'Why so, Viktor Alexandritch! I understand; I understood everything.' 'My eye, what a girl it is!' Akulina looked down. 'You used not to talk to me like that once, Viktor Alexandritch,' she said, not lifting her eyes. 'Once?... once!... My goodness!' he remarked, as though in indignation. They both were silent. 'It's time I was going,' said Viktor, and he was already rising on to his elbow. 'Wait a little longer,' Akulina besought him in a supplicating voice. 'What for?... Why, I've said good-bye to you.' 'Wait a little,' repeated Akulina. Viktor lay down again and began whistling. Akulina never took her eyes off him. I could see that she was gradually being overcome by emotion; her lips twitched, her pale cheeks faintly glowed. 'Viktor Alexandritch,' she began at last in a broken voice, 'it's too bad of you... it is too bad of you, Viktor Alexandritch, indeed it is!' 'What's too bad?' he asked frowning, and he slightly raised his head and turned it towards her. 'It's too bad, Viktor Alexandritch. You might at least say one kind word to me at parting; you might have said one little word to me, a poor luckless forlorn.'... 'But what am I to say to you?' 'I don't know; you know that best, Viktor Alexandritch. Here you are going away, and one little word.... What have I done to deserve it?' 'You're such a queer creature! What can I do?' 'One word at least.' 'There, she keeps on at the same thing,' he commented with annoyance, and he got up. 'Don't be angry, Viktor Alexandritch,' she added hurriedly, with difficulty suppressing her tears. I'm not angry, only you're silly.... What do you want? You know I can't marry you, can I? I can't, can I? What is it you want then, eh?' (He thrust his face forward as though expecting an answer, and spread his fingers out.) 'I want nothing... nothing,' she answered falteringly, and she ventured to hold out her trembling hands to him; 'but only a word at parting.' And her tears fell in a torrent. 'There, that means she's gone off into crying,' said Viktor coolly, pushing down his cap on to his eyes. 'I want nothing,' she went on, sobbing and covering her face with her hands; 'but what is there before me in my family? what is there before me? what will happen to me? what will become of me, poor wretch? They will marry me to a hateful... poor forsaken... Poor me!' 'Sing away, sing away,' muttered Viktor in an undertone, fidgeting with impatience as he stood. 'And he might say one word, one word.... He might say, "Akulina... I..."' Sudden heart-breaking sobs prevented her from finishing; she lay with her face in the grass and bitterly, bitterly she wept.... Her whole body shook convulsively, her neck fairly heaved.... Her long-suppressed grief broke out in a torrent at last. Viktor stood over her, stood a moment, shrugged his shoulders, turned away and strode off.