5. The Magic Fortune-Telling Ball

Chapter 5 The Magic Fortune-Telling Ball When my brother, Max, and I got home from school that afternoon, my dad was in the kitchen. Some days Dad works at home. He says it makes him appreciate the office more. "Dad!" I yelled. "We are going on a field trip! My whole class!"

第5章神奇的算命舞会那天下午，当我和哥哥马克斯放学回家时，爸爸正在厨房里。 有时候爸爸在家工作。 他说，这让他更珍惜办公室。 “爸爸!”我喊道。“我们要去实地考察!”我整个班!”

"Get a chocolate doughnut when you go," Max said. "The jelly ones are stale." "We aren't going to a bakery," I said. "We are going to an apple maker." "You mean an orchard?" Dad said. "Cool." Max made a face. "Better luck next time." "Sounds like fun to me," said Dad. "Roscoe will get to pick apples, I'll bet. And who knows? Maybe they'll have free taffy apples. Or free pie." He got a big smile on his face. "I do love a good apple pie. Especially a free one." My little sister, Hazel, came into the kitchen. She was wearing a black pirate eye patch, overalls, a fluffy pink ballet tutu, and a pair of my dad's old sneakers. "Hazel, my dear, as always you are looking very fashionable," Dad said. If you ask me, little kids should not be allowed to dress themselves.

“去的时候买个巧克力甜甜圈，”马克斯说。 “果冻的不新鲜了。” “我们不去面包店，”我说。 “我们要去苹果制造商那里。” “你是说果园?”爸爸说。 “酷”。麦克斯做了个鬼脸。“祝你下次好运。” “听起来很有趣，”爸爸说。 “我敢打赌罗斯科会去摘苹果。 谁知道呢?也许他们会有免费的太妃糖苹果。 或者免费派。”他脸上挂着灿烂的笑容。 “我很喜欢好吃的苹果派。 尤其是免费的。”我的小妹妹黑兹尔走进厨房。 她戴着黑色的海盗眼罩，穿着工装裤，一件蓬松的粉色芭蕾短裙，穿着一双我爸的旧运动鞋。 “黑兹尔，亲爱的，你总是看起来很时髦，”爸爸说。 要我说，小孩子不应该被允许自己穿衣服。

"Did somebody say pie?" Hazel asked. "I'm going on a field trip to an apple-growing place," I explained. "They might even give away pie and applesauce." "Applesauce is my favorite," Hazel said. "Except for gummi worms and broccoli." Hazel pulled a small red ball out of one of her pockets. Hazel loved that ball. She carried it everywhere she went. And she refused to share it. Of course, it wasn't just a plain old everyday ball. It was a magic ball that could tell the future. All you had to do was shake it. Then ask it a yes-or-no kind of question. When you turned it over, there on the bottom, in a little bitty window, was your answer. Hazel can't read yet. I think she just liked the ball because it was so shiny.

“有人说派吗?”黑兹尔问道。 “我要去一个种苹果的地方实地考察，”我解释说。 “他们甚至可能赠送派和苹果酱。” “苹果酱是我的最爱，”黑兹尔说。 “除了软糖蠕虫和西兰花。” 黑兹尔从口袋里掏出一个红色的小球。 黑兹尔喜欢那个球。她走到哪里都带着它。 她拒绝分享。 当然，这不仅仅是一个普通的日常舞会。 那是一个能预知未来的魔法球。 你要做的就是摇晃它。 然后问一个“是”或“不是”的问题。 当你把它翻过来的时候，在底部的一个小窗口里，就是你的答案。 黑兹尔还不识字。我想她只是喜欢那个球，因为它太闪亮了。

And because Max and I wanted to play with it. "Magic ball, will I ever get to go on a field trip and eat pie?" Hazel asked. She turned the ball over. "What does it say?" she asked Dad. Dad looked at the bottom of the ball. "It says, 'YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT!'" "Can I borrow your ball for one second?" I asked Hazel. "I just want to ask it about my field trip." "Nope." Hazel shook her head. "Please?" I begged. I smiled my best smile. The one that makes Grandma say, "You old charmer, you!" It works on grandmas. But not so much on little sisters.

因为麦克斯和我想玩它。 “神奇的球，我能去野外旅行吃派吗?”黑兹尔问道。 她把球翻过来。“上面写了什么?”她问爸爸。 爸爸看了看球的底部。 “它说，‘你最好相信它!“我能借用一下你的球吗?”我问黑兹尔。 “我只是想问一下我的实地考察。” “不。”海瑟摇了摇头。 “好吗?”我恳求。我露出了最美好的笑容。 让奶奶说:“你这个老帅哥!”这对奶奶很有效。 但小妹妹们就没那么多了。

Hazel shook her head again. "Nope." She tossed her ball in the air. When she tried to catch it in her tutu, the ball dropped onto the floor. It rolled behind the refrigerator. "I'll get it for you, Hazel," Max said. "No, wait! I'll get it!" I said quickly. Because I am a helpful brother. And also because I really wanted to get my hands on that ball.

黑兹尔又摇了摇头。 “不。”她把球抛向空中。 当她试图用芭蕾舞裙接住它时，球掉到了地板上。 它滚到冰箱后面去了。 “我去给你拿，黑兹尔。”马克斯说。 “不,等等!我去拿!”我赶紧说。 因为我是一个乐于助人的兄弟。 也因为我真的很想把手放在那个球上。

"I have dibs," Max said. "You just want it 'cause I want it," I said to Max. "You just want it 'cause Hazel says you can't have it," Max replied. It was hard to argue with that one. "Besides," Max added, "you had a ball like that and you lost it." "I didn't lose it," I said. "I accidentally dropped it in the garbage disposal when I was giving it a bath." "We paid three hundred and twenty dollars to repair the disposal, if I recall correctly," said Dad. "I don't want to get my tutu dirty," Hazel said. "Whoever gets the ball can play with it." Max and I dashed to the refrigerator. He took one side. I took the other.

“我有权利，”马克斯说。“你想要它只是因为我想要它。”我对麦克斯说。 “你只是想要它，因为黑兹尔说你不能拥有它，”马克斯回答。 这一点很难反驳。 “再说，”马克斯补充说，“你本来也有那样一个球，但你却失去了它。” “我没有丢，”我说。 “我给它洗澡的时候不小心把它掉进了垃圾处理机里。” 爸爸说:“如果我没记错的话，我们花了320美元来修理垃圾处理装置。” “我不想把我的芭蕾舞裙弄脏，”黑兹尔说。 “谁得到球谁就可以玩球。” 麦克斯和我冲到冰箱前。 他站在一边。我拿了另一只。