ALICE. And why? He owes you a debt, but you appear as the debtor.
CURT. Since I lost all I had, he has offered me help in getting Allan through his examinations——
ALICE. For which you will have to pay dearly! You are still a candidate for the Riksdag?
CURT. Yes, and, so far as I can see, there is nothing in my way. [Silence.
ALICE. Is Allan really going to leave to-day?
CURT. Yes, if I cannot prevent it.
ALICE. That was a short-lived happiness.
CURT. Short-lived as everything but life itself, which lasts all too long.
ALICE. Too long, indeed!—Won't you come in and wait in the sitting-room? Even if it does not trouble you, it troubles me—these surroundings!
CURT. If you wish it——