Page:The Blacker the Berry - Thurman - 1929.djvu/110

 Emma Lou wondered what it was Mrs. Blake seemed to be holding back. She began again:

“My advice to you is that you enter Teachers’ College and if you will stay in New York, get a job in the public school system. You can easily take a light job of some kind to support you through your course. Maybe with three years’ college you won’t need to go to training school. Why don’t you find out about that? Now, if I were you” Mrs. Blake talked on, putting much emphasis on every “If I were you.”

Emma Lou grew listless and antagonistic. She didn’t like this little sawed-off woman as she was now, being business like and giving advice. She was glad when they finally left Eddie’s, and more than glad to escape after having been admonished not to oversleep, “But be in my office, and I'll see what I can do for you, dearie, early in the morning. There’s sure to be something.”

Left to herself, Emma Lou strolled south on the west side of Seventh Avenue to 134th Street, then crossed over to the east side and turned north. She didn’t know what to do. It was too late to consider visiting another employment agency, and, furthermore, she didn’t have enough money left to pay another fee. Let jobs go until tomorrow, then she would return to Mrs. Blake’s, ask for a return of her