train of it,
and the effort to catch his voice among the hubbub of all those cheery,
common, happy-go-lucky sounds. Some who saw her clucked their tongues,
some went by silent, others seemed to scan her as though she might be
what they were looking for. And ever the stream and the hubbub
melted into the train, and yet came pouring on. And still she waited
motionless, with an awful fear. How could he ever find her, or she him?
Then she saw that others of those waiting had found their men. And the
longing to rush up and down the platform almost overcame her; but still
she waited. And suddenly she saw him with two other officer boys, close
to the carriages, coming slowly down towards her. She stood with her
eyes fixed on his face; they passed, and she nearly cried out. Then he
turned, broke away from the other two, and came straight to her. He
had seen her before she had seen him. He was very flushed, had a little
fixed frown between his blue eyes and a set jaw. They stood looking
at each other, their hands hard gripped; all the emotion of last night
welling up within them, so that to speak would have been to break down.
The milk-cans formed a kind of shelter, and they stood so close together
that none could see their faces. Noel was the first to master her power
of speech; her words came out, dainty as ever, through trembling lips:

"Write to me as much as ever you can, Cyril. I'm going to be a nurse at
once. And the first leave you get, I shall come to you--don't forget."

"Forget! Move a little back, darling; they can't see us here. Kiss me!"
She moved back, thrust her face forward so that he need not stoop, and
put her lips up to his. Then, feeling that she might swoon and fall over
among the cans, she withdrew her mouth, leaving her forehead against his
lips. He murmured:

"Was it all right when you got in last night?"

"Yes; I said good-bye for you."

"Oh! Noel--I've been afraid--I oughtn't--I oughtn't--"

"Yes, yes; nothing can take you from me now."

"You have got pluck. More than!"

Along whistle sounded. Morland grasped her hands convulsively:

"Good-bye, my little wife! Don't fret. Goodbye! I must go. God bless
you, Noel!"

"I love you."

They looked at each other, just another moment, then she took her hands
from his and stood back in the shadow of the milk-cans, rigid, following
him with her eyes till he was lost in the train.

Every carriage window was full of those brown figures and red-brown