the comic boy lit a cigarette for her and put it in her mouth. She hummed in a low key. Jake moaned faintly when the gramophone started and he got up from his chair.
‘I’m going to see if they’ll let me up on the bridge,’ he said; ‘I’d like to have a chat with one of those fellows. The second officer seemed all right. It’ll be quiet there, and the mountains will be grand.’
‘Yes,’ I said.
‘Are you coming, Dick?’
I yawned and stretched myself.
‘No - I think I’ll stay here,’ I said.
‘Right.’ He disappeared along the deck. His getting up had attracted the attention of the American party. They all looked at him, and then back at me. I felt a fool sitting there by myself. I picked up Jake’s paper and pretended to read it, but it was upside down. Somebody laughed. I was sure it was the girl with red hair. I kept my face glued to the newspaper, so that they should not see the colour of my face. After a while I lowered it, and found they were not looking at me at all. I fumbled for a cigarette to give me something to do. Then I found I hadn’t got a match. I felt more of a fool than ever. The comic boy looked across and saw me with the unlit cigarette in my mouth.
‘Here,’ he said, ‘d’you want a match?’
They all looked at me. This was terrible. They probably thought I had done it on purpose, so as to be able to talk to them.
‘Thanks awfully,’ I said, and got up, tripping over the chair.
‘Did you come on board at Laardel?’ said the red-haired girl.
‘Yes,’ I said,‘we’d ridden from Fagerness through the mountains.’
‘Oh! boy!’ The man in spectacles looked up from his book.
‘That’s a devil of a way on horseback, surely?’
‘Yes, it is quite,’ I said. ‘It was worth it, though.’
‘I suppose you came through the most fascinating country,’ said the other girl, and the red one smiled and put on another record.
‘Wasn’t it just too romantic for words right up in those big hills?’ she asked me.
It was a damn silly remark, but she was pretty enough to get away with it. I smiled too.
‘I don’t know about that,’ I said.
‘Oh, I’d love to have done it,’ she went on; ‘I’m just crazy over mountains and things.’
The chap with glasses began to ask boring questions about our average mileage a day, and how we had managed about food and sleep. I answered him anyhow, because I was trying to listen to what the red girl was saying to the boy with the camera.
‘. . . you’ll get me mad, Bill, clicking that li’l thing at me,’ she said.
Then there was a pause for a few minutes, and I looked down at the red girl, who was swaying in time to the music.
‘That’s a good record,’ I said.
‘It sounds swell on a real band,’ she said; ‘it sends me cold all over and crazy to dance. Do you dance?’
‘No - I’m not much good at anything like that,’ I said.
‘What about your friend?’
‘No - I don’t think he does either.’
‘How far are you going?’ asked the man in spectacles.
‘I think we only go as far as Balholm,’ I said.
‘They say that Vadheim beyond is a great spot,’ said Bill.
‘Yes - you ought to come on to Vadheim,’ said the girl with the red hair.
‘What sort of a trip have you had so far?’ I asked the dark girl. It did not look too good to be only bothering about the red one.
‘Why, it’s been divine,’ she said, ‘we can’t get over these fjords.
They’re better than anything I’ve seen back at home. This is my first visit to Europe and we’ve done England and France and Germany all in two months. What do you think of that?’
‘Marvellous,’ I lied.
‘Isn’t it just marvellous? Of course Carrie has been over before.’ So she was called Carrie, my red girl. Bad name. I turned to her again.
‘How do you enjoy it?’ I asked her.
‘Oh! I like Europe a lot,’ she said, and she smiled in a careless way as though to suggest she had done a lot in Europe as well as liked it.
‘I’m going to see if they’ll let me up on the bridge,’ he said; ‘I’d like to have a chat with one of those fellows. The second officer seemed all right. It’ll be quiet there, and the mountains will be grand.’
‘Yes,’ I said.
‘Are you coming, Dick?’
I yawned and stretched myself.
‘No - I think I’ll stay here,’ I said.
‘Right.’ He disappeared along the deck. His getting up had attracted the attention of the American party. They all looked at him, and then back at me. I felt a fool sitting there by myself. I picked up Jake’s paper and pretended to read it, but it was upside down. Somebody laughed. I was sure it was the girl with red hair. I kept my face glued to the newspaper, so that they should not see the colour of my face. After a while I lowered it, and found they were not looking at me at all. I fumbled for a cigarette to give me something to do. Then I found I hadn’t got a match. I felt more of a fool than ever. The comic boy looked across and saw me with the unlit cigarette in my mouth.
‘Here,’ he said, ‘d’you want a match?’
They all looked at me. This was terrible. They probably thought I had done it on purpose, so as to be able to talk to them.
‘Thanks awfully,’ I said, and got up, tripping over the chair.
‘Did you come on board at Laardel?’ said the red-haired girl.
‘Yes,’ I said,‘we’d ridden from Fagerness through the mountains.’
‘Oh! boy!’ The man in spectacles looked up from his book.
‘That’s a devil of a way on horseback, surely?’
‘Yes, it is quite,’ I said. ‘It was worth it, though.’
‘I suppose you came through the most fascinating country,’ said the other girl, and the red one smiled and put on another record.
‘Wasn’t it just too romantic for words right up in those big hills?’ she asked me.
It was a damn silly remark, but she was pretty enough to get away with it. I smiled too.
‘I don’t know about that,’ I said.
‘Oh, I’d love to have done it,’ she went on; ‘I’m just crazy over mountains and things.’
The chap with glasses began to ask boring questions about our average mileage a day, and how we had managed about food and sleep. I answered him anyhow, because I was trying to listen to what the red girl was saying to the boy with the camera.
‘. . . you’ll get me mad, Bill, clicking that li’l thing at me,’ she said.
Then there was a pause for a few minutes, and I looked down at the red girl, who was swaying in time to the music.
‘That’s a good record,’ I said.
‘It sounds swell on a real band,’ she said; ‘it sends me cold all over and crazy to dance. Do you dance?’
‘No - I’m not much good at anything like that,’ I said.
‘What about your friend?’
‘No - I don’t think he does either.’
‘How far are you going?’ asked the man in spectacles.
‘I think we only go as far as Balholm,’ I said.
‘They say that Vadheim beyond is a great spot,’ said Bill.
‘Yes - you ought to come on to Vadheim,’ said the girl with the red hair.
‘What sort of a trip have you had so far?’ I asked the dark girl. It did not look too good to be only bothering about the red one.
‘Why, it’s been divine,’ she said, ‘we can’t get over these fjords.
They’re better than anything I’ve seen back at home. This is my first visit to Europe and we’ve done England and France and Germany all in two months. What do you think of that?’
‘Marvellous,’ I lied.
‘Isn’t it just marvellous? Of course Carrie has been over before.’ So she was called Carrie, my red girl. Bad name. I turned to her again.
‘How do you enjoy it?’ I asked her.
‘Oh! I like Europe a lot,’ she said, and she smiled in a careless way as though to suggest she had done a lot in Europe as well as liked it.
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