five o'clock
Even the wind seemed to catch its breath there , and hurry on with a shiver that reached to the telegraph wires overhead . It shivered down the long stovepipe , too , inside the waiting-room . The stove had been kept red-hot all that dull gray afternoon , but the window-panes were still white with heavy frost-work . Half an hour before the five o'clock train was due from the city , two boys came running up the railroad track with their skates in their hands . They were handsome , sturdy little fellows , so well buttoned up in their leather leggins and warm reefer overcoats that they scarcely felt the cold . Their cheeks were red as winter apples , from skating against the wind , and they were almost breathless after their long run up-hill to the depot . Racing across the platform , they bumped against the door at the same instant , burst it noisily open , and slammed it behind them with a bang that shook the entire building .