Because the point where the graph of y = a intersects the left-hand branch of y = |x| has y-coordinate y = a, the x-coordinate of this point of intersection is x = −a. Because the point where the grap...Because the point where the graph of y = a intersects the left-hand branch of y = |x| has y-coordinate y = a, the x-coordinate of this point of intersection is x = −a. Because the point where the graph of y = a intersects the right-hand branch of y = |x| has y-coordinate y = a, the x-coordinate of this point of intersection is x = a. Recall that for any real number x, the absolute value of x is defined as the distance between the real number x and the origin on the real line.