She thinks that in time, she will write here. But there is no rush, unlike for her friends, who always talk of another life, brighter and more established than their own. They are impatient to be rid of the modest jobs they consider embarrassments, even humiliations.

Recently, barely fifteen minutes into a lesson, a mother came to the bedroom and told Leyla she would have to leave.

“We’re going out early,” she said. “Sweetheart, why don’t you get ready?”

Then she added to Leyla, “Don’t worry, we’ll pay you anyway.”

But humiliation requires participation, and Leyla pretends not to hear her.