《怦然心动》｜单词注释｜Chapter 8
The Yard
1
I'd never been embarrassed by where we lived before.
2
I'd never looked at our house, or even our side of the street, and said, Oh!
3
I wish we lived in the new
development
—those houses are so much newer, so much better!
development /dɪˈveləpmənt/ n. 新开发区
4
This is where I'd grown up. This was my home.
5
I was aware of the yard, sure.
6
My mother had
grumbled
about it for years.
grumble /ˈɡrʌmbl/ vi. 抱怨
7
But it was a low grumbling, not worthy of
deep concern
. Or
so
I'd supposed.
deep concern 深切关注
so /so/ adv. 如此
8
But maybe I should have
wondered
. Why
let the outside go
and keep the inside so nice?
wonder /'wʌndɚ/ vt. & vi. 对…感到疑惑
let go 放手
9
It was
spotless
inside our house.
spotless /'spɑtləs/ adj. 无可挑剔的
10
Except for the boys' room,
that is
.
that is 换言之
11
Mom gave up on that after she discovered the snake.
12
If they were old enough to
adopt
a snake, she told my brothers, they were old enough to clean their own room.
adopt /əˈdɑːpt/ vt. 收养
13
Matt and Mike translated this to keep the door closed, and became quite
diligent
about doing just that.
diligent /ˈdɪlɪdʒənt/ adj. 勤奋的
14
Besides the yard, I also never really wondered about the money, or the
apparent
lack
thereof
.
apparent /əˈpærənt/ adj. 明显的
lack /læk/ n. 缺乏
thereof /ˌðɛr'ʌv/ adv. 由此
15
I knew we weren't rich, but I didn't feel like I was missing anything.
16
Anything you could buy, anyway.
17
Matt and Mike did ask for things a lot,
18
but even though my mother would tell them, No, boys, we just can't
afford
that, I took this to mean, No, boys, you don't deserve that, or, No, boys, you don't really need that.
afford /əˈfɔːrd/ vt. 买得起
19
It wasn't until Bryce called our home a complete dive that I started really seeing things.
20
It wasn't just the yard.
21
It was my dad's truck, my mother's car, the family bike that was more
rust
than
steel
, and the fact that when we did buy something new, it always seemed to come from a second-time-around store.
rust /rʌst/ n. 生锈
steel /stiːl/ n. 钢
22
Plus, we never went on
vacation
. Ever.
vacation /veɪˈkeɪʃn/ n. 假期
23
Why was that?
24
My father was the hardest-working man in the world, and my mother worked for
TempService
doing
secretarial
jobs whenever she could.
TempService 临时服务
secretarial /'sɛkrə'tɛrɪəl/ adj. 秘书的
25
What was all that hard work about if this is where it got you?
26
Asking my parents whether we were poor seemed
incredibly
impolite.
incredibly /ɪnˈkredəbli/ adv. 极为
27
But as the days went by, I knew I had to ask. Just had to.
28
Every day I'd ride home from school on our rusty bike, pull past the
broken
fence and
patchy
yard, and think, Tonight. I'll ask them tonight.
broken /'brokən/ adj. 破裂的
patchy /'pætʃi/ adj. 参差不齐的
29
But then I wouldn't ask them. I just didn't know how.
30
Then one day I had an idea.
31
A way to talk to them about it and maybe help out a little, too.
32
And since my brothers were working at the music store that night, and nobody was saying much of anything at the table,
33
I took a deep breath and said,
34
“I was thinking, you know, that it wouldn't be hard to fix up the front yard if I could get some nails and a hammer and maybe some paint?
35
And how much does grass seed cost? It can't be that much, right? I could plant a lawn, and maybe even some flowers?”
36
My parents stopped eating and stared at me. 38 “I know how to use a saw and a hammer—it could be, you know, a project.”
37
My mother quit looking at me and stared at my father, instead.
39
My father sighed and said, “The yard is not our
responsibility
, Julianna.”
responsibility /rɪˌspɑːnsəˈbɪləti/ n. 责任
40
“It's … it's not?”
41
He shook his head and said, “It's Mr. Finnegan's.”
42
“Who's Mr. Finnegan?”
43
“The man who owns this house.”
44
I couldn't believe my ears. “What?”
45
My father cleared his throat and said, “The landlord.”
46
“You mean we don't own this house?”
47
They looked at each other, having some
private
wordless
conversation I couldn't
decipher
.
private /ˈpraɪvət/ adj. 私下的
wordless /'wɝdləs/ adj. 沉默的
decipher /dɪˈsaɪfər/ v. 破译
48
Finally my father said, “I didn't realize you didn't know that.”
49
“But … but that doesn't make sense! Aren't landlords supposed to come and do things? Like fix the roof when it
leaks
and clear the
drains
when they're
plugged
?
leak /liːk/ vi. 漏，渗
drain /dreɪn/ n. 下水道
plug /plʌɡ/ vi. 塞住
50
You always do that stuff, Dad. Why do you do it when he's supposed to?”
51
“Because,” he sighed, “it's easier than asking him for help.”
52
“But if—”
53
“And,” my father interrupted me, “it
keeps
him from raising the rent.”
keep /kip/ vt. 防止
54
“But …”
55
My mother reached over and took my hand. “Sweetheart, I'm sorry if this is a shock. I guess we always thought you knew.”
56
“But what about the yard? Why keep up the inside but not the outside?”
57
My father frowned and said, “When we signed the
lease
, he assured us he would fix the fences, front and back, and plant
sod
in the front yard. Obviously that never happened.”
lease /liːs/ n. 租约
sod /sɑd/ n. 草皮
58
He shook his head. “It's a major
undertaking
, and fencing is not cheap. I can't see putting that sort of investment into a property that's not ours. Plus, it's the principle of the thing.”
undertaking /ˌʌndərˈteɪkɪŋ/ n. (重大而艰巨的)任务
59
He shook his head. “It's a major
undertaking
, and fencing is not cheap. I can't see putting that sort of investment into a property that's not ours. Plus, it's the principle of the thing.”
investment /ɪnˈvestmənt/ n. 投资
property /ˈprɑːpərti/ n. 财产
60
He shook his head. “It's a major
undertaking
, and fencing is not cheap. I can't see putting that sort of investment into a property that's not ours. Plus, it's the principle of the thing.”
61
“But we live here,” I whispered, “and it looks so bad.”
62
My father studied me. “Julianna, what happened?”
63
“Nothing, Daddy,” I said, but he knew I was lying.
64
“Sweetheart,” he whispered, “tell me.”
65
I knew what he'd say if I told him, and
yet
I couldn't not tell him.
yet /jɛt/ adv. 终归
66
Not with the way he was looking at me.
67
So I took a deep breath and said, “The Loskis have been throwing my eggs away because they were afraid they'd have salmonella because our yard is such a mess.”
68
My father said, “Oh, that's
ridiculous
,” but my mother gasped, “What?”
ridiculous /rɪˈdɪkjələs/ adj. 荒谬的
69
Then she cried, “Did Patsy say that?”
70
I looked down. “No, Bryce did.”
71
“But it must've been a family discussion! A boy doesn't come up with that on his own … !” My mother looked for all the world like a
doe
waiting to be shot through the heart.
doe /do/ n. 母鹿
72
She covered her face with her hands and said, “I can't go on like this! Robert, things have got to change. They've just got to!”
73
“Trina, you know I'm doing the best I can. I'm sorry about the yard, I'm sorry about the situation. This isn't the
picture
I had for my life, either, but sometimes you have to
sacrifice
for what's right.”
picture /ˈpɪktʃər/ n. 想象
sacrifice /ˈsækrɪfaɪs/ v. 牺牲
74
My mother looked up from her hands and said, “This is not right for our family. Your daughter is
suffering
because we won't fix up our own yard.”
suffer /ˈsʌfər/ vi. 受痛苦
75
“It's not our yard.”
76
“How can you say that? Robert, wake up! We have lived here for twelve years. It's not
temporary
anymore!
temporary /ˈtempəreri/ adj. 临时的
77
If we ever want to have a
decent
place with our own yard, if we're going to help the kids through college or do any of the other things we've promised each other,
decent /ˈdiːsnt/ adj. 得体的
78
we're going to have to move him into government care.”
79
My father let out a deep sigh and whispered, “We've discussed this so many times, Trina. In the end you always agree that keeping him at Greenhaven is the right thing to do.”
80
I wanted to say, Wait! What are you talking about? Who are you talking about?
81
But the conversation was flying so fast and
furious
that I couldn't seem to break in, and it wasn't long before they were
bickering
so badly that it was almost like I wasn't there.
furious /ˈfjʊriəs/ adj. 激烈的
bicker /ˈbɪkər/ vi. 斗嘴
82
Then in the back of my mind, it
clicked
. Everything clicked.
click /klɪk/ v. 恍然大悟
83
It was my dad's brother they were talking about. My uncle. David.
84
To me Uncle David was only a name.
85
Someone my parents had explained to me, but not someone I'd ever actually met.
86
And even though I knew my dad visited him, I never knew exactly when.
87
He never talked about it.
88
Dad also thought we shouldn't talk about Uncle David to others because David was retarded.
89
Dad also thought we shouldn't talk about Uncle David to others because David was retarded.
retarded /rɪˈtɑːrdɪd/ adj. 弱智的
90
“People
jump to conclusions
,” he'd told me. “They
assume
that, by
association
, something must also be
wrong
with you. Trust me, I know.”
jump to conclusion 过早下结论
assume /əˈsuːm/ v. 认为
association /əˌsoʊsiˈeɪʃn/ n. 联想
wrong /rɔŋ/ adj. 有毛病
91
So we didn't talk about it. Not at home, not with friends. It was almost like there was no Uncle David.
92
Until now.
93
Now he felt larger than life, and I could tell from their argument that he was the reason we didn't have our own house; he was the reason we didn't have nice cars or
fancy
things.
fancy /ˈfænsi/ adj. 昂贵的
94
He was the reason there always seemed to be a cloud of
weariness
hanging over my parents.
weariness /'wɪrɪnɪs/ n. 疲倦
95
Why did I have to
bring up
the yard in the first place?
bring up 提出
in the first place 起初
96
I'd never seen my parents fight like this. Ever.
97
I wanted to grab them and say, Stop it! Stop it! You love each other! You do! But I just sat there with tears
streaming
down my face.
stream /striːm/ vi. 流；涌进
98
My mother stopped suddenly and whispered, “We should not be doing this in front of her!”
99
“I'm sorry, Julianna,” my dad said, then
reached over
and held my
forearm
. “Don't cry. None of this is your fault. We'll work it out, I promise we will.”
reach over 伸手过去
forearm /fɔrˈɑrm/ n. 前臂
100
My mother tried to laugh through her tears, saying, “We always have, and we always will.”
101
That night my parents came into my room and talked to me,
one at a time
.
one at a time adv. 一次一个人
102
My father talked about his brother and how much he loved him and how he'd promised his parents he'd always take care of him.
103
My mother talked about how much she loved my father for his
strength
and
kind heart
, about dreams and
reality
, and the need to
count your blessings
.
strength /streŋθ/ n. 意志力
kind heart 心地善良
reality /riˈæləti/ n. 现实
count your blessings 多往好处想
104
And she made me cry all over again when she kissed me goodnight and whispered that of all her many
blessings
, I was her best and
brightest
.
blessing /ˈblesɪŋ/ n. 幸运
bright /braɪt/ adj. 聪明的
105
I felt sorry for my father.
106
I felt sorry for my mother.
107
But most of all I felt lucky for me that they were mine.
108
And in the morning, as I rode my rusty bike out the driveway to school, I promised myself that when I got home, I'd
tackle
the yard.
tackle /ˈtækl/ vt. 解决
109
Rented or not, this was our home, and I was going to help make living here better.
110
As it turns out
, this was easier thought than done.
as it turns out 事实证明
111
First it took me half an hour of
rummaging
through the garage to find a hammer and a box of nails, a saw, and some
pruners
.
rummage /'rʌmɪdʒ/ vt. 翻找出
pruner /'pru:nə/ n. 修树枝剪刀
112
Then it took another half hour of standing around to figure out just where to start.
113
The actual yard was just
clumps
of weeds, but what about the
bordering
shrubs?
clump /klʌmp/ n. 丛
bordering /'bɔ:dəriŋ/ n. 边缘
114
Should I dig them up, or prune them way back?
115
Were they shrubs, or just
overgrown
weeds? And what about the fence?
overgrown /ˌovɚ'ɡron/ adj. 杂草丛生
116
Should I
knock it down
, or
rebuild
it?
knock down 拆除
rebuild /ˌri'bɪld/ vi. 重建
117
Maybe I should take out the front end entirely and use the wood to fix up the sides
118
The longer I looked around, the more I felt like forgetting the whole thing.
119
Why bother?
120
It wasn't our
property
. Mr. Finnegan should be the one making repairs.
property /ˈprɑːpərti/ n. 财产
121
But then I remembered my mother's words from the night before.
122
Surely, I thought, a few bushes and some
dilapidated
wood couldn't stop someone's best and brightest blessing! Surely not!
dilapidated /dɪˈlæpɪdeɪtɪd/ adj. 失修的
123
And with that, I picked up the
clippers
and got to work.
clipper /'klɪpɚ/ n. 大剪刀
124
Half an hour later I was
keeper
of the knowledge that one bush
equals
many branches, and that
the volume of
a bush increases
exponentially
as it's cut and tossed into the middle of a yard.
keeper /'kipɚ/ n. 保管人
equal /ˈiːkwəl/ vt. 达到
the volume of ......的数量
exponential /'ɛkspə'nɛnʃəl/ n. 指数
125
It was ridiculous! Where was I going to put all this stuff?
126
Mom came home and tried to talk me out of my
mission
, but I'd
have none of
it.
mission /ˈmɪʃn/ n. 任务
have none of 不同意
127
Oh, no-no-no! I'd already
pruned
two bushes down to a
respectable
size, and before long she'd see— the place was going to look just dandy.
prune /pruːn/ vt. 修剪(树木等)
respectable /rɪˈspektəbl/ adj. 体面的
128
“You didn't get that
stubborn
streak
from me,” she said, but came back outside with a glass of juice and a kiss for my cheek.
stubborn /ˈstʌbərn/ adj. 固执的
streak /striːk/ n. (尤指不好的)性格特征
129
Good enough for me!
130
By the end of that first day, what I'd made was a big mess.
131
But if
chaos
is a necessary step in the organization of one's universe, then I was well on my way.
chaos /ˈkeɪɑːs/ n. 混乱
132
At least that's what I tried to tell myself when I
flopped
into bed that night, dead tired.
flop /flɑp/ vi. (笨拙地、不由自主地或松弛地)移动或落下
133
And the next afternoon I was busily expanding the chaos of my little universe when I heard a deep voice say, “That's quite an undertaking, young lady.”
134
The man standing on our
sidewalk
was Bryce's grandfather, I knew that much.
sidewalk /'saɪdwɔk/ n. 人行道
135
But I'd only ever seen him outside one time.
136
All the other times I'd seen him had been through windows—
either one in their sitting room or
one in their car.
either...or 不是......就是......
137
To me he was just a dark-haired man behind glass.
138
Having him appear on my sidewalk was like having someone from TV step through the screen and talk to you.
139
“I know we've seen each other from time to time,” he was saying.
140
“I'm sorry it's taken me over a year to come introduce myself. I'm Chester Duncan, Bryce's grandfather. And you, of course, are Julianna Baker.”
141
He stuck out his hand, so I took off my work glove and watched my hand completely disappear inside his as we shook. 143 “Nice to meet you, Mr. Duncan,” I said, thinking that this man was way bigger than he looked from the sitting-room window.
142
Then the strangest thing happened.
144
He pulled his own work gloves and a pair of clippers from a back pocket and said, “Are you pruning all of these to the same height?”
145
“Oh,” I said. “Well, yes. That is what I was thinking. Although now I don't know. Do you think it would look better to just take them out?”
146
He shook his head and said, “They're Australian
tea shrubs
. They'll prune up nicely.”
tea shrub 茶树
147
And with that, he put on his gloves and started clipping.
148
At first I didn't know what to say to this man.
149
It was very strange to be getting his help, but from the way he was acting, it was as though I shouldn't have thought a thing of it.
150
Clip-clip-clip, he went, like this was something he really enjoyed doing.
151
Then I remembered what Bryce had said about our yard, and suddenly I knew why he was there.
152
“What's the matter?” he asked, throwing his clippings into my pile. “Did I cut it down too far?”
153
“N-no.”
154
“Then why the look?” he asked. “I don't mean to make you uncomfortable. I just thought you might like a little help.”
155
“Well, I don't. I can do this by myself.”
156
He laughed and said, “Oh, I have no doubt about that,” then got back to clipping.
157
“You see, Julianna, I read about you in the paper, and I've lived across the street from you for over a year now. It's easy to see that you're a very
competent
person.”
competent /ˈkɑːmpɪtənt/ adj. 有能力的
158
We both worked quietly for a minute, but I found myself throwing the clippings into the pile
harder and harder
.
harder and harder 越来越难
159
And before long I couldn't stand it.
160
I just couldn't stand it!
161
I
spun
on him and said,
spin /spɪn/ v. (使)急转身
162
“You're here because you feel bad about the eggs, aren't you? Well, our eggs are perfectly fine! We've been eating them for nearly three years and none of us have gotten poisoned.
163
Mrs. Stueby and Mrs. Helms seem in good health to me, too, and the fact of the matter is, if you didn't want them, you should've just told me so!”
164
His hands fell to his sides and he shook his head as he said, “Eggs? Poisoned? Julianna, I
have no idea
what you're talking about.”
have no idea 一点不知道
165
Inside I was so angry and
hurt
and embarrassed that I didn't even feel like me.
hurt /hɜːrt/ adj. 痛苦的
166
“I'm talking about the eggs that I've been bringing over to your house for more than two years— eggs that my chickens laid that I could've sold! Eggs that your family has been throwing away!”
167
I was shouting at him. Shouting at an adult, like I'd never shouted at anyone in my entire life.
168
His voice got very quiet. “I'm sorry. I don't know about any eggs. Who did you give them to?”
169
“Bryce!” My throat choked closed as I said his name again. “Bryce.”
170
Mr. Duncan nodded slowly and said, “Well,” then went back to pruning his bush. “That probably explains it.”
171
“What do you mean?”
172
He sighed. “The boy still has a ways to go.”
173
I just stared at him, not trusting myself with the words
sizzling
on my tongue.
sizzle /'sɪzl/ vi. 发嘶嘶声
174
“Oh, he's a very handsome boy, there's no denying that,” he said with a frown.
175
Then he
snapped
a branch and added, “The
spitting image
of his father.”
snap /snæp/ vt. 突然折断
spitting image n. 几乎长得一摸一样的人
176
I shook my head. “Why are you over here, Mr. Duncan? If you don't think I need the help and you're not feeling bad about the eggs, then why would you do this?”
177
“Honestly?”
178
I just looked at him, straight in the eye.
179
He nodded, then said, “Because you remind me of my wife.”
180
“Your wife?”
181
“That's right.”
182
He gave me a little smile and said, “Renée would've sat up in that tree with you. She would've sat there all night.”
183
And with those two sentences, my anger vanished. “Really?”
184
“Absolutely.”
185
“She's … she died?”
186
He nodded. “And I miss her
terribly
.”
terribly /ˈterəbli/ adv.[口]非常
187
He tossed a branch into the heap and chuckled. “There's nothing like a
head-strong
woman to make you happy to be alive.”
head-strong /ˈhedstrɔːŋ/ adj. 固执的
188
The last thing in the world I expected was to become friends with Bryce's grandfather.
189
But by
dinnertime
I knew so much about him and his wife and the adventures they'd had together that it seemed like I'd known him for a very long time.
dinnertime /ˈdɪnɚˌtaɪm/ n. 正餐时间
190
Plus, all his stories made the work seem easy.
191
When I went in for the night, the bushes were all pruned back, and except for the enormous heap in the center of the yard, things were already looking a whole lot better.
192
The next day he was back.
193
And when I smiled and said, “Hi, Mr. Duncan,” he smiled back and said, “Call me Chet, won't you?”
194
He looked at the hammer in my hand and said, “I take it we're starting on the fence today?”
195
Chet taught me how to plumb a line for the pickets,
196
Chet taught me how to plumb a line for the pickets,
plumb /plʌm/ vt. 使垂直
picket /'pɪkɪt/ n. [建]尖木桩
197
how to hold a hammer down on the end of the handle instead of
choking
up on it, how to
calculate
an
adjustedspacing
for the pickets, and how to use a
level
to get the wood exactly
vertical
.
choke /tʃoʊk/ vt. & vi. 卡住
calculate /ˈkælkjuleɪt/ vt. & vi. 计算
adjusted /əˈdʒʌstɪd/ adj. 调整过的
spacing /'spesɪŋ/ n. 间距
level /ˈlevl/ n. 水平仪
vertical /ˈvɜːrtɪkl/ adj. 垂直的
198
We worked on the fence for days, and the whole time we worked we talked. It wasn't just about his wife, either.
199
He wanted to know about the sycamore tree and seemed to understand exactly what I meant when I told about the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.
200
“It's that way with people, too,” he said, “only with people it's sometimes that the whole is less than the sum of the parts.”
201
I thought that was pretty interesting.
202
And the next day during school I looked around at the people I'd known since elementary school, trying to figure out if they were more or less than the sum of their parts.
203
Chet was right. A lot of them were less.
204
Top of the list, of course, was Shelly Stalls.
205
To look at her, you'd think she had everything, but there's not much
solid
underneath her
Mount Everest
hair.
solid /ˈsɑːlɪd/ adj. 可靠的
Mount Everest 珠穆朗玛峰
206
And even though she's like a
black hole
at
sucking
people in, it doesn't take them long to
figure out
that being friends with her requires
fanning the flames
of a
wildfire
ego
.
black hole 黑洞
suck /sʌk/ vi. 吮吸
figure out 弄明白
fan the flame v. 煽动情绪
wildfire n. (消息或谣言等)迅速传播
ego /ˈiːɡoʊ/ n. 自我
207
But of all my classmates, the one person I couldn't seem to place was Bryce.
208
Until recently I'd have said with absolute certainty that he was greater—far greater—than the sum of his parts.
209
What he did to my heart was
sheer
,
inexplicable
magic.
sheer /ʃɪr/ adj. 纯粹的
inexplicable /ˌɪnɪkˈsplɪkəbl/ adj. 难以言喻的
210
But inexplicable was the
operative
word here.
operative /ˈɑːpərətɪv/ adj. 最适合的
211
And as I looked across the room at him during math, I couldn't help feeling
crushed
all over
again about how he'd thrown out my eggs.
crush /krʌʃ/ vt. & vi. 压碎
all over 浑身
212
What kind of person would do that?
213
Then he looked my way and smiled, and my heart
lurched
.
flurch /lɜːrtʃ/ v. 突然改变(行为或态度)
214
But I was mad at myself for it.
215
How could I still feel this way after what he'd done?
216
I avoided him the rest of the day, but by the end of school there was a
tornado
inside me, tearing me up from one end to the other.
tornado /tɔːrˈneɪdoʊ/ n. 龙卷风
217
I jumped on my bike and rode home faster than I ever had before.
218
The right
pedal
clanked
against the
chain guard
, and the whole bike rattled and squeaked,
threatening to
collapse into a pile of rusty parts.
pedal /ˈpedl/ n. 踏板
clank /klæŋk/ vi. 发铿锵声
chain guard 链罩
threaten to 威胁着要
219
The tornado, however, was still going strong when I
skidded
to a halt in our driveway.
skid /skɪd/ vt. 刹住
220
So I
transferred
pedal
power into
painting
power.
transfer /trænsˈfɜːr/ vt. 使转移
pedal /ˈpedl/ adj. 脚踏的
paint /peɪnt/ v. (给......)上油漆
221
I pried open the
gallon
of Navajo White my dad had bought me and started
slopping
paint around.
gallon /ˈɡælən/ n. 加仑
slop /slɑp/ vi. 泼出
222
Chet appeared about ten minutes later.
223
“
My
,” he laughed, “you've got an
enviable
amount of energy today, don't you?”
my /maɪ/ int. 哎呀（表示惊奇等）
enviable /ˈenviəbl/ adj. 令人羡慕的
224
“No,” I said, brushing back some hair with the back of my hand, “I'm just mad.”
225
He
produced
his own brush and an empty coffee
can
. “Uhoh. Who at?”
produce /prəˈduːs/ vt. 拿出
can /kən/ n. 罐头
226
“Myself!”
227
“Oh, that's a
tough
one. Did you do
poorly on a test
?”
tough /tʌf/ adj. 倒霉的
poorly on a test 在考试中表现不佳
228
“No! I …” I turned to him and said, “How did you fall in love with your wife?”
229
He poured some Navajo White into his can and smiled.
230
“Ah,” he said. “Boy problems.”
231
“I do not have boy problems!”
232
He hesitated but didn't argue.
233
Instead, he said, “I fell in love with her by mistake.”
234
“By mistake? What do you mean?”
235
“I didn't
intend to
. At the time I was engaged to somebody else, and
in no position
to fall in love.
Fortunately
for me I saw how blind I'd been before it was too late.”
intend to 打算做......
in no position 没有资格去......
fortunately /'fɔrtʃənətli/ adv. 幸运地
236
“Blind?”
237
“Yes. My
fiancée
was very beautiful. She had the most
magnificent
brown eyes, and skin like an angel.
fiancée /'fiːɑːnseɪ/ n. 未婚妻
magnificent /mæɡˈnɪfɪsnt/ adj. 华丽的
238
And for a time all I could see was her beauty. But then … well, let's just say I discovered she wasn't a
fraction
of the person Renée was.”
fraction /ˈfrækʃn/ n. 小部分
239
He dipped his brush in the coffee can and
stroked
a picket with paint.
stroke /stroʊk/ v. 在......上轻轻涂抹
240
“It's easy to look back and see it, and it's easy to give the advice, but the sad fact is, most people don't look beneath the surface until it's too late.”
241
We were quiet a minute, but I could see Chet thinking.
242
And from the
furrow
in his
brow
, I knew it had nothing to do with my problems.
furrow /'fɝo/ n. 皱纹
brow /braʊ/ n. 额
243
“I'm … I'm sorry I brought up your wife,” I said.
244
“Oh, don't be, that's all right.” He shook his head and tried on a smile.
245
“
Besides
, I wasn't thinking of Renée. I was thinking of someone else. Someone who's never been able to look beneath the surface. At this point I don't suppose I even want her to.”
besides /bɪˈsaɪdz/ adv. 此外
246
Who was he talking about? I wanted to know!
247
But I felt it would be
crossing some line
to ask, so we painted pickets in silence.
cross the line 做得太过分了
248
At last he turned to me and said, “Get beyond his eyes and his smile and the
sheen
of his hair—look at what's really there.”
sheen /ʃiːn/ n. 光泽
249
The way he said it sent a
chill
through me.
chill /tʃɪl/ n. 寒气
250
It was as though he knew.
251
And suddenly I felt
defensive
.
defensive /dɪˈfensɪv/ adj. 怀有戒心的
252
Was he telling me his grandson wasn't worth it?
253
When it was time to go in for dinner, I still didn't feel right, but at least the tornado was gone.
254
Mom said Dad was working late, and since the boys were off with their friends, it was just the two of us.
255
She told me that she and Dad had talked about it and that they both felt a little strange having Chet come over like he was.
256
Maybe, she said, they should find a way to pay him for his help.
257
I told her I thought Chet would
find
that
insulting
, but the next day she went ahead and
insulted
him anyway.
find /faɪnd/ vt. 感到
insulting /ɪnˈsʌltɪŋ/ adj. 侮辱的
insult /ɪnˈsʌlt/ vt. 冒犯
258
Chet said, “No, Mrs. Baker. It's been my pleasure to help out your daughter on this project,” and wouldn't hear another word about it.
259
The week ended with my dad
loading
the back of his truck with all the clippings and
scraps
before he
set off
for work on Saturday morning.
load /loʊd/ vi. 装载
scrap /skræp/ n. 碎片
set off 动身
260
Then Chet and I spent the rest of the day
hoeing
up weeds and
raking
and
readying
the dirt for seeding.
hoe /hoʊ/ vt. & vi. 锄
rake /rek/ vt. & vi. 以耙子耙平(泥土等)
ready /ˈredi/ vt. 使准备好
261
It was on this last day that Chet asked, “Your family's not moving, are you?”
262
“Moving? Why do you say that?”
263
“Oh, my daughter
brought up
the possibility at the dinner table last night. She thought that maybe you're fixing up the house because you're getting ready to sell it.”
bring up 提出
264
Even though Chet and I had talked about a lot of things while we were working,
265
I probably wouldn't have told him about Mr. Finnegan or Uncle David or why the yard was such a mess if he hadn't asked me about moving.
266
But since he had, well, I wound up telling him everything.
267
And it felt good to talk about it. Especially about Uncle David.
268
It felt like blowing a
dandelion
into the wind and watching all the little seeds float off, up and away.
dandelion /'dændɪlaɪən/ n. 蒲公英
269
I was proud of my parents, and looking around the front yard, I was proud of me, too.
270
Just wait until I
got my hands on
the backyard! Then maybe I'd even
paint
the house.
get my hands on 与......一起工作(俗语)
paint /peɪnt/ v. 粉刷
271
I could do it. I could.
272
Chet was pretty quiet after I told him the story, and when Mom brought us out sandwiches at lunchtime, we sat on the porch and ate without saying a word.
273
Then he broke the silence by nodding across the street and saying, “I don't know why he doesn't just come out and say hello.”
274
“Who?” I asked, then looked across the street to where he'd nodded.
275
The curtain in Bryce's room moved quickly back into place, and I couldn't help asking, “Bryce?”
276
“That's the third time I've seen him watching.”
277
“Really?” My heart was fluttering about like a baby bird trying to fly.
278
He frowned and said, “Let's finish up and get that seed sown, shall we? You'll want the warmth of the
day
to help with the
germination
.”
day /de/ n. 白昼
germination /ˌdʒɝmə'neʃən/ n. 萌芽
279
I was happy to finally be planting the yard, but I couldn't help being
distracted
by Bryce's window. Was he watching?
distracted /dɪˈstræktɪd/ adj. 注意力分散的
280
During the rest of the afternoon, I checked more often than I'd like to admit.
281
And I'm afraid Chet noticed, too, because when we were all done and we'd
congratulated
each other on what was sure to be a
fine-looking
yard,
congratulate /kənˈɡrætʃuleɪt/ vt. 祝贺
fine-looking adj. 美貌的
282
he said, “He may be acting like a
coward
now, but I do hold out hope for the boy.”
coward /ˈkaʊərd/ n. 懦夫
283
A coward? What
on earth
could I say to that? I just stood there with the hose in one hand and the
spigot
valve
beneath the other.
on earth 到底
spigot /'spɪɡət/ n. 龙头
valve /vælv/ n. 阀
284
And with that, Chet waved so long and walked across the street.
285
A few minutes later I saw Bryce coming down the sidewalk toward his house.
286
I
did a double take
.
do a double take n. 再仔细看一下
287
All this time I'd thought he was inside the house watching, and he was really outside walking around?
288
I was embarrassed all over again.
289
I turned my back on him and concentrated on watering the yard.
290
What a fool I was! What a complete idiot!
291
And I had just
built up
a nice head of angry steam when I heard,
build up 积累
292
“It's looking good, Juli. Nice job.”
293
It was Bryce, standing right there on our driveway.
294
And suddenly I wasn't mad at me anymore.
295
I was mad at him.
296
How could he stand there like my
supervisor
and tell me, Nice job?
supervisor /ˈsuːpərvaɪzər/ n. 管理者
297
He had no business saying anything after what he'd done.
298
I was about to
hose
him down when he said, “I'm sorry for what I did, Juli. It was, you know… wrong.”
hose /hoʊz/ vt. 用软管浇[冲洗]
299
I looked at him—into those brilliant blue eyes.
300
And I tried to do what Chet had said—I tried to look past them.
301
What was behind them? What was he thinking? Was he really sorry?
302
Or was he just feeling bad about the things he'd said?
303
It was like looking into the sun, though, and I had to turn away.
turn away 把脸转过去
304
I couldn't tell you what we talked about after that, except that he was nice to me and he made me laugh.
305
And after he left, I shut off the water and went inside feeling very, very strange.
306
The rest of the evening I bounced
back and forth
between upset and uneasy.
back and forth 来回地
307
The worst part being, I couldn't really
put my finger on
what exactly I was upset or uneasy about.
put my finger on 确切说出
308
Of course it was Bryce, but why wasn't I just mad? He'd been such a …
scoundrel
.
scoundrel /'skaʊndrəl/ n. 坏蛋
309
Or happy? Why wasn't I just happy? He'd come over to our house. He'd stood on our driveway. He'd said nice things. We'd laughed.
310
But I wasn't mad or happy.
311
And as I lay in bed trying to read, I realized that
upset
had been
overshadowed
by uneasy. I felt as though someone was watching me.
upset /ʌpˈset/ adj. 心烦的
overshadow /ˌoʊvərˈʃædoʊ/ vt. 使(某物)被遮暗
312
And as I lay in bed trying to read, I realized that
upset
had been
overshadowed
by uneasy. I felt as though someone was watching me.
313
I got so
spooked
I even got up and checked out the window and in the closet and under the bed, but still the feeling didn't go away.
spook /spuk/ v. 使惊慌
314
It took me until nearly midnight to understand what it was.
315
It was me. Watching me.
316
