"The front door, I believe, is soon going to be closed, Miss."
"Impossible!" she cried, feigning lively astonishment. But if she were to act on the suggestion implied in his words her chance of at last becoming acquainted with him would certainly be lost, and she added in a tone lighter than accorded with her mood: "But it doesn't matter. The window is open."
Whether in agreement or blame she could not determine, and the conversation would have come to a standstill without fail had not Lilly made an effort to keep the ball rolling.
"We are neighbours, aren't we?" she asked.
He jumped from his seat and with a sweep of his cap describing a semicircle between his head and his trousers' pocket, he said:
"Permit me to introduce myself. Fritz Redlich, senior in the high school."
Lilly once more experienced the reverential thrill that used to pass through her soul when she was in the Selecta and the last year class of the boys' high school was mentioned. The fact was suddenly borne in upon her that now she was nothing better than a shop girl, and she grew hot with shame at the thought.
But she would not have it that her glorious past was to have been lived in vain.
"I was in the Selecta. I left last autumn," she said, "and I got to know some of you then."
Lilly mentioned the names of two young men who had fluttered about her at the skating-rink, and asked whether he knew them.
"Certainly not," he answered with scorn, which did not seem wholly sincere. "They loaf too much for fellows like us, and they're going to join a students' corps. We don't do that sort of thing."
It had now grown so dark that Lilly could see only the outline of his figure as he idly leaned against the corner post of the balustrade.
Fine drops of rain fell and lay in her hair. She could have remained there forever with the dark youthful form before her searching eyes and spring's blessing lying cool on her head.
"You are engaged here in the circulating library?" he asked.
Lilly said "Yes," and was grateful to him for the elegant word "engaged," which seemed somewhat to improve her position.
"And you are preparing for the examinations?" she inquired in turn.
"In autumn--if everything goes well," he answered with a sigh.