It was easy to see he was not quite himself. Usually he would have
been bubbling over with gayety at the honor of being chosen a
companion for a long walk to the florist's, but now the conversation
was all on one side.
Mrs. Howard did her best to be entertaining, and took no notice of his
evident preoccupation until she had given her orders and they turned
toward home; then she said: "I have been waiting in the hope that you
would tell me what is troubling you, but now I shall have to ask; Carl
and I are both wondering what has happened."
Ikey looked very much surprised, being under the delusion that he was
concealing his feelings perfectly.
"I am not in any trouble," he began, "though I am bothered about
something, and I oughtn't to be; that is what makes it so bad."
His companion looked sympathetic and waited for further revelations.
"You see," Ikey went on, "I wrote to Papa about going to school with
Carl next winter and to Yale the year after, and he was willing and so
was Grandfather; it seemed all settled. I knew they would be back in
June, certainly Mamma and Alice, so we could spend the summer
together. Then I thought, of course, they would be settled somewhere
where I could go for my holidays, but now all my plans are spoiled:
Papa has to go to the Pacific coast.
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