All of the rest of the group lived nearer the school than did Miss Nermal and so, when they had all dropped off at respective gates, Miss Nermal yet had some distance to go.  When Belton saw this, he was a happy fellow.  He felt that the parents of the teachers had shown such excellent judgment in choosing places to reside.  He would not have them change for the world.  He figured that he would have five evenings of undisturbed bliss in each week walking home with Miss Nermal after the other teachers had left.

Belton contrived to walk home with the same group each evening.  The teachers soon noticed that Miss Nermal and Belton invariably walked together, and they managed by means of various excuses to break up the group; and Belton had the unalloyed pleasure of escorting Miss Nermal from the school-house door to her own front yard.  Belton secured the privilege of calling to see Miss Nermal at her residence and he confined his social visits to her house solely.

They did not talk of love to one another, but any one who saw the couple together could tell at a glance what was in each heart.  Belton, however, did not have the courage to approach the subject.  His passion was so intense and absorbing and filled him with so much delight that he feared to talk on the subject so dear to his heart, for fear of a repulse and the shattering of all the beautiful castles which his glowing imagination, with love as the supervising architect, had constructed.  Thus matters moved along for some time; Miss Nermal thoroughly in love with Belton, but Belton prizing that love too highly to deem it possible for him to be the happy possessor thereof.

Belton was anxious for some indirect test.  He would often contrive little devices to test Miss Nermal’s feelings towards him and in each case the result was all that he could wish, yet he doubted.  Miss Nermal thoroughly understood Belton and was anxious for him to find some way out of his dilemma.  Of course it was out of the question for her to volunteer to tell him that she loved him—­loved him madly, passionately; loved him in every fibre of her soul.

At last the opportunity that Belton was hoping for came.  Miss Nermal and Belton were invited out to a social gathering of young people one night.  He was Miss Nermal’s escort.

At this gathering the young men and women played games such as pinning on the donkey’s tail, going to Jerusalem, menagerie, and various other parlor games.  In former days, these social gatherings played some games that called for kissing by the young ladies and gentlemen, but Miss Nermal had opposed such games so vigorously that they had long since been dismissed from the best circles.

Belton had posted two or three young men to suggest a play involving kissing, that play being called, “In the well.”  The suggestion was made and just for the fun of having an old time game played, they accepted the suggestion.  The game was played as follows.