"Charlotte, you're a scream," said Katherine, with an affected laugh, and turning to Nancy, she went on, speaking in a mincing voice, and always placing her lips as if she were continually guarding against spoiling the symmetry of their perfect cupid's bow. "You know, we always expect Charlotte to say funny things."
"I'm the school buffoon, in other words," commented Charlotte, dryly—evidently not much liking to be marked as a professional humorist. "I'm supposed to be 'so amusin', doncherknow'—and consequently, everyone is expected to haw-haw whenever I open my mouth. But if you listen carefully, you'll be surprised to hear that at times I talk sense. Now, Allison here is the school genius. You'd never suspect it, but she is. I wish to goodness that new waitress would bring me some more bread. It isn't considered stylish around here to have the bread on the table, but I do wish they'd consider my appetite."
"Is that perfectly sweet-looking girl over there your sister?" asked Katherine, indicating Alma, her slightly patronizing air still more pronounced.
"Your new rival for the golden apple, Kate," remarked Charlotte, with a grin. "And a blonde, too."
Katherine flushed, and tried to laugh off her annoyance at Charlotte's impish teasing.
"I think she's perfectly lovely."
"Oh, handsome is as handsome does, so they say. The question is has she a beautiful soul. Now, my soul is something wonderful—if it would only show through a bit," murmured Charlotte. "I'm plain, but good, as they say of calico. There's a rumor to the effect that Cleopatra was very ugly; hope it's so. There are two alternatives for an ugly woman—either to be tremendously good and noble, or to be very, very wicked—I can't make up my mind which career to choose. It's an awful problem."
"I'm going to take muthick lethons thith year, Tharlotte—with Mithter Conthtantini," lisped Denise Lloyd. "Don't you think he'th jutht wonderful?" Denise did not resemble her sister in the least. She was a plump, roly-poly girl of sixteen, still at the giggly, gushing stage of her life—but much more likable than the haughty Mildred.
She turned to Nancy, with the polite desire of including the new girl in the conversation, and went on with a blush, "Mithter Conthtantini is jutht wonderful. Are you going to take muthick lethons? You'd jutht love him! And bethides, if you take muthick, you can drop thience."
"I don't think I could get very far with the piano in one year," said Nancy with a smile.