Their talk ceased again. The moon was looking into the room and by its light Vaska’s face looked gray. For a long time he lay silent, now opening his eyes, now closing them. Downstairs there was dancing, singing, laughter.

Soon Aksinya began to snore lustily. Vaska heaved a deep sigh.

Two more days passed, and the proprietress found a bed for Vaska in a hospital.

The ambulance, with a doctor’s assistant and a hospital attendant, arrived to fetch him. They helped him carefully downstairs into the kitchen, and there he saw all the girls crowded in the doorway.

His face was convulsed, but he said nothing. They stared at him earnestly and grimly, but it was impossible to tell from their glances what they were thinking at the sight of Vaska. Aksinya and the madam were helping him into his coat, and everyone in the kitchen preserved a heavy, sullen silence.

“Good-by,” Vaska said suddenly, lowering his head without looking at the girls. “Good-…by!”

Some of them nodded to him silently, but he did not see it. Lida said calmly:

“Good-by, Vasily Mironovych.”

“Good-by.…Yes.…”

The doctor’s assistant and the hospital attendant, placing their hands under his arm-pits, raised him from the bench and led him to the door. But he turned to the girls again:

“Good-by. It’s true, I was…”

Two or three more voices replied:

“Good-by, Vasily.”

“What’s the use?” He shook his head, and on his face appeared an expression quite alien to him. “Forgive me.…For Christ’s sake…those who…whom…”

“They’re taking him! They’ll take my darling away!” suddenly Aksinya shrieked savagely, falling onto the bench.

Vaska started and lifted his head. His eyes blazed frightfully. He stood listening eagerly to her howls, and with trembling lips he said softly:

“What a fool! What a crazy thing!”

“Come on, come on,” the doctor’s assistant hurried him, frowning.

“Good-by, Aksinya, see that you come to the hospital,” Vaska said aloud.

But Aksinya kept on howling:

“Who-oo-o will co-omfort me-ee-ee?”

The girls surrounded her and looked stolidly at her face and the tears streaming from her eyes.

Lida, bending over her, soothed her sternly:

“What are you howling about, Ksyushka? He’s not dead! You can go to see him.…You can go to him tomorrow.…”