two o'clock
In this , the last and most momentous year of her school life , at the close of which , like a steep wall to be scaled , rose the university examination , she was behindhand with her work , and occupied a mediocre place in her class . So steadfastly was her attention pitched on Evelyn that she could link it to nothing else : in the middle of an important task , her thoughts would stray to contemplate her friend or wonder what she was doing ; while , if Evelyn were out for the evening , Laura gave up her meagre pretence of study altogether , and moodily propped her head in her hand . This was why she had hit on the small hours for the necessary cramming ; then , there were no distractions : the great house was as still as an empty church ; and Evelyn lay safe and sound before her . So , punctually at two o'clock Laura was startled , with a pounding heart , out of her first sleep ; and lighting the gas she sat up in bed and pored over her books . Evelyn was not disturbed by the light , or at least she did not complain ; and it was certainly a famous time for committing things to memory : the subsequent hours of sleep seemed rather to etch the facts into your brain than to blur them . You can not however rob Peter to pay Paul , with impunity , and in the weeks that followed , despite her nightly industry , Laura made no headway . As the term tapered to an end , things went from bad to worse with her ; and since , besides , the parting with Evelyn was at the door , she was often to be seen with red-rimmed eyelids , which she did not even try to conceal .