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tell everybody in the post-office to watch Ray read the letter; then
somebody was to ask Ray if he had received a love letter from a girl.
After that somebody was to snatch the letter out of his hand and read it
aloud.
They bought blue writing paper and went round the corner to the
office of the telephone company where Grace Brooks worked as a night
telephone operator. Grace was pretty though not very young. She had
begun working for the company many years ago, after she had finished
school. She had remained unmarried all those years, and because she
worked at night and slept in the daytime it was very difficult for her to
find a husband.
At first, after Guy and Ralf had explained to her what they wanted
to do and had asked her
to write the letter to Ray, Grace refused to do it.
“Now, be a good girl, Grace, do us a favour and write the letter."
Suddenly she turned away. She didn't want the young men to see her
crying. She remembered the time she had got acquainted with Ray. Ray
wanted to marry her. But she had just finished school then and had
started to work for the telephone company; she was very young then and
did not want to marry anybody. Time passed. During all those years she
had seen him a few times but only a polite word had passed between
them, and each time he looked sadder and sadder.
Finally she agreed to write the letter for Guy and Ralph and said
that she would send it in the morning. After they left the telephone office
Grace thought about Ray and cried. Late at night she wrote the letter.
The next day Guy and Ralph were in the post-office at 4 o'clock. By that
time there was a large crowd in the post-office. When Ray came in and
saw a letter in his box he looked at it in surprise. He couldn't believe his
eyes. He opened the box, took out the blue envelope and went to the
corner of the room to read it. When he finished he behaved like mad. He
smiled happily and ran out of the room before Guy and Ralph had time
to say anything to stop him. Ray hurried round the corner to the
telephone office.
When Guy and Ralph ran into the room where Grace worked they
saw Ray Buffin standing near the girl with the widest and happiest smile
they had ever seen оn his face. It was clear they had not spoken a word
yet. They just stood in silence, too happy to worry about Guy and Ralph
watching them.
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