midnight
Theirs was a fine , clean specimen of friendship . How fine , Valentine never rightly knew until this evening . They were sitting together in Valentine 's flat in that hour when he became serious and expansive . He had rather a habit of becoming serious toward midnight , especially if he was with only one person ; and no desire to please interfered with his natural play of mind and of feeling when he was with Julian . To affect any feeling with Julian would have seemed like being on conventional terms with an element , or endeavouring to deceive one 's valet about one 's personal habits . Long ago Julian and he had , in mind , taken up their residence together , fallen into the pleasant custom of breakfasting , lunching , and dining on all topics in common . Valentine knew of no barriers between them .