John looked at the face, and hated its strength. Madly, he struck Lindon full in the face with all his might. The boys in the door stood breathless at this act, watching. The elder boy was the most amazed of all. For a moment he stared at John, with an angry red mark under his right eye. Suddenly turning, he strode out of the room. Utterly miserable and smarting, John dressed himself. He had acted like a little cad and Lindon would be quite just in refusing to accept his apology. He was miserable, not because he feared the consequences of this act, serious as they were, but he had lowered himself in the eyes of one whom he admired. Nothing could hurt him so much as that Lindon should hold him in contempt. He hurried along to the study, tapped and entered. Lindon sat in a wicker chair with his back to John, talking to three other fellows. They had finished tea. John hesitated, he had expected to find him alone, and his courage failed. "I came to lay tea," he said feebly. "We've had it," replied Lindon without turning his head. John paused awkwardly; there seemed no more to say so he went out of the room quietly. All the evening he hung about miserably. Marsh tried to cheer him up with witticisms about his being honoured with the disorder of the bath. Vernley quite bluntly told him that he had acted like a cad, which John knew very well. So he quarrelled with them both, and was glad when it was bed time. But in bed he could not sleep. He longed for the morning and the opportunity of apologising. Finally he buried his head under the sheets, and in sheer wretchedness cried himself to sleep. The next morning, immediately after prayers, he went round to Lindon's study. There was no one there, so he sat down and waited. After ten minutes, as the bell rang for morning school, Staveley looked in for a book he had lent. "Hullo!" he said. "Do you know where Lindon is?" asked John. "Yes--in the 'San.' He won't be here again I expect this term. He's suspect--chicken pox. Seven of Field House are down. You'd better cut, that's second bell." When the end of term came, a fortnight later, Lindon had not reappeared. John went across to the Sanitorium and learned that he was convalescent, but could not be seen. Yet he knew Staveley had visited him. It was obvious he did not wish to see John. So ended a wretched term. CHAPTER V