The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-04-24
EHE EVENING Story
The Leave Taking.
(By Jane OSBORNE

/ room where the group OF young club
members were already assembled
eager for the dancing to begin, she
cast a fleeting glance at her image
in a mirror on the wall. If she had
been a disinterested spectator she
| would have seen the slender but
womanly figure of girl of nineteen;
she would have seen the shimmering,
clinging folds of the white dancing
frock and the deep rich color of the
violets at the girdle. She would have
| seen more than anything else the soft
| dark eyes that shone with eXpecta-
ton. But not being a disinterested
| spectator, Nathalie saw only the look
| of excitement-the look that betrayed
something of the emotions with
which she was stirred.
| Nathalie turned and stopped be-
| fore the mirror. biting her lips as if
1 that would COMP their eagerness,
and pressing her cold fingers against
her cheeks. Why, she asked herself,
| just because it was the last night of
Stanley Blaire's short vacation from
the mountains where for fifty-one
weeks out of the fifty-two he lived
| the life of resident engineer on some
| gigantic piece of construction-just
| because this clumsy. homely some
times unresponsive, self-absorbed
Stanley Blaire, who had sent her the
vfolets she was now wearing, was 60
| ing to take his leave for another year,
should she be child enough to feel
a thrill of anticipation and excite
ment?
You baby" she whispered to her
self in the glass and then her hands
fell from her cheeks and the color
came throbbing back. There stand
ing above her smiling into the mir
ror stood Stanley Blaire.
Aren't you most ready?" he asked.
II have been looking everywhere
for you,'' Stanley went on. 81 want
ed to be sure to see your dance order
before any one else. / brought you
one He handed her card on the
top of which he had written her
name with painstaking precision. II
will have to take the midnight train
in order to get back to the works
tomorrow afternoon, so / can only
stay for the first half of the dancing.
How many dances may I have, Ma
thalie? 1 am not going to dance with
any one else"
They were now in the room where
the other dancers had assembled and
Nathalie was smiling radiantly at the
club members who formed her small
social world. Three or four men
came up to Nathalie for dances and
she put her hand out to Stanley for
her card.
First he said holding it toward
her, "how many may L have?"
Nathalie tore the dance order in two,
giving one half to Stanley and as she
a whisper with a little sidelong glance
at Stanley, LAS many as you want"
The other half of the order she hand
ed to the other men who were waiting
for their dances.
"Only one for each,'' she warned
them laughing. and il another min
Ute the two halves were returned, on
one of which were the names of
dozen men and on the other, written
across from corner to corner were
CT, init io1e
AS the strains of the opening dance |
began Nathalie was some what sur
prised to see her old friend William |
Winthrop present himself.
This is my dance" he said. Be |
fore Nathalie realized it she was
swept from her feet, and as she lost I
herself in the charm of the music and I
the motion. of the dance she caught |
glimpses of the tall awkward figure
of Stanley Blaire st the side of the
room watching her.
Before the next dance Nathalie
started back to Stanley, when Tommy
Stevens caught 1er by the arm. This
is my dance, Nat" he said. Lets
want to talk to you about the ten
mis- tournament-simp1y got to do it
cause the notices go to press tomor-
row. You know you and 1 are the
committee
Stanley Blaire was standing at their
4
Dance he said calmly, but Tommy
was insistent. you have so many"
Nathalie whispered, ''just let Tommy
have this one and with that she was
dragged by the impetuous tennis fiend
to the club study to work over the
program of the coming tennis tourna-
ment till the strains of the next lance
called them back. At the door of the
room she was met by Major Dayton,
an uncompromisin.y member OF the
ol1 nh uyha /
Nathalie's objections that she had the
dance taken with some one else.
For the next dance Curtis Miller
came up to her. Say, Nat" he an
of those queer dances, and 1 want you
to show me how it goes. It's all
right. I snapped dances with your
cousin George, gave him my waltz
for this. Come, let's begin and get
done before the music
stops"
Nathalie protested as she saw STAN 4
lay making his way toward them. Z
That's all right said Curtis. {
STANLEY can straighten it out with Z
your cousin. It was really his Dance {
and they started on, leaving Stanley ]
alone. When the music {
stopped Stanley Bfaire was quickly at {
Nathalie's side. He looked straight {
steady gaze that made her blush and
look away.
You needn't act so grun about it, old '
top said Curtis, sIapping Stanley on ,
the back. Il snapped this dance with
Mats cousin You'll have to him,
not me- Two or three of the men had
but Stanley laughed and Nathalie felt
a keen pleasure of being the center of
so much attention. She felt. too. a tan {
inexplicable pleasure in distress ,
ing Stanley. Most of all she enjoyed hav- | ,
ing the other see his obvious interest ,
IN her So when her cousin claimed the
next dance she glided away, casting a
teasing laugh back at Stanley For the
next two or three dances Stanley present.. {