9 MONSTERS BEFORE BED

CHAPTER 9 MONSTERS BEFORE BED Alexander watched his classmates head off in different directions. The hoodie girl was nowhere to be seen. Could she have slipped me that note? he wondered. On his walk home, Alexander saw one balloon goon an orange cactus. A group of older kids walked right past it. The balloon danced around, but they didn't seem to notice. Was I really attacked by balloons this morning? thought Alexander. Maybe the monsters in that weird notebook are getting to me.

睡觉前亚历山大看着他的同学们朝不同的方向走去。 连帽衫女孩不见了。 她会把纸条塞给我吗？ 他想知道。在回家的路上，亚历山大看到一个气球挂在一棵橙色的仙人掌上。 一群大一点的孩子正好从它旁边走过。 气球跳来跳去，但他们似乎没有注意到。 我今早真的被气球袭击了吗？ 认为亚历山大。也许那本奇怪笔记本里的怪物对我有影响。

Alexander couldn't wait to look more at the notebook. He hurried the rest of the way to his new home: a small yellow house on the edge of town, near Gobbler's Woods. "I'm home!" called Alexander. He kicked off his mismatched shoes. His dad was unpacking dishes. "How'd it go?" he asked. "Um, okay," Alexander said. Alexander ate dinner and got ready for bed. It felt good to wash up and change into clean pajamas. He climbed onto his air mattress and, at last, brought out the notebook. What could S.S.M.P. stand for? he wondered And these monsters... are they just some kid's doodles? Or could they mean something? He read another entry.

亚历山大迫不及待地想再看看笔记本。 他匆匆走完了剩下的路，回到了他的新家：一所黄色的小房子，位于城镇边缘，靠近高布勒森林。 “我回来了！”亚历山大喊道。 他踢掉了那双不相配的鞋子。 他爸爸正在拆盘子。 “怎么样？”他问。“嗯，好吧，”亚历山大说。 亚历山大吃完晚饭准备睡觉。 洗完衣服换上干净的睡衣感觉真好。 他爬上气垫床垫，终于拿出了笔记本。 S.S.M.P.代表什么？ 他想，这些怪物…… 他们只是孩子们的涂鸦吗？ 或者它们可能意味着什么？ 他又读了一篇文章。

FORKUPINE A small metal rodent with a coat of tiny, sharp forks. HABITAT Most forkupines prefer dry climates. But the stainless-steel forkupine can be found near rivers, lakes, or in the back of dishwashers.

叉齿动物一种小型的金属啮齿动物，身上长着细小而锋利的叉。 大多数叉足动物喜欢干燥的气候。 但这种不锈钢叉式铲车可以在河流、湖泊附近找到，也可以在洗碗机后面找到。

CLANG! Magnets will not work on forkupines. DIET Mostly pickles and olives. They'll eat steak, but only if it's cut up into small bites. BEHAVIOR The forkupine stays sharp by rubbing against a brick wall. WARNING! Never pet a forkupine! instead, lure it to a plate of spaghetti. (Forkupines LOVE rolling around in noodles. This will give you time to sneak away. FUN FACT The forkupine is a distant cousin to the sporkupine. But the sporkupine's scoop attack is no match for the forkupine's jab.

铿锵声!磁铁对叉车不起作用。 饮食：主要是泡菜和橄榄。 他们会吃牛排，但前提是牛排要切成小块。 叉刀通过摩擦砖墙来保持锋利。 警告!永远不要抚摸叉叉！相反，把它引诱到一盘意大利面条上。 (叉猪喜欢在面条里打滚。 这样你就有时间溜走了。 有趣的事实叉形猪是叉形猪的远亲。 但叉形猪的勺状攻击比不上叉形猪的刺击。

"Okay, kiddo, lights out!" Alexander's dad peeked in the door. "Big day tomorrow! I can't wait to see who comes to your party!" "Uh... me neither," said Alexander. He faked a yawn and let his blanket fall onto his backpack, still full of invitations.

“好了，孩子，熄灯！”亚历山大的爸爸从门里偷看。 “明天是大日子！”我迫不及待地想看看谁会来参加你的派对！”“嗯… 我也不知道。”亚历山大说。 他假装打了个哈欠，把毯子落在背包上，背包里还装满了请柬。