Chapter 11

Chapter eleven, I was sprawled out on the floor, my costume destroyed, my pants probably ripped. I didn't know what to do. But Ms. Flowers had told us that an important rule in plays is that "the show must go on." No matter what, you have to keep the show going. So I figured that the best thing for me was to get out of the middle of the stage so the play could go on. I pulled myself along the floor until I reached Ashley, who held out a hand and dragged me the rest of the way. This made Nick McKelty even angrier, because the parents weren't watching him, they were watching me. And let me say, this was one time I didn't want to be the center of

第十一章，我躺在地板上，我的戏服毁了，我的裤子可能破了。 我不知道该怎么办。但女士。 弗劳尔斯曾告诉我们，戏剧的一个重要规则是“演出必须继续下去”。 无论如何，你都要让节目继续下去。 所以我想对我来说最好的办法就是离开舞台中央，这样演出就可以继续了。 我在地板上挣扎着走到阿什利跟前，他伸出一只手拖着我走完剩下的路。 这让尼克·麦凯尔蒂更生气了，因为家长们看着的不是他，而是我。 让我说，这是我不想成为中心的一次

attention. "Carry on, kids," Ms. Flowers whispered. "You know what comes next." Frankie lifted his head off the desk and pretended to wake up. He yawned and stretched. "I had the strangest dream," he said. "The books were alive." Everyone stood very still, except Nick McKelty. This was the part of the play where Aqua Fly was supposed to buzz over to Frankie and tell him it was not a dream at all. That books always come alive, as long as we believe in them. Ms. Flowers had told us it was the biggest moment of the play. It was the line she was most proud of writing. McKelty buzzed over and took his place next to Frankie. He opened his mouth, but all that came out was a buzzing sound. That would have been okay, but the next thing that came out of his mouth was another buzzing sound. And then

的关注。“继续，孩子们。” 花低声说。“你知道接下来会发生什么。” 弗兰基从桌子上抬起头，假装醒了。 他打了个哈欠，伸了个懒腰。“我做了一个最奇怪的梦，”他说。 “书是活的。”每个人都站着不动，除了尼克·麦凯尔蒂。 这是戏剧的一部分，水蝇应该嗡嗡地飞到弗兰基身边，告诉他这根本不是梦。 只要我们相信，书就会变得生动。 弗劳尔斯女士告诉我们这是全剧最精彩的时刻。 这是她最引以为傲的一句话。 麦凯尔蒂嗡嗡地走过去，坐在弗兰基旁边。 他张开嘴，却只发出嗡嗡的声音。 这本来是可以接受的，但接下来从他嘴里发出的是另一种嗡嗡声。 然后

another one. And another one. "Say your lines, Nick," Frankie whispered. "We have to finish the play." "Buzz," Nick said. "Buzz, buzz, buzz!" There was panic in his eyes. "You can't just buzz," Frankie told him. "Buzz," McKelty answered. "No, say the words!" Frankie whispered. "I forgot them," McKelty whispered back. I could see his hands starting to shake with fear. He looked like Katherine, the iguana, the first time she saw Papa Pete's cat, Morris.

另一个。再来一个。 “念你的台词，尼克，”弗兰基低声说。 “我们得把戏演完。” “巴斯，”尼克说。“嗡嗡，嗡嗡，嗡嗡！”他的眼中充满了恐慌。 “你不能只是嗡嗡叫，”弗兰基告诉他。 “巴斯，”麦凯尔蒂回答。“不，说出来吧！”弗兰基低声说。 “我忘了，”麦凯尔蒂小声回答。 我可以看到他的手开始因恐惧而颤抖。 他看起来就像凯瑟琳，那只鬣蜥，第一次见到皮特爸爸的猫莫里斯时的样子。

I looked around and saw everyone in the audience waiting for the big ending. Ms. Flowers was trying to mouth the words to McKelty, but he wouldn't look at her. He just stood there, buzzing. Without even thinking about it, I jumped to my feet and shuffled my way over to Frankie. He looked just as surprised as I was. When I opened my mouth, I couldn't believe what came out.

我环顾四周，看到观众们都在等着大结局。 弗劳尔斯试图把这些话口述给麦凯尔蒂听，但他不愿看她。 他只是站在那里，嗡嗡作响。 我想都没想就跳了起来，拖着脚向弗兰基走去。 他看起来和我一样惊讶。 当我张开嘴的时候，我简直不敢相信说出来的话。

"I am just a lowly bookmark," I said. "But one thing I know for sure: Books always come alive when we believe in them." "So this wasn't a dream?" Frankie said. "No," I answered. "Not at all. All the books here are alive and waiting for you whenever you want to have a great adventure." And without thinking, Frankie and I threw our arms around each other. The parents started to applaud. "Thanks for coming," I said to the parents. "The Room Four Players have enjoyed putting on this play for you." All the kids came forward to take a bow. Everyone but Nick McKelty. He was still

“我只是一个卑微的书签，”我说。 “但有一件事我很确定：只要我们相信，书就会变得生动起来。” “所以这不是一场梦？”弗兰基说。 “不，”我回答。“一点也不。 这里所有的书都是活的，随时等你来一次伟大的冒险。” 我和弗兰基不假思索地拥抱在一起。 家长们开始鼓掌。 “谢谢你们的光临，”我对父母说。 “四个房间的演员很乐意为你演出这出戏。” 所有的孩子都走上前来鞠躬。 除了尼克·麦凯尔蒂。 他一动不动

buzzing. After the play, we all got behind the treat table and served our parents lemonade and snacks. Luke Whitman was the only one who ate my mom's so-called deli meats. But that wasn't surprising, since he also enjoys already- chewed gum he finds in his pockets. "Hankie, my boy," Papa Pete said, as I put a rice-crispy treat on his plate. "You were so great. It looked like you saved the day." "Yes," my mom chimed in. "We thought you didn't have any lines in the play." "Well," I said. "That's what was supposed to happen. But when McKelty froze up, I had to jump in." "But how did you know the lines?" Papa Pete asked. "I have a good memory," I said. "I learned everyone's lines by hearing them over and over while we were rehearsing." "Such a smart boy." Papa Pete beamed. That made me feel very happy. I always think Emily is the smart one in our family, not

嗡嗡声。演出结束后，我们都站到餐桌后面，给父母端上柠檬水和点心。 卢克·惠特曼是唯一一个吃我妈所谓的熟食肉的人。 但这并不奇怪，因为他也喜欢在口袋里找到已经嚼过的口香糖。 “手帕，我的孩子，”皮特爸爸说，我把一份酥脆的米饭放在他的盘子里。 “你太棒了。看起来你挽救了局面。” “是的，”我妈妈插嘴说。“我们以为你在剧中没有台词。” “嗯，”我说。“这是应该发生的事情。 但当麦凯尔蒂僵住时，我不得不跳进去。” “可你是怎么知道台词的？”皮特爸爸问。 “我的记忆力很好，”我说。 “我们排练的时候，我通过一遍又一遍地听来记住每个人的台词。” “真是个聪明的孩子。”皮特爸爸笑了。 这使我感到非常高兴。 我一直认为艾米丽是我们家最聪明的，不是