“It is surely she; it’s the pretty flower girl of the Château d’Eau!—I say, neighbor, she came out of your room——”
“Why, to be sure; you must have seen her come out.”
“Yes, yes, I saw her.—Aha! so the little flower girl comes to see you! The deuce! you’re a lucky man!”
“It is true, I am generally lucky with women.”
“Is your face inflamed, neighbor, that you are holding your handkerchief over your cheek?”
“No, but I have a slight toothache.”
“All the same, I confess that I can’t get over it; Mademoiselle Violette coming out of your room! She was very red, and decidedly rumpled too!”
“Why—that was the result of our interview.”
“Oh, yes! I understand. Gad! you are favored by Venus! The pretty flower girl, who made such a parade of her pride and virtue, and sent me about my business when I made impassioned speeches to her, and snubbed me when I proposed to take her to Saint-Germain by train!”
“Let this be a lesson to you, young man; it will teach you that you mustn’t trust the airs these young women assume.—Au revoir, Astianax.”