North Carolina
Forever...North Carolina enters the narrative through talk and accusation rather than a described visit: during a reunion, Katherine and Michael discuss it, and Michael later invokes the state in a boast that Katherine does not believe.
References in Conversation
At dinner, Katherine and Michael talk about North Carolina alongside lumber yards, tennis, Jamie, the weather, and the food. The state is one topic among several in their effort to converse, while the most important matter between them remains unaddressed.
Michael’s Claim
After dinner, Katherine and Michael go to his motel room. Later, as Michael drives her back to camp, he says that she might as well know he had slept around North Carolina. Katherine shakes her head to show she does not believe him, and Michael shouts that he had slept with everything in sight. The scene supplies no further description of North Carolina or of the experiences he claims to have had there.
Narrative Significance
The state’s limited but pointed role is to give Michael’s claim a geographic frame. Its earlier appearance as dinner conversation contrasts with his later use of it as a provocation during the drive back to camp. Katherine’s disbelief is explicit; the account does not independently confirm the boast.
