Age Gap

It's an old setup that romance has pulled out of the shadows. The modern version isn't about dependence; it's about two adults who know exactly what they're doing and hesitate anyway. The older one has something to lose, the younger something to prove, or the other way round.

You'll notice the age gets said out loud, usually as a number. A role sharpens the distance: a lecturer, an investor, a supervisor, an uncle's wife. And there is a moment when the distance stops being arithmetic.

In "Nine Months Until Graduation," your lecturer writes in the margin notes what he's not allowed to say. In "Autumn Lights," you're a medical student spending a week on the Isle of Wight with Claire, 36, married, and you shouldn't look at her the way you do. "Red Ink" takes you as a PhD student to a faculty party, where a glance from your supervisor reveals more than any footnote.