Thanks to my reviewers. I know it's been a few days, but I'm busy with school etc. I hope everyone enjoyed the inauguration yesterday, and I hope everyone has enjoyed the story so far. And so, we continue. I do not own anything. Line from Act I, scene iv.
Ernst had gone to bed very puzzled that night. He had no idea what to make of Hanschen. Certainly there had to be some attraction, didn't there? Hanschen had been the one to come after Ernst, to enter his room, and the first to kiss and touch, and… Certainly that had to mean something. But Ernst was so confused. Why hadn't Hanschen said anything, other than his last line?
The night's rest didn't clear much for him, and as he walked back to school the following morning, he was very contemplative.
Once at school, the boys were gathered to work on the play. Apparently, it was going to be a very big focus for the next few weeks. The school did not want to be humiliated by a poor performance.
The boys had been given time to memorize their lines on their own, and therefore had split into various groups. Otto and Georg sat with each other in one corner of the room, mostly talking about girls, but occasionally reading a line.
Moritz sat next to Melchior, who was reading his "Queen Maab" speech. Moritz flipped through the pages, looking at his lines.
"Melchior, what does this mean?" He pointed to a line in his script.
Melchior motioned to him to come closer and whispered something into his ear.
Moritz gasped, "Oh my God! Melchi! I can't say that." He buried his face in his hands, and Melchior laughed a little and patted him on the back.
Ernst had sat himself alone. He had opened the script, which lay on his desk, but only blankly stared at the pages. Lost in thought, he once again did not notice Hanschen come up behind him.
Without a word, Hanschen grabbed his arm, pulled him out of his seat, and then led him to the hallway outside of the room. He sat down on the floor, and Ernst sat next to him.
Silently, Hanschen opened his script, and began to look through his lines. He didn't say them, just looked. Ernst looked at his own script, which he had fortunately been able to remember as Hanschen pulled him out.
Ernst wanted to ask so many questions about the day before, but Hanschen just sat there, without the slightest look that he wanted to talk about anything. Ernst just looked through his lines.
A few minutes went by, when Ernst realized that Hanschen's hand had drifted to rest on Ernst's leg, startled by this he gasped, "Hanschen!"
Calmly, Hanschen looked up, "Yes, Ernst?"
His composure was inscrutable. Ernst was now no longer sure if his hand had ended there by mistake, or if he had wanted it there. "Oh, nothing, Hanschen. Nothing," and he quickly returned to his reading. Hanschen looked at him in curiosity for a moment, then returned to his.
When the boys were called to come in, pack their things, and leave, Ernst had decided that he needed some idea of what Hanschen was thinking. Ernst had now almost completely reasoned that he was in love with Hanschen. Hanschen terrified him, that was true, but still nothing stopped him from dreaming about their encounters, especially of the previous day.
"Hanschen, may I see your script?"
Hanschen looked confused as he saw Ernst carrying his own script, but he handed it to him. Ernst quickly scrawled, "Hanschen, I love you—Ernst" a few pages into the script before giving it back to its owner.
That night Ernst reviewed his lines toward the end of the first act. As he looked at them, he saw next to the line, "You kiss by th' book," a message in Hanschen's writing.
"That is how it should be."
Ernst sighed, so much for unraveling any of Hanschen's mysteries.