midnight
She locked the doors , set an empty milk bottle out on the unspeakably dreary back stairway , and flung the soggy bedding over the foot of the bed . Then mother and daughter sauntered out into the noontime sunshine . It was their happiest time , as free and as irresponsible as children they went forth to meet the day 's adventures . Something was sure to happen , the `` crowd '' would have some plan ; they rarely came home again before midnight . But this sunshiny start into the day Was most pleasant of all , its freshness , its potentialities , appealed to them both . It was a February day , warm and bright , yet with a delicious tingle in the air . `` Leave us go up to Min 's , Julie ; some of the girls are sure to be there .