Julian
Contains spoilersOverview
Cora walks home newly resolute after registering the baby as Julian, feeling physically grounded and determined to manage Gordon’s reaction. She and Maia prepare a celebratory dinner and decorations linking Julian’s name to “sky father,” hoping to appease Gordon. At dinner, Gordon grows silent, then assaults Cora by forcing her face into her plate, quietly threatening not to let the name go. Cora resolves internally to make a plan to leave and to never change Julian’s name, feeling steadied by her renewed sense of agency.
Summary
After naming the baby Julian, Cora felt unexpectedly rooted and physically awakened, as if reclaiming her dancer’s body and trust in the ground beneath her. Walking across the common with Maia and the pram, Cora chose a slightly riskier path despite Gordon’s past prohibitions, reassuring Maia that they would be safe and that naming Julian differently had been Cora’s decision, inspired but not caused by Maia.
Cora reflected on Maia’s attunement to household tensions and an earlier moment at school when Maia had appeared freer and happier away from home. This contrast deepened Cora’s awareness that Maia moderated herself at home to avoid provoking Gordon and to protect Cora.
At home, Maia crafted moon-and-star decorations for dinner while Cora cooked lasagne and privately revered Julian’s name and meaning (“sky father”) as talismanic. They tested “Jules” as a nickname, agreeing to keep the name secret until telling Gordon.
When Gordon arrived, he briefly praised the food and decorations but criticized the baby bouncer’s placement, startling Maia. During dinner, after small talk about Gordon’s practice, Cora disclosed she had registered the baby as Julian to honor Gordon personally through the name’s meaning, not the family tradition. Gordon fell silent as Maia tried to smooth the moment, explaining the decorations and the name’s meaning to placate him.
Seeing Maia step into a soothing role, Cora recognized a repeating pattern of appeasement across generations and realized she must make a plan to change their situation. Gordon asked Maia to run a bath and, once she left, stood behind Cora and pressed her face into her lasagne, quietly threatening that he would not let the matter go. Cora kept her composure, deciding this would be the last time she endured such treatment and that she would not change Julian’s name.
After Gordon left the room, Cora cleaned herself, looked to Julian—calm and watchful—and drew strength from him and the meaning of his name, believing he would transcend Gordon’s control. She affirmed her resolve, feeling the figurative “floor” still holding her.
Who Appears
- Cora
mother and former ballet dancer; names the baby Julian, prepares a celebratory dinner, and endures Gordon’s assault while resolving to make a plan and keep the name.
- Maia
Cora’s daughter; anxious but proactive, makes moon-and-star decorations, attempts to placate Gordon by explaining the name’s meaning, and is sent to take a bath before the assault.
- Gordon
Cora’s husband; initially cordial, then controlling and violent, assaults Cora over the naming and threatens not to let it go.
- Julian
the baby (new as named in-text here); sleeps through most scenes, becomes a focus of Cora’s resolve and symbolism (“sky father”).