He's reading Heart of Darkness, mostly because he couldn't help but be drawn to something short after War and Peace but also because he's some sort of masochist at heart and he looked at the title and thought of friendship. Spencer thinks that choosing a book because the title gives him some sort of vicious stab of satisfaction makes him less of a person, but he's got it now so he may as well read it.
Five pages in, and Spencer hates it. It isn't what he wants to read. He stuffs it into his backpack and drains the rest of his coffee and nods to the barista on the way out.
(с)
Наверное, лекции по мировой литературе и по наративу съели мне мозг, но, по моему, можно написать целое сочинение, почему эта сцена гениальна на разных уровнях.