Chapter 6 focuses on the envy that Elizabeth and Calvin's colleagues at Hastings Research Institute feel towards the couple.
Elizabeth is envied for her beauty and Calvin for his brilliance. Together, they exacerbate the envy because they seem to have an unfairly happy relationship.
Their happiness is seen as unearned by their colleagues, as it is due to genetics, not hard work.
Colleagues eavesdrop and judge their daily activities, including their lunch habits of bringing homemade meals to the cafeteria.
Miss Frask from Personnel expresses discontent with her relationship with Eddie and is jealous of Elizabeth and Calvin's relationship.
There is gossip about Calvin's Nobel Prize nomination, and a sense of disbelief and resignation among the colleagues.
Elizabeth and Calvin demonstrate a close, cooperative partnership, discussing work and enjoying homemade brownies at lunch.
Elizabeth is feeling the pressure to maintain her independence as a chemist and is reluctant to work in Calvin's lab despite living with him.
There is tension between Elizabeth's practical economic decision to live with Calvin and societal expectations in 1952.
Elizabeth and Calvin have an arrangement where she cooks for him in exchange for lower rent, but not for him as a "girlfriend duty."
Elizabeth is determined to be recognized for her own scientific work, not as Calvin's girlfriend.
There's a backstory about Elizabeth's past and how it has shaped her desire to be independent and recognized for her own merits.
Elizabeth is requested to attend a friend's wedding as a last-minute bridesmaid, which brings up her discomfort with traditional roles and expectations for women.
Elizabeth reflects on her difficulty in forming female friendships and the expectations of those friendships.
Calvin proposes to Elizabeth in the cafeteria, but she refuses, citing professional and personal reasons for not wanting to get married.
Elizabeth's refusal of Calvin's proposal results in a heated discussion about societal norms and expectations surrounding marriage and the withholding of women's identities.
Calvin is upset and rescinds his proposal, leading onlookers to believe they are breaking up.
Calvin realizes that Elizabeth's fear of losing her identity if she gets married is a deep personal belief, one he initially fails to fully understand.
Elizabeth and Calvin ultimately reconcile when they agree on getting a dog instead of having children, a compromise that restores harmony in their relationship.
The other employees observe their interaction with envy and disappointment, reflecting how Elizabeth and Calvin's relationship affects those around them.