice, but the other one is a "stuck-up madam". Blaess expresses her fears concerning Vendryès: she says he is 72 and hopes he won't die before she can finish her lessons. She is tired and has a lot of work. She adds a postscript on Saturday morning saying she received the letters, asks for news etc.