1984 - Planet eBook

man was sprawling on all fours, his tray had gone flying,two streams of soup and coffee were flowing across the floor.He started to his feet with a malignant glance at Winston,whom he evidently suspected of having tripped him up. Butit was all right. Five seconds later, with a thundering heart,Winston was sitting at the girl’s table.He did not look at her. He unpacked his tray and promptlybegan eating. It was all-important to speak at once,before anyone else came, but now a terrible fear had takenpossession of him. A week had gone by since she had firstapproached him. She would have changed her mind, shemust have changed her mind! It was impossible that this affairshould end successfully; such things did not happen inreal life. He might have flinched altogether from speaking ifat this moment he had not seen Ampleforth, the hairy-earedpoet, wandering limply round the room with a tray, lookingfor a place to sit down. In his vague way Ampleforthwas attached to Winston, and would certainly sit down athis table if he caught sight of him. There was perhaps a minutein which to act. Both Winston and the girl were eatingsteadily. The stuff they were eating was a thin stew, actuallya soup, of haricot beans. In a low murmur Winston beganspeaking. Neither of them looked up; steadily they spoonedthe watery stuff into their mouths, and between spoonfulsexchanged the few necessary words in low expressionlessvoices.‘What time do you leave work?’‘Eighteen-thirty.’‘Where can we meet?’