The Passenger Seat Scandal

Ethan finds a box of ultra-thin condoms in the passenger seat of Sylvia's car and quietly puts it away. Sylvia explains that the whole box is there because they ran out at home, then suggests they buy supplements and visit his mother for New Year's Eve. Ethan says nothing; his mother has passed away, and Sylvia does not know. He has already decided on divorce.

Sylvia promises to come, then misses the train, blaming a sudden project problem and insisting it is not because of Gabriel. Ethan travels alone, and his aunt and uncle press him about his marriage while he waits for a wife who never arrives. When Sylvia finally calls, she says a man is hospitalized and in surgery, and tells Ethan to wait another day and bring his mother along.

Ethan hangs up and tells her he has something to discuss when he returns. At his mother's grave, he whispers an apology for losing the daughter-in-law she loved.