Here she made a mistake. John Thomas intended to remain a nocturnal
presence; he had no idea of becoming an all-round individual to her. When
she started to take an intelligent interest in him and his life and his
character, he sheered off. He hated intelligent interest. And he knew
that the only way to stop it was to avoid it. The possessive female was
aroused in Annie. So he left her.

It is no use saying she was not surprised. She was at first startled,
thrown out of her count. For she had been so _very_ sure of holding him.
For a while she was staggered, and everything became uncertain to her.
Then she wept with fury, indignation, desolation, and misery. Then she
had a spasm of despair. And then, when he came, still impudently, on to
her car, still familiar, but letting her see by the movement of his head
that he had gone away to somebody else for the time being, and was
enjoying pastures new, then she determined to have her own back.

She had a very shrewd idea what girls John Thomas had taken out. She went
to Nora Purdy. Nora was a tall, rather pale, but well-built girl, with
beautiful yellow hair. She was rather secretive.

'Hey!' said Annie, accosting her; then softly, 'Who's John Thomas on with
now?'

'I don't know,' said Nora.

'Why tha does,' said Annie, ironically lapsing into dialect. 'Tha knows
as well as I do.'

'Well, I do, then,' said Nora. 'It isn't me, so don't bother.'