K. was displeased by her answer; half in jest, half in earnest, he replied that she seemed actually to be in league with them, or at least to have a strong inclination in their favour, well, they were good-looking lads, but there was nobody who couldn’t be got rid of if only one had the will, and he would show her that that was so in the case of the assistants.
Frieda said that she would be very grateful to him if he could manage it. And from now on she wouldn’t laugh at them any more, nor have any unnecessary talk with them. Besides she didn’t find anything now to laugh at, it was really no joke always to be spied on by two men, she had learned to look at the two of them with K.’s eyes. And she actually shrank a little when the assistants got up again, partly to have a look at the food that was left, partly to get at the bottom of the continued whispering.
K. employed this incident to increase Frieda’s disgust for the assistants, drew her towards him, and so side by side they finished their supper. Now it was time to go to bed, for they were all very sleepy; one of the assistants had actually fallen asleep over his food, this amused the other one greatly, and he did his best to get the others to look at the vacant face of his companion, but he had no success. K. and Frieda sat on above without paying any attention. The cold was becoming so extreme that they shirked going to bed; at last K. declared that the room must be heated, otherwise it would be impossible to get to sleep. He looked round to see if he could find an axe or something. The assistants knew of one and fetched it, and now they proceeded to the wood shed. In a few minutes the flimsy door was smashed and torn open; as if they had never yet experienced anything so glorious, the assistants began to carry the wood into the classroom, hounding each other on and knocking against each other; soon there was a great pile, the stove was set going, everybody lay down round it, the assistants were given a blanket to roll themselves in—it was quite ample for them, for it was decided that one of them should always remain awake and keep the fire going—and soon it was so hot round the stove that the blankets were no longer needed, the lamps were put out, and K. and Frieda happily stretched themselves out to sleep in the warm silence.
K. was awakened during the night by some noise or other, and in his first vague sleepy state felt for Frieda; he found that, instead of Frieda, one of the assistants was lying beside him. Probably because of the exacerbation which being suddenly awakened is sufficient in itself to cause, this gave him the greatest fright that he had ever had since he first came to the village. With a cry he sat up, and not knowing what he was doing gave the assistant such a buffet that he began to cry. However the whole thing was cleared up in a moment. Frieda had been awakened—at least so it had seemed to her—by some huge animal, a cat probably, which had sprung on to her breast and then leapt away again. She had got up and was searching the whole room for the beast with a candle. One of the assistants had seized the opportunity to enjoy the sack of straw for a little, an attempt which he was now bitterly repenting. Frieda could find nothing, however; perhaps it had only been a delusion, she went back to K. and on the way she stroked the crouching and whimpering assistant over the hair to comfort him, as if she had forgotten the evening’s conversation. K. said nothing, but he asked the assistant to stop putting wood on the fire, for owing to almost all the heat having been squandered the room was already too hot.
XII
Next morning nobody awoke until the school children were there standing with gaping eyes round the sleepers. This was unpleasant, for on account of the intense heat, which now towards morning had given way, however, to a coldness which could be felt, they had all taken off everything but their shirts, and just as they were beginning to put on their clothes, Gisa, the lady teacher, appeared at the door, a fair, tall, beautiful, but somewhat stiff young woman. She was evidently prepared for the new janitor, and seemed also to have been given her instructions by the teacher, for as soon as she appeared at the door she began: “I can’t put up with this. This is a fine state of affairs. You have permission to sleep in the classroom, but that’s all; I am not obliged to teach in your bedroom. A janitor’s family that loll in their beds far into the forenoon! Faugh!” Well, something might be said about that, particularly as far as the family and the beds were concerned, thought K., while with Frieda’s help—the assistants were of no use, lying on the floor they looked in amazement at the lady teacher and the children—he
