"Honestly!" Flip cried, and for the first time in speaking to Paul her voice held anger. "Prisons and concentration camps and things aren't the only place where you have rules! You have to have rules! Look at international law." "You look at it," Paul said. Flip was getting really furious. "All right, I will! And I'll see what happens when nations go against it! You have wars and then you have bombs and concentration camps and people being killed and everything horrible. You _have_ to have _some_ rules! Hospitals have rules and if you're going to be a doctor you'll be working in hospitals. It's just plain common sense to accept some rules! It's just plain courtesy! I never thought I'd see you being _stupid_, Paul Laurens! And if you're going to tell me you're afraid of a few girls I won't believe you." Paul stood up, knocking over his chair, and walked out of the room. Flip sat down and she was trembling. She looked across the table at Georges Laurens, her eyes wide with dismay. "I've upset him. That was awful of me. I'm sorry." "It's all right," Georges Laurens said. "Losing your temper that way was the best thing you could have done. Finish your tart." Flip picked up her fork and began eating again but now the tart that had looked so delectable when Thérèse put it in front of her was only something to be forced down. She had just swallowed the last bite when Paul came back and stood in the doorway. "All right," he almost shouted at Flip. "Get your skis. Please come for me in an hour, papa." "An hour it shall be," Georges Laurens said. It took them less than half an hour to ski back to the school. Flip took Paul into the ski room while she put her skis in the rack. "I didn't mean to make you angry," she said. "I'm sorry, Paul. Please forgive me." Paul shook his head. "No. You were quite right. Everything you said. I don't know what's the matter with me." "Would you--" Flip asked tentatively, "would you mind if I brought Jackie and Erna down for just a minute? They're dying to meet you and it's--it's strictly against the rules." Paul laughed. "All right. Go ahead." Flip went tearing along the corridor and up the stairs. She slowed down when she came to the lounge because Fräulein Hauser was on duty, and walked as quickly as possible to the Common Room. Luckily Jackie and Erna were off in a corner together, reading a letter from Jackie's mother. "Get permission from Hauser to go to the libe and meet me in the room," she whispered. Then she hurried away and ran up the stairs, pulling off ski jacket and sweater on the way. Jackie and Erna came in as she was throwing on her uniform. "What's up?" "Come on down to the ski room with me," Flip panted. "Are you crazy?" Erna asked. "Hauser won't give us permission. The basement at this time of night is strengt verboten." "Don't be a nut," Flip said, "Paul's down there. He came back with me. We can slip down the back stairs. Oh, come on, kids, do hurry."