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Her cousin took out his pocket-handkerchief He seemed to be

drifted absorbed into the ser dropped on to his knee There lay the bit

of flowering currant! He was looking down at it in real

astonishhter came from Anna Everybody

heard: it was torture He had shut the cruain with the sahter froed

her rely

Her cousin sat motionless Somehoare that his face

was red She could feel him His hand, closed over the flower,

re to be norle in Anna's breast, and the snort of laughter She bent

forward shaking with laughter It was now no joke Fred was

nudge-nudging at her She nudged hihter seized her She tried to ward it off

in a little cough The cough ended in a suppressed whoop She

wanted to die And the closed hand crept away to the pocket

Whilst she sat in taut suspense, the laughter rushed back at

her, knowing he was fu in his pocket to shove the flower

away

In the end, she felt weak, exhausted and thoroughly

depressed A blankness of wincing depression came over her She

hated the presence of the other people Her face becahty She was unaware of her cousin any more