Section 3, Chapter 14 Summary
Aomame
No matter how hard she tries, Aomame finds it impossible to get used to 1Q84. Bits and pieces of the new world’s rules become clear to her, but generally she feels confused. The one idea that seems rock-solid is that Tengo is the father of her child. There is no logical reason for her to believe this is true, but she is sure of it anyway.
Now that she knows she is pregnant, Aomame understands why she is not lonely. She has “this little one” with her at all times. She cannot yet see a bulge at her belly, but she gains a few pounds and notices a certain plumpness around her face. This, she reasons, is the little one’s doing.
As Aomame watches the playground one evening, she suddenly realizes that she believes in God. This is a shock to her because, since childhood, she has hated God for creating the religion that so restricted her freedom. She has always seen God only as the center of that religion, but now she realizes that she can believe in her own kind of God. She decides that her God is not one who praises and punishes; her God is “simply there.” This realization brings her a certain peace, but it also makes her wonder what God has to do with the Little People and her little one.
At night, Aomame has a new dream. She is locked in a room with no furnishings except a plain bed. She lies on the bed with the little one growing inside her. Leader’s two bodyguards are holding her captive. She is desperate to get away, but they are just as desperate to keep her locked up. Whenever she has this dream, she wakes up terrified. Upon waking, she showers and checks her gun. She resolves to kill anyone who tries to hurt her or the little one.
One day, the NHK collector makes another of his screaming visits. Shortly afterward, Aomame speaks with the dowager on the telephone. The dowager explains that a new safe house has been arranged for Aomame, a place where she can have the baby safely. Aomame thanks the dowager but says that she needs a bit more time where she is.
During this phone call, the dowager confesses that she is beginning to feel old and that she has lost the intense feelings of anger she used to have. Comparing notes, they both agree that their anger leaked out of them on the night of the thunderstorm—the night when Aomame killed Leader.
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