Isa has made her mother angry by standing, speechlessly, removing the makeup from her face. Instead of feeling guilty and apologizing to her mother, Isa behaves unyieldingly. By being rebellious, Isa ruins her mother's affection for her. Moreover, the phrase "strange kind of dust" conveys the mother's hunch that Isa would become a stranger to the family and soon blow away. In addition, her life begins to unravel as she seeks more freedom in America. She is "hired as a cashier at Lanes" although her mother strongly discourages her (203). But not long after, she avoids her work and disappears more often. Her sudden disappearance scares her beloved brother, who accompanies her to work, to "go running out the dinner, to the arcade, the women's bathroom" to find her (207). While her brother worries about her, Isa seems unconcerned when she is found "[sitting] on the rear bumper of a sky blue van. A cigarette burns between her fingers" (207). The brother feels like Isa's betrayed him and is hurt as much as he "cry[ing] too hard and can't catch [my] breath" (207). Despite her family traditions, Isa changes from a hard-working daughter to the rebellious American-like girl. She picks up social vices, which are caused from her expectations of American life. Isa's transformations show her willingness to change in order to socialize and to pursue the freedom of love in which she believes; yet accidentally, ruins the family's affection for her. .
Because of how much Isa desires freedom, she's willing to sacrifice her family relationships to run away with her boyfriend. To fulfill her plan, she lies to her parents that "[her] boss needs her for a Friday-night late shift and will pay double," but she "disappears] into the fog" with Malcolm, her boyfriend (211). This scene reveals Isa daring to lose her family for the freedom of love. In fact, she is captivated by the illusion of freedom, of love without the awareness of its reality and the damage it could cause her family.
