SUZANNE. I did go out with Monsieur Bellac, and I spoke with Monsieur Bellac, and I have a secret with Monsieur Bellac! ROGER. You dare——! SUZANNE. And he knows more than you do! And he’s more of a man than you are! And I like him better than you! I love him! I love him! I love him! MME. DE CÉRAN. I sincerely hope that you do not realize the gravity of what you are saying! SUZANNE. I _do_ realize it! MME. DE CÉRAN. Then listen to me! Before you commit any more of the follies you are threatening us with, think the matter over! You, least of all, Mademoiselle de Villiers, can afford to have a scandal connected with _your_ name! DUCHESS. Take care, take care! MME. DE CÉRAN. Well, Duchess, she ought to know, at least—— SUZANNE. (_Holding back her tears_) I do know! DUCHESS. You know? What? SUZANNE. (_Throwing herself into the_ DUCHESS’S _arms and crying_) Aunt! Aunt! DUCHESS. There, there, Suzanne, my child! (_To_ MME. DE CÉRAN) That was considerate of you—to start that here! (_To_ SUZANNE) There, there, what is it you know? (_She takes_ SUZANNE _on her knees_) SUZANNE. (_Weeping and talking at the same time_) W-what? I—I don’t know! But I do know there is something against me—and there has been for a long time! DUCHESS. Why, what makes you think——? SUZANNE. Nobody, everybody. People look at you and whisper and stop talking when you come into the room and kiss you, and call you poor little thing!—If you think children don’t notice those things! DUCHESS. (_Wiping her eyes_) Now, dear, dear! SUZANNE. And it was just the same at the convent! I knew I wasn’t like the other girls. Oh, I could see that. They always talked to me about my father and my mother, and why? Because I didn’t have any! And once, during recess, I was playing with a girl!—I don’t remember what I’d done to her—She was furious—and all of a sudden she called me “Miss Foundling!” She didn’t know what it meant, neither did I! Her mother had used the word in speaking about me. She told me afterward, after we had made up.—Oh, I was so unhappy! (_Sobbing_) We looked the word up in the dictionary, but we didn’t find anything—or we didn’t understand—(_Angrily_) What did they mean? What have I done that makes me any different from anybody else? That everything I do is bad? Is it my fault? DUCHESS. (_Kissing her_) No, my child, no my dear! MME. DE CÉRAN. I am sorry—— SUZANNE. (_Sobbing_) Well, then, why does everybody blame me if it isn’t my fault? Here I seem to be in the way! I know I don’t want to stay any longer. I am going! Nobody loves me! ROGER. (_Deeply moved_) Why do you say that, Suzanne? It’s not so. Everybody here—I—— SUZANNE. (_Angrily as she rises_) You! ROGER. Yes, I? And I swear—— SUZANNE. You!—Go away from me! I hate you and I never want to see you again! Never! Do you hear! (_She goes toward the door leading into the garden_) ROGER. Suzanne! Suzanne! Where are you going? SUZANNE. I’m going for a walk! For that matter, I am going where I please!