7 Leaving It up to Chance

CHAPTER SEVEN LEAVING IT UP TO CHANCE Gas (noun). The molecules have moved farther apart than in a solid or a liquid. They are like bumper cars ramming into one another, completely out of control. AFTER DINNER—AND DELICIOUS brownies that Birdie and I managed to get perfectly fudgy—Elijah, Birdie, and I jumped on the trampoline in my backyard. "We're out-of-control gas molecules," I shouted, throwing my arms wildly and slamming into Birdie, who giggled and plugged her nose like we were stinky. "Does everything have to be about chemistry?" asked Elijah. "Like, couldn't we just be kids jumping on a trampoline?" Birdie stuck out her tongue. "Boring! Don't you ever pretend that you're something else when you're practicing the drums?" "No," said Elijah. "That would be weird."

第七章听凭运气（名词）。 分子之间的距离比固体或液体中的距离更远。 它们就像碰碰车一样相互碰撞，完全失去了控制。 晚饭后，我和小鸟吃了美味的布朗尼蛋糕，我和以利亚、小鸟和我在后院的蹦床上跳了起来。 “我们是失控的气体分子，”我喊道，疯狂地挥舞着双臂，狠狠地砸向小鸟。小鸟咯咯地笑着，堵住了鼻子，好像我们身上散发着恶臭。 “是不是所有的东西都必须和化学有关？”以利亚问。 “我们就不能像小孩子一样在蹦床上蹦蹦跳跳吗？”小鸟伸出舌头。 “无聊!你在练习打鼓的时候就不假装自己是别的什么人吗？”以利亚说：“不可以。” “那会很奇怪。”

"Can you two stop it?" I said, plopping myself down on the trampoline. "I want to have a very important conversation: What fall break camp are we going to do together? Don't you think the robotics club sounds cool?" Birdie made a face and plopped down next to me. "My sister did that one a few years ago and brought the stuff home. I already know everything they're going to do. So, no thanks." "Hey, I've got an idea!" Elijah picked up the info sheet and then tossed it so it fluttered, settling near the netting of the trampoline. "The writer's workshop. That's what we should do." "Uh-uh." I shook my head. "Too much sitting. It's break. It has to be fun." I popped up and did a front flip, landing next to my friends. "Something cool." "How about cheer club?" said Birdie. "Veto!" Elijah gave a thumbs-down. "I can't do a very good cartwheel. Or a backflip." "Me either," I said. "Hey, what about the LEGO camp? That might be okay." "Agreed," said Elijah. "Not agreed." Birdie crossed her arms. "I don't want to sit around and watch you two fight it out. With Kate obsessed with following the

“你们俩能停下来吗？”我说着，扑通一声坐在蹦床上。 “我想和你谈一个非常重要的问题：我们要一起做什么秋季夏令营？” 你不觉得机器人俱乐部听起来很酷吗？”小鸟做了个鬼脸，扑通一声坐在我旁边。 “我姐姐几年前就做过这个，然后把东西带回家。 我已经知道他们要做的一切了。 所以，不用了，谢谢。”“嘿，我有个主意！”以利亚捡起那张信息表，然后把它扔了起来，它飘了起来，落在蹦床的网附近。 “作家的工作室。这就是我们应该做的。” “嗯。”我摇了摇头。“久坐。 这是休息。它必须有趣。” 我突然跳起来，做了一个前翻，落在我的朋友们旁边。 “很酷”。“去啦啦队俱乐部怎么样？”小鸟说。 “否决!”以利亚不同意。 “我侧手翻不太好。 或者后空翻。”“我也是，”我说。 “嘿，乐高夏令营怎么样？” 这可能没问题。”以利亚说：“我同意。” “不同意。”伯迪双臂交叉。 “我不想坐在那里看你们俩吵架。 凯特痴迷于追踪

directions and Elijah tossing them." I laughed at a recent memory. "Yeah, remember when Elijah built some space station using random parts from the rain forest kit?" "And you had a meltdown," Elijah reminded me. "Ugh. A definite no!" Birdie rolled her eyes. "What about drama?" Elijah spread out his arms like he was about to give a monologue. "Not you, too!" I groaned. "It's not just about acting and dancing and singing," said Birdie. "They need people to paint the sets, run the spotlights, and open the curtains. Oh, and one really organized fifth grader to be the assistant director. That could be you, Kate! You're the most organized fifth grader ever!" "I am?" Okay, suddenly I was, maybe, just a little intrigued. "So it's a deal!" shouted Elijah. "We're all going to go out for the musical?" Birdie squealed. "The show is sooo good! This one unicorn meets a dragon, and they become friends. But the other unicorns don't like that, and neither do the dragons. In the end, the unicorn and dragon BFFs show everyone that they have more in common than they thought, and the rest of the

还有以利亚抛来抛去的。” 想起最近的一件事，我笑了。 “是啊，还记得以利亚用雨林工具箱里的随机零件建造空间站吗？”“你崩溃了，”以利亚提醒我。 “哎。绝对不行！”伯迪翻了个白眼。 “戏剧怎么样？”以利亚张开双臂，好像要独白似的。 “你也不行！”我呻吟着。 “这不仅仅是表演、跳舞和唱歌，”小鸟说。 “他们需要人来粉刷布景，打开聚光灯，打开窗帘。 哦，还有一个五年级的学生真的组织起来当了副导演。 可能是你，凯特！你是有史以来最有条理的五年级学生！”“我?”好吧，我突然有点好奇了。 以利亚喊道：“这么说就这么定了！” “我们都要去看音乐剧吗？”小鸟叫苦不迭。 “这个节目太棒了！”这只独角兽遇到了一条龙，它们成了朋友。 但是其他的独角兽不喜欢这样，龙也不喜欢。 最后，独角兽和龙的好朋友向大家展示了他们的共同点比他们想象的要多

dragons and unicorns all do a final number together." It did actually sound a little cool. "I want to be the lead unicorn," said Birdie, tossing her hair like it was a mane. "I want to be in charge of lights," said Elijah. "If I flash them back and forth, I can make it look like a lightning storm." "Maybe I could be director," I said. "Assistant director," corrected Birdie. "Mrs. Hansberry is the director." "Right." I suddenly felt a little glimmer of hope that maybe there was something about drama that might suit me. "It's a perfect plan," said Birdie. It was... as long as we all got the positions we wanted.

龙和独角兽一起做最后的数字。” 听起来确实有点酷。 “我想当领头的独角兽，”小鸟说着，把她的头发像鬃毛一样甩了甩。 “我想掌管灯光，”以利亚说。 “如果我让它们来回闪烁，我就能让它看起来像一场闪电风暴。” “也许我可以当导演，”我说。 “副导演，”小鸟纠正道。 “汉斯伯里太太是导演。” “对的。”我突然感到一丝希望，也许戏剧中有些东西适合我。 “这是一个完美的计划，”小鸟说。 这是……只要我们都能得到我们想要的职位。