Had he read it, or had he thought it up — that he didn't know, but he was fond of repeating to himself that the difference between a problem you can't get out of and the solution is a story to believe in.  This became more compelling to him when he read, or heard, that the difference between a Kahn and a Khan is in the stories.  It confirmed for him that it was the stories that were doing the living.  She had listened to him, and had looked away, and then, still looking away at a bicyclist slicing through traffic, had asked, So, are you saying that you can't love me?