High Fidelity

Rob hears about the death of Laura’s father from an intermediary and tries to contact her, expecting to leave a message. However, she picks up the phone when she calls. Rob can barely understand her tearful words. Rob wonders whether he should feel sadder about the death of a man he hardly knew. Laura calls back and shares a long, emotional conversation with Rob. The next day, she calls again to tell Rob that he is invited to the funeral. Her father liked Rob and never knew that the relationship was over. Rob agrees to attend.

In the store, Barry, Rob, and Dick list their top five songs about death. Rob has thought about the songs he wants played at his own funeral but he could never share the list with anyone. He prepares his ill-fitting suit and irons his only white shirt. This is the first time Rob has attended a funeral. He realizes that, due to his age, he will soon be attending many more. Lisa drives to the funeral with Rob, explaining the schedule. Lisa’s father died when she was a teenager. Rob has many questions, but Lisa politely changes the subject. During the service, Rob is confused and worried about every minor detail. At the end of the service, the body is cremated. When Rob speaks to Laura after the service, he feels as though he has “become a different person” (241). 

After the funeral, the wake takes place at Laura’s parents’ house. Rob stands in the corner with Lisa and listens to the guests make small talk. He appreciates the decoration in the house and then greets Laura’s sister Jo, who admits that Laura is struggling with her father’s death. Rob becomes angry when Lisa insinuates that his inconsiderate treatment of Laura has added to her trouble. He suddenly realizes how few people he can talk to about his troubles and then he walks out of Laura’s father’s funeral in a sulk. In a foul mood, he walks aimlessly through the suburbs in the rain.

As Rob looks for a bus stop, he sees Laura’s car approach. He hops over a wall to avoid her but falls in a muddy flower bed. After a long, miserable period of reflection in the wet mud, he stands up and sees that Laura has been waiting for him. She tells him to get in the car. Rob realizes that the funeral had a profound effect on him; he has spent his life afraid of death to the point where he has stopped himself from doing all sorts of things, including persevering with a relationship. He does not want to get too close to anyone because he is worried about losing them and being left lost and alone.

Rob apologizes to Laura in a garbled rush of words. She confesses that she left the funeral after an emotional outburst and sought out Rob for comfort. Laura asks Rob whether he will have sex with her so that she can “feel something else apart from misery and guilt” (252). They drive to a secluded spot and almost have sex, until Rob brings up Ian and Laura begins to cry. Secretly, Rob is satisfied that he still has the power to hurt Laura. They drive to a country pub and sit inside near the fire to talk. After a long, harrowing conversation, Laura admits that she is too tired not to be in a relationship with Rob. She admits that Ian is a fool and that she wants to reunite with Rob. They return to the wake, where the family is still upset by Laura’s disappearance. After consoling her mother, Laura returns to Rob’s apartment. 

Rob and Laura resume their relationship. He is still preoccupied with the thought of Laura being with Ian, but she is reluctant to answer his questions about the issue. Two weeks later, they drive to visit Laura’s mother. Laura chooses the music for the car journey and her taste appalls Rob. They bicker about music, and their argument develops into a serious discussion about Rob’s personality. Rob only values himself due to his carefully curated taste in music. If Laura does not respect Rob’s taste, then he cannot see why she would be interested in him. Laura argues that Rob has potential and that her job is to help him reach his potential “as a human being” (265). However, she is worried that he spends so much time in his head, thinking about inconsequential issues such as top five lists and pop music, that he misses what is happening around him. She believes that Rob is so focused on keeping his options open that he refuses to commit to anything. Even though Rob agrees with Laura, he acts defensively. When Laura prompts Rob to make the same kind of diagnosis of her failings, he struggles. Laura admits that she has her own problems and self-doubts. Unlike Rob, she does not define herself by her relationship status.

The next evening, Rob and Laura discuss a vacation. Rob is broke, so Laura offers to pay for him. Rob views this offer as a way to retread the same argument, so he tries to find a new way to express the idea that they have grown apart and become different people. Laura argues that growing as a person is only natural, while Rob has been stuck in the same rut for years. The discussion continues over the next few days. They lay in bed after Rob struggles with his sexual performance, admitting that he feels insecure. As Laura talks, Rob realizes that the kind of exuberant, delirious love he learned about in pop songs does not really exist. 

Rob and Laura go for dinner with Laura’s friends, Paul and Miranda. Rob regards the dinner as an endorsement from Laura, indicating that she plans to stay with him “for a few months at least” (275). Paul is Laura’s colleague, and Rob was initially jealous of the idea of a male co-worker who was friends with Laura. He developed a mocking caricature of Paul in his mind to justify his negative emotions, but on meeting Paul he realizes that his idea of a handsome, cultured lawyer was not at all accurate. The conversation is insightful and interesting, unlike Charlie’s dinner party. Rob enjoys himself and feels like an adult. Rob decides that Paul and Miranda’s happy, loving relationship is what he wants in life.

At the end of the evening, Laura encourages Rob to check out the couple’s record collection. Rob is hesitant at first, insisting that he does not want to judge Paul and Miranda as he would judge everyone else. He finally relents and finds out that the collection is every bit as bad as he imagines. However, Rob politely tells Paul that each person is entitled to their own taste. Laura is shocked. Later, Rob accuses her of setting him up. Laura admits that she “conned [Rob] into having a nice evening” (280). Rob begins to understand that she is right. 

Rob takes Laura to a Marie LaSalle concert. Laura loves Marie’s music, and Rob avoids mentioning that he and Marie slept together. Laura suggests that Marie play a concert in Rob’s store. Rob likes the idea and begins to speculate on other ways he could innovate in his store. During an interval at the concert, Rob introduces Laura to Marie. Laura bursts out with the invite to perform at the store. Marie is surprised but agrees.

Rob tries to reflect on how his relationship with Laura has changed since they reunited, but he acknowledges his inability to think about the matter in a profound way. He is also busy. Barry complains that his band was not invited to play in the store. Rob is surprised by how excited he is regarding Marie’s small concert in the store. Many more people turn up than expected, meaning that Rob makes money thanks to Marie’s entertaining cover versions. She diligently explains the source material for each song. After the concert, Rob feels a little deflated. He panics a little, realizing that he will soon have to decide what to do about his failing business.