"Oh—just one of the days when everything goes wrong. Rotten business—anyway. Eternally patching things up. I'd like to be a—well, a bridge builder for awhile, and see how it felt to get good stuff to start with."
"And now, to round out your day pleasantly," laughed Professor Hastings, "I've come to tell you about a boy out there at the university who is in very bad need of patching up."
"What about him?" and it was interesting to see that some of the tiredness seemed to fall from him as he straightened up to listen.
Georgia rose to go, but he told her to stay, he might feel more in the mood for drunken interns by and by.
He arranged with Professor Hastings about the student; and it was when the older man was about to leave that he asked, a little hesitatingly, about Dr. Hubers. "I have been away all summer," he told the doctor, "and have not seen him yet."
Georgia was watching Dr. Parkman. His face just then told many things.
"You will find him—quite natural," he answered, in a constrained voice.
"One hardly sees how that can be possible," said the professor sadly.
"Oh, his pleasantness and naturalness will not deceive you much. Your eyes can take in a few things, and then his voice—gives him away a little. But he won't have anything to say about—the change."
He shook his head. "I'm afraid that's so much the worse."