an army had conspired to close round them. She coughed and, in her
effort at repression coughed again.

"Charley, I--honest, I--I'm going to keel. I--I can't stand it packed in
here--like this."

She leaned to him, with the color drained out of her face; and the crowd
of black and pink and red dominos, gnomes gone mad, pressed, batted,
surged.

"Look out, Sweetness! Don't give out in here! They'll crush us out.
Ain't you got no nerve? Here; don't give out now! Gee! Watch out, there!
The lady's sick. Watch out! Here; now sit down a minute and get your
wind."

He pressed her shoulders downward and she dropped whitely on a little
camp chair hidden underneath the balcony.

"I gotta get out, Charley; I gotta get out and get air. I feel like I'm
going to suffocate in here. It's this old cough takes the breath out of
me."

In the foyer she revived a bit and drank gratefully of the water he
brought; but the color remained out of her cheeks and the cough would
rack her.

"I guess I oughtta go home, Charley."

"Aw, cut it! You ain't the only girl I've seen give out. Sit here and
rest a minute and you'll be all right. Great Scott! I came here to
dance."

She rose to her feet a bit unsteadily, but smiling.

"Fussy! Who said I didn't?"

"That's more like it."

And they were off again to the lilt of the music but, struggle as she
would, the coughing and the dizziness and the heat took hold of her and
at the close of the dance she fainted quietly against his shoulder.

And when she finally caught at consciousness, as it passed and repassed
her befuddled mind, she was on the floor of the cloak room, her head
pillowed on the skirt of a pink domino.

"There, there, dearie; your young man's waiting outside to take you
home."

"I--I'm all right!"

"Certainly you are. The heat done it. Here; lemme help you out of your
domino."

"It was the heat done it."

"There; you're all right now. I gotta get back to my dance. You fainted
right up against him, dearie; and I seen you keel."

"Gee, ain't I the limit!"

"Here; lemme help you on with your coat. Right there he is, waiting."

In the foyer Sara Juke met Charley Chubb shamefacedly.

"I spoilt everything, didn't I?"

"I guess you couldn't help it. All right?"

"Yes, Charley." She met the air gratefully, worming her little hand into
the curve of his elbow. "Gee! I feel fine now."

"Come; here's a car."

"Let's walk up Sixth Avenue, Charley; the air feels fin