Twice, with his heavy hand, he brushed back his closely cropped hair, and suddenly, like a man unable to resist desire, slipped his tunic back over the dainty jabot, buttoned it up tightly, and slipped on his rumpled overall ; then he hesitated a moment, looking at me sideways ... Finally he sat on the edge of his bed, took off his shoes, which fell noisily onto the floor, stretched himself on the bed, fully dressed like a soldier ready for the fray, and blew out the candle.
Il passa deux fois sur ses cheveux ras sa main lourde, et tout soudain, comme quelqu’un qui ne peut plus résister à son désir, il réendossa sur le fin jabot sa vareuse qu’il boutonna solidement et sa blouse fripée ; puis il hésita un instant, en me regardant de côté… Finalement, il s’assit sur le bord de son lit, quitta ses souliers qui tombèrent bruyamment sur le plancher ; et, tout habillé comme un soldat au cantonnement d’alerte, il s’étendit sur son lit et souffla la bougie.