"
"Emma's not coming out. She's here with Markus Shoemaker."
Falkenberg stood there helpless. He had been cold to Emma now for so long
that she had given him up. And, seeing him stand there stupidly agape,
some of the girls began to make game of him: had she left him all alone,
then, and what would he ever do now, poor fellow?
Falkenberg set his bottle to his lips and drank before the eyes of all,
then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and passed to the nearest
man. There was a better feeling now towards us; we were good fellows, with
bottles in our pockets, and willing to pass them round; moreover, we were
strangers in the place, and that was always something new. Also,
Falkenberg said many humorous things of Markus Shoemaker, whom he
persisted in calling Lukas.
The dance was still going on inside, but none of the girls left us to go
in and join.
"I'll bet you now," said Falkenberg, with a swagger, "that Emma'd be only
too glad to be out here with us."
Helene and Ronnaug and Sara were there; every time they drank, they gave
their hands prettily by way of thanks, as the custom is, but some of the
others that had learned a trifle of town manners said only, "_Tak for
Skjanken_," and no more.
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