Though she had prepared for it, Anna Karenina is stunned at how deeply seeing her son has affected her. She is too distracted to dress or eat, and only when the Italian nurse brings baby Anna to her does she exhibit some life. While she touches her happy and well fed little girl in all the affectionate and appropriate ways, Anna Karenina realizes more than ever that the feeling she has for this child cannot be called love when compared with what she feels for her son.

Everything about this baby girl is charming, but that is as far as it goes with Anna Karenina. The circumstances surrounding baby Anna’s birth had been painful, and for this little girl everything is still in the future. Though Seryozha had been born to an unloved father, his mother had concentrated all her love on him and he now has a personality with which she can connect. There is a sense of conflict in him: he loves her unconditionally but cannot be with her, and it is impossible for him to set things right.

Anna Karenina gets out all her pictures of Seryozha, and as she gathers them she sees a photograph of Vronsky. A rush of love washes over her and she realizes she has not thought about him all morning; now she wonders where he is and why he has left her alone in her misery. Quickly she reproaches herself for the thought, remembering that she had not told him everything concerning her son. She immediately sends a message to Vronsky’s room, asking him to come see her.

The messenger returns with the request from Vronsky that his guest, Prince Yashvin, come with him. Anna Karenina is upset that she has not seen her lover since dinner the night before and now, when she wants to tell him everything, he is coming with someone else. All at once she begins to think that perhaps Vronsky has stopped loving her.

As she reviews the events of the past few days, Anna Karenina imagines that everything confirms this terrible idea. They often dine separately and they are living in separate rooms; it seems as if Vronsky is trying to avoid meeting her alone. If only he would tell her his intentions, she would know what to do next. It is beyond her ability to imagine the position she would be in if Vronsky no longer loves her. Because she feels close to despair, Anna Karenina is exceptionally alert. She dresses with meticulous care, hopeful that Vronsky might fall in love with her again if she dresses and behaves in ways most becoming to her.

Yashvin is the first to meet her eyes. Vronsky is looking at the photos she had left out and is in no hurry to look at her. The visit is uncomfortable and Anna Karenina, in a rush, invites Yashvin to dine with them. When he leaves, Vronsky stays behind but prepares to leave. Before he does, she takes his hand and tells him she is miserable here; he agrees and withdraws his hand from hers. Practically shouting at him to leave, she walks quickly away from him.