"Somebody coming on a visit?"
She shook her head.
"Try again, stupid."
"Miss Chris going to be married?"
"Oh, Lord, no. You aren"t really a fool, Nick."
"Betsey got a baby?"
"Why, Tec.u.msey only came last June!"
"Then I give it up. Tell me."
"Say please."
"Please, Genia!"
"Say "please, dear, good Genia.""
"Please, dear, darling Genia."
"I didn"t say "darling." I said "good.""
"It"s the same thing."
She smiled at him with boyish eyes.
"Am I really a darling?"
"Do you really know something?"
"You bet I do."
"What is it?"
She laughed teasingly.
"It"ll make you cry."
"Hurry up, Genia!"
"You"ll certainly cry very loud."
"I"ll shake you in a moment."
"It isn"t polite to shake ladies."
"You aren"t a lady. You"re a vixen."
"Aunt Verbeny says I"m a limb of Satan. But will you promise not to weep a flood of tears, so I can"t cross home?"
She leaned still nearer, resting her hand upon his shoulder.
"I"m going away."
"What?"
"I"m going away to-morrow at daybreak. I"m going to school. I shan"t come back for a whole year. I"m--I"m going to leave papa and Aunt Chris and Jim and you."
She began to sob.
"Don"t," said Nicholas sharply.
"And--and you don"t care a bit. You"re just a stone. Oh, I don"t want to go to school!"
"I"m not a stone. I do care."
"No, you don"t. And I may die and never come back any more, and you"ll forget all about me."
"I shan"t. Don"t, I say. Do you hear me, Genia, don"t."
She looked for a handkerchief, and, failing to find one, wiped her eyes on the horse"s mane.
"What are you going to do when I am gone?"
"Work hard so you"ll be proud of me when you come back."
"I shall be sixteen in two years."
"And I, twenty-one."
"You"ll be a man--quite."
"You"ll be a woman--almost."
"I don"t think I shall like you so much then."
"I shall like you more."
"Why?" she asked quickly.
"Why? Oh, I don"t know. Am I so awfully ugly, Genia?"
"Turn this way."
He obeyed her, flushing beneath her scrutiny.