.. And here, now, it turned
out that he had just fulfilled his caprice, had gotten what he
wanted, and was now trying to back out. They are all like that,
the men!
Lichonin hastily got up, splashed a few handfuls of water in his
face, and dried himself with an old napkin. Then he raised the
blinds and threw open both window shutters. The golden sunlight,
the azure sky, the rumble of the city, the foliage of the thick
linden trees and the chestnuts, the bells of the horse trams, the
dry smell of the hot, dusty street--all this at once burst into the
tiny garret room. Lichonin walked up to Liubka and amicably patted
her on the shoulder.
"Never mind, my joy ... What's done can't be undone, but it's a
lesson for the future. You haven't yet asked tea for yourself,
Liubochka?"
"No, I was waiting for you all the while. Besides, I didn't know
who to ask. And you're all right, too. Why, I heard you, after you
went off with your friend, come back and stand a while near the
door. But you never even said good-bye to me. Is that right?"
"The first family quarrel," thought Lichonin, but thought it
without malice, in jest.
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