She thought she'd focus on the compliment, rather than the terrifying glimpse she'd been given into her flatmate's soul. She found herself particularly worried by Marjorie's willingness to do all that, the slicing and the bleeding and the murdering, for only a percentage of the advantages she envied. There was something in this compromise that made it seem more real than Barbara wanted it to be.
The protagonist is grappling with conflicting emotions after receiving a compliment from her flatmate, Marjorie. Instead of dwelling on the unsettling insight into Marjorie's darker side, she chooses to take solace in the positive remark. However, this decision is complicated by her anxiety over Marjorie's disturbing willingness to engage in extreme actions for personal gain. The juxtaposition between admiration and fear leaves the protagonist feeling uneasy.
This situation highlights a deeper internal struggle as she contemplates the lengths to which Marjorie would go to achieve her desires. The protagonist feels a sense of unease about this willingness, recognizing that compromise can distort reality. It forces her to confront the darker aspects of ambition and the moral dilemmas that accompany it, triggering a battle between her admiration for Marjorie's confidence and her fear of her potential for cruelty.
