A chance meeting at a winter party signals the blooming of young love, but the young woman dies soon after. The young man is bereft, lastingly though they only shared one evening. His studies, interests, and relationships are impeded in ways he can't understand. He struggles with an aversion to intimacy. One night, to the best of his perception, he receives a visitation from his lost love. She remains in his consciousness as he seeks quality in life, and a woman on her exalted level. She looms behind his judgments as he makes his way through the working world. Ultimately, he must replace her, escape his dedication to a phantasm.

Also included here are three shorter works in which people are, for better or worse, haunted by political perceptions. Concepts from the Right, the Left, or the depths of the human spirit must be dealt with. Divided loyalties to people and values must be resolved or known to be unresolvable.