Claire stopped, one hand on the rusted iron railing. Something was telling her to run, but something always told her that: fight-or-flight - she'd read the textbooks. And she was tired of flighting. She turned around slowly, as Monica Morrell stepped out of the dorm room - not hers, so she'd busted Erica's lock again. Monica's running buddies Jennifer and Gina filed out and took up flanking positions. Soldiers in flip-flops and low-rise jeans and French manicures.
Monica struck a pose. It was something she was good at, Claire had to admit. Nearly six feet tall, Monica had flowing, shiny black hair, and big blue eyes accented with just the right amount of liner and mascara. Perfect skin. One of those model-shaped faces, all cheekbones and pouty lips. And if she had a model's body, it was a Victoria's Secret model, all curves, not angles. She was rich, she was pretty, and as far as Claire could tell, it didn't make her a bit happy. What did, though - what made those big blue eyes glow right now - was the idea of tormenting Claire just a little more.
- Shouldn't you be in first period at the junior high by now? - Monica asked - Or at least getting your first period?.
- Maybe she's looking for the clothes she left lying around. - Gina piled on, and laughed. Jennifer laughed with her. Claire swore their eyes, their pretty jewel-colored eyes, just glowed with the joy of making her feel like shit.
- Litterbug! Clothes? - Monica folded her arms and pretended to think. - You mean, like those rags we threw away? The ones she left cluttering up the washer?
- Maybe she's looking for the clothes she left lying around. - Gina piled on, and laughed. Jennifer laughed with her. Claire swore their eyes, their pretty jewel-colored eyes, just glowed with the joy of making her feel like shit.
- Litterbug! Clothes? - Monica folded her arms and pretended to think. - You mean, like those rags we threw away? The ones she left cluttering up the washer?
- Yeah, those.
- I wouldn't wear those to sweat in.
- I wouldn't wear them to scrub out the boys' toilet. - Jennifer blurted. Monica, annoyed, turned and shoved her.
- Yeah, you know all about the boys' toilet, don't you? Didn't you do Steve Gillespie in ninth grade in there? - She made sucking sounds, and they all laughed again, though Jennifer looked uncomfortable. Claire felt her cheeks flare red, even though it wasn't - for a change - a dis against her.
- Jeez, Jen, Steve Gillespie? Keep your mouth shut if you can't think of something that won't embarrass yourself. Jennifer - of course - turned her anger on a safer target. Claire. She lunged forward and shoved Claire back a step, toward the stairs.
- Go get your stupid clothes already! I'm sick of looking at you, with your pasty skin.
- Yeah, Junior High, ever heard of sunshine? - Gina rolled her eyes.
- Watch it. - Monica snapped, which was odd, because all three of them had the best tans money could buy.
Claire scrambled to steady herself. The heavy backpack pulled her off-balance, and she grabbed on to the banister. Jen lunged at her again and slammed the heel of her hand painfully hard into Claire's collarbone. "Don't!" Claire yelped, and batted Jen's hand away. Hard. There was a second of breathless silence, and then Monica said, very quietly, "Did you just hit my friend, you stupid little bitch? Where do you think you get off, doing things like that around here?"
And she stepped forward and slapped Claire across the face, hard enough to draw blood, hard enough to make flares and comets streak across Claire's vision, hard enough to make everything turn red and boiling hot. Claire let go of the banister and slapped Monica right back, full across her pouty mouth, and for just a tight, white-hot second she actually felt good about it, but then Monica hissed like a scorched cat, and Claire had time to think, Oh crap, I really shouldn't have done that. She never saw the punch coming. Didn't even really feel the impact, except as a blank sensation and confusion, but then the weight of her backpack on her shoulder was pulling her to one side and she staggered. She almost caught herself, and then Gina, grinning spitefully, reached over and shoved her backward, down the stairs, and there was nothing but air behind her. She hit the edge of every stair, all the way to the bottom. Her backpack broke open and spilled books as she tumbled, and at the top of the stairs Monica and the Monickettes laughed and hooted and high-fived, but she saw it only in disconnected little jerks of motion, freeze-frames.
Słownictwo
- hauled - ciągnąć
- clutch - ścisnąć
- hastily - naprędce
- railing - poręcz
- stepped out - wyróżniać się
- busted - zepsuć się
- flowing - rozwiane
- glow - poblask, łuna (tu. błyszczą)
- tormenting - męczyć
- piled on - dołożyć, dodać
- litterbug - osoba śmiecąca w miejscu publicznym
- rags - szmaty
- scrub - wyszorować
- blurt - zdradzić
- shove - odepchnąć
- snap - prychnąć
- odd - dziwne
- banister - poręcz
- lunged - rzucić się na kogoś
- slam - trzasnąć
- collarbone - obojczyk
- hiss - prychnąć
- scorched - przypalony
- stagger - zachwiać się na nogach
- grinning spitefully - uśmiechnąć się złośliwie
- tumble - upaść
- hooted - wygywizdać
Zadania
- Put sentences in the right order.
a) Monica's telling an embarrasing story about Jennifer
b) Monica's description.
c) Monica's slapping Claire across the face.
d) Monica's helping Jennifer, when Claire attacked her.
e) Monickettes're standing in front of Claire.
f) Gina's shoving Claire down the stairs.
g) Jennifer's attacking Claire.
h) Monickettes're laughting at Claire. - Who of them - Claire, Jennifer, Monica or Gina?
a) Whose clothes were dumped down the trash?
b) Who did sleep with Steve?
c) Who of them did first attack?
d) Claire was shoved down the stairs by?
e) Who aren't one of Monickettes? - Is the fight a good way of solving quarrels?
Źródła: www.pnovels.com, www.onetreehill.wikia.com
Komentarze
Prześlij komentarz