Meanwhile they were having a similarly dismal time at the Thompson house; in fact a twin experience. Gwendolen was ashamed of herself for allowing her disappointment to so depress her spirits and make her so strangely and profoundly miserable; but feeling ashamed of herself didn’t improve the matter any; it only seemed to aggravate the suffering. She explained that she was not feeling very well, and everybody could see that this was true; so she got sincere sympathy and commiseration; but that didn’t help the case. Nothing helps that kind of a case. It is best to just stand off and let it fester. The moment the dinner was over the girl excused herself, and she hurried home feeling unspeakably grateful to get away from that house and that intolerable captivity and suffering. Will he be gone? The thought arose in her brain, but took effect in her heels. She slipped into the house, threw off her things and made straight for the dining room. She stopped and listened. Her father’s voice—with no life in it; presently her mother’s—no life in that; a considerable vacancy, then a sterile remark from Washington Hawkins. Another silence; then, not Tracy’s but her father’s voice again. “He’s gone,” she said to herself despairingly, and listlessly opened the door and stepped within. “Why, my child,” cried the mother, “how white you are! Are you—has anything—” “White?” exclaimed Sellers. “It’s gone like a flash; ’twasn’t serious. Already she’s as red as the soul of a watermelon! Sit down, dear, sit down—goodness knows you’re welcome. Did you have a good time? We’ve had great times here—immense. Why didn’t Miss Belle come? Mr. Tracy is not feeling well, and she’d have made him forget it.” She was content now; and out from her happy eyes there went a light that told a secret to another pair of eyes there and got a secret in return. In just that infinitely small fraction of a second those two great confessions were made, received, and perfectly understood. All anxiety, apprehension, uncertainty, vanished out of these young people’s hearts and left them filled with a great peace.