Bea stared. "You're the funniest girl!" She walked on after waving a
sociable hand at Roberta. "It is interesting to have friends that are
different, don't you think?"

"To have one friend who is different," corrected Lila.

"All right," laughed Bea. "Oh, see what a gorgeous glorious place this
is, with the trees and scarlet woodbine and the lake sparkling away over
there, and girls, girls, girls! But I don't believe that there is a
single other one exactly like you."

During the next week this thought recurred to her more than once. By
means of some diplomatic maneuvering, the two friends managed to have
their single rooms exchanged for a double. After moving in, Lila seized a
moment of solitude to plan a beautiful cozy corner for Bea. She dragged
her own desk into a dusky recess and set Bea's at an artistic angle at
the left side of the sunniest window. Just as she was hanging her
favorite picture above it, Bea came rushing in with her arms full of new
books.

"Oh, no, no, no!" she exclaimed impulsively, "that won't do at all. You
must put it at the right so that the light will fall over the left
shoulder. Otherwise the shadow of your hand will go scrambling over the
paper ahead of your pen. Here, let me show you."

By the time she had hauled the desk across to its new position, Lila had
vanished. Bea found her huddled in a woe-begone heap behind the wardrobe
door in her bedroom, and flew to her in dismay.

"Oh, Lila, dearie, did you smash your finger or drop something on your
foot? There, don't cry. I'll get the witch-hazel and arnica and
court-plaster. What is it? Where? Why-ee!" she gasped bewildered, "why,
Lila!" for her weeping roommate had pushed her gently away and turned her
face to the wall.

"I was doing it for you," she sobbed. "I was trying to please you, and
then you were so cr-cr-cruel! You were cruel."

"Cruel?" echoed Bea, "why, how? I haven't done a thing except buy the
books I ordered last week. Yours were down in the office, too, but I
didn't have enough money for all, because Sue Merriam borrowed four
dollars. She asked after you and said----" Bea hesitated, smitten with
novel doubt that she ought to begin to think three times before speaking
once where such a sensitive person was concerned.

Lila sat up in swift attention and winked away her tears. "Said what?"

"Oh, nothing much." Bea wriggled. "Just talking."

"I insist."

"Oh, well, it doesn't signify. I was only thinking----" Bea