With the crowd of white men looking on, the narrator and his schoolmates do not know how to react. Some of the boys "lowered their heads, trembling," fearing the implied threat of being lynched if they demonstrate sexual interest in a white woman. The narrator feels forceful but contradictory feelings. A wave of ' 'irrational guilt and fear'' sweeps over him as his teeth chatter and his knees knock. He knows that it is dangerous to look at her, but cannot help but look. He wants to spit on her and touch her,' 'to love her and to ____her."