A Hero of Our Time
Page 22
CHAPTER VII. 6th June.
ALL these days I have not once departed from my system. Princess Maryhas come to like talking to me; I have told her a few of thestrange events of my life, and she is beginning to look on me asan extraordinary man. I mock at everything in the world, especiallyfeelings; and she is taking alarm. When I am present, she does not dareto embark upon sentimental discussions with Grushnitski, and already, ona few occasions, she has answered his sallies with a mocking smile. Butevery time that Grushnitski comes up to her I assume an air of meeknessand leave the two of them together. On the first occasion, she was glad,or tried to make it appear so; on the second, she was angry with me; onthe third--with Grushnitski.
"You have very little vanity!" she said to me yesterday. "What makes youthink that I find Grushnitski the more entertaining?"
I answered that I was sacrificing my own pleasure for the sake of thehappiness of a friend.
"And my pleasure, too," she added.
I looked at her intently and assumed a serious air. After that for thewhole day I did not speak a single word to her... In the evening, shewas pensive; this morning, at the well, more pensive still. When I wentup to her, she was listening absent-mindedly to Grushnitski, who wasapparently falling into raptures about Nature, but, so soon asshe perceived me, she began to laugh--at a most inopportunemoment--pretending not to notice me. I went on a little further andbegan stealthily to observe her. She turned away from her companion andyawned twice. Decidedly she had grown tired of Grushnitski--I will nottalk to her for another two days.