About noon
The work now went steadily on , and Gervaise calculated they would be finished by eleven o'clock . The heat was intense ; the smell of charcoal deadened the air , while the branch of white lilies slowly faded and filled the room with their sweetness . The day after all this Coupeau had a frightful headache and did not rise until late , too late to go to his work . About noon he began to feel better , and toward evening was quite himself . His wife gave him some silver and told him to go out and take the air , which meant with him taking some wine . One glass washed down another , but he came home as gay as a lark and quite disgusted with the men he had seen who were drinking themselves to death . `` Where is your lover ? ''