Steve was waiting for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he didn't – the girl with a rose. She was his pen friend. She had helped him a lot both in study and life. They planned their first meeting for 7 pm at Grand Central Station in New York.
“You'll find me,” she wrote, “by the red rose I'll be wearing on my coat.” So at 7 pm he was in the station looking for the girl with a red rose.
A young woman was coming towards him. She was wearing a green coat and was everything that he hoped Miss Maynell would be. But there was no red rose. Then a plain-looking (相貌平平的) woman walked past. She was well past 40 years old. On her coat there was a red rose.
He did not hesitate (犹豫). “I'm Steve Blanchard, and you must be Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me. May I take you to dinner?” he asked.
A kind smile appeared on the woman's face. “I don't know what this is about, son,” she answered, “But the young lady in the green coat who just went by asked me to wear this rose on my coat. She said if you asked me out to dinner, I should tell you that she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was a kind of test!”
