Chapter 11

Chapter eleven, When we got home, the first thing my dad did was put Cheerio in his crate. Then he took a shower to wash off the fountain water. After he put on some dry clothes, he came into the living room. "Dad," I said. I had been waiting for him. "You've got to give Cheerio another chance. Please." He didn't answer, just walked into the dining room. I followed right behind him. "I've only known him for one day, Dad, and he's already my best friend," I pleaded.

第十一章，我们到家后，我爸做的第一件事就是把麦圈放进他的板条箱里。 然后他冲了个澡，把喷泉的水洗掉。 他穿上干衣服后，走进客厅。 “爸爸，”我说。我一直在等他。 “你必须再给麦圈一次机会。 请。”他没有回答，径直走进餐厅。 我就跟在他后面。 “爸爸，我认识他才一天，他就已经是我最好的朋友了。”我恳求道。

"Then you should have taken better care of him," my dad said. "Letting him off the leash was very dangerous for him." "But, Dad..." He picked up his phone and turned his back to me. "You're not calling the animal shelter, are you, Dad?" I asked nervously. "Not yet," he answered. "Good," I said. "Then are you calling for a pizza?" "Hank, I'm calling to invite Rick McKelty over," he said. "Your dog interrupted a very important business conversation that we have to finish. I'll call the animal shelter in the morning." I listened as he arranged for Mr. McKelty to come over. I hoped that after their conversation, I'd have another chance to change my dad's mind. I went into my room and threw myself onto my bed. When I thought about losing Cheerio, I couldn't hold in my tears any longer. I cried so

“那你就应该好好照顾他，”爸爸说。 “放开皮带对他来说非常危险。” “但是,爸爸……”他拿起电话，背对着我。 “你不是要给动物收容所打电话吧，爸爸？”我紧张地问。 “还没有，”他回答。“很好，”我说。 “那你是叫披萨吗？”“汉克，我打电话来邀请里克·麦凯尔蒂过来，”他说。 “你的狗打断了我们必须完成的一次非常重要的商务谈话。 我明天早上给动物收容所打电话。” 我听着他安排麦凯尔蒂先生过来。 我希望在他们的谈话之后，我还有机会改变父亲的想法。 我走进自己的房间，一头倒在床上。 当我想到要失去麦圈的时候，我再也控制不住眼泪了。 我哭了

much that my pillow got soaking wet. I don't know how long I lay there crying. Finally, I got up and blew my nose about twenty times. Then I called Frankie to talk over the situation, but his mom said he was out at his karate lesson. I called Ashley. When I got a recording saying, "The Wongs aren't available to take your call," I hung up without even leaving a message. Then I tried calling Papa Pete. He wasn't home, either. Where was everyone when I needed them the most? I heard the intercom buzzer ringing in the living room. "Hank!" my father called. "That must be Rick McKelty. Please buzz him in. Tell him I'm

我的枕头都湿透了。 我不知道我躺在那里哭了多久。 最后，我站起来，擤了大约20次鼻子。 然后我打电话给弗兰基想谈谈情况，但他妈妈说他出去上空手道课了。 我打电话给艾希礼。当我听到录音说“王家的人现在不在接你的电话”时，我甚至没有留言就挂断了电话。 然后我试着打电话给皮特爸爸。 他也不在家。当我最需要他们的时候，他们都去哪了？ 我听到客厅里对讲机的蜂鸣器在响。 “汉克！”父亲喊道。“那一定是里克·麦凯尔蒂。 请让他进来。告诉他我

just printing out a few papers for us to go over." The buzzer rang again. "Hank!" my father called. "Do it now!" I went into the living room and spoke into the intercom. "Come on up," I said, my nose sounding all stuffy. "Tenth floor." When Rick McKelty stepped out of the elevator a few minutes later, he was not alone. By his side was his troublemaker son. "My dad's here to hire your dad," Nick the Tick said, a smirk plastered across his large face. Then he walked right past me and into our living room "Where's your stupid dog?" he asked me. "He's locked in his crate. And then he's going back to the shelter, thanks to you." Our dads had already sat down at the dining-room table to talk business.

只是打印一些文件给我们看一下。” 蜂鸣器又响了。“汉克！”父亲喊道。 “现在就做！”我走进客厅，对着对讲机说话。 “上来吧，”我说，我的鼻子听起来很不通气。 “十楼。”几分钟后，当Rick McKelty走出电梯时，他并不孤单。 在他身边的是他那调皮捣蛋的儿子。 “我爸爸是来雇你爸爸的，”嘀嘀尼克说，他的大脸上挂着一丝傻笑。 然后他从我身边走过，走进我们的客厅。“你那只笨狗在哪儿？”他问我。 “他被锁在箱子里了。 然后他就会回到收容所，多亏了你。” 我们的爸爸们已经坐在餐桌旁谈生意了。

"Your house is boring," McKelty said. "Don't you have anything fun to do here?" Just then, Emily came out of her room, wearing Katherine around her neck like a scarf again. McKelty's eyes grew wide at the sight. "Hey, why don't you introduce me to your lizard friend?" he said to Emily. "She's not a lizard," Emily told him. "She's a very sensitive iguana. So please keep your voice down." "Excuse me for breathing," Nick said. The three of us just stood there in silence. I could hear Cheerio whimpering behind the kitchen door. "Your dog is crying like a baby," McKelty said. "What's his problem?" "Cheerio is being punished," Emily said. "He wouldn't stay on his leash in the park." "That's because I unhooked it." McKelty snickered. "Why would you do that?" Emily asked. "Seemed like it would be fun," the big creep answered. "I wanted to see how much trouble

“你的房子很无聊，”麦凯尔蒂说。 “你在这儿没有什么好玩的事可做吗？”就在这时，艾米丽从她的房间里走了出来，又把凯瑟琳像围巾一样围在脖子上。 看到这里，麦凯尔蒂睁大了眼睛。 “嘿，为什么不把我介绍给你的蜥蜴朋友呢？”他对艾米丽说。 “她不是蜥蜴，”艾米丽告诉他。 “她是一只非常敏感的鬣蜥。 所以请小声点。” “请原谅我的呼吸，”尼克说。 我们三个人只是默默地站在那里。 我能听到麦圈在厨房门后呜咽。 “你的狗哭得像个婴儿，”麦凯尔蒂说。 “他有什么问题？”“麦圈正受到惩罚，”艾米丽说。 “他在公园里不愿被拴着。” “那是因为我把它解开了。” McKelty窃笑起来。“你为什么要这么做？”艾米丽问。 “好像会很有趣，”大怪物回答。 “我想看看有多少麻烦

your brother's short-legged runt could cause." "This is what I've been trying to explain to Dad," I told Emily. "What happened in the park wasn't my fault. And it sure wasn't Cheerio's." Emily whirled around so fast that her braids whipped me in the face. Without a word, she stormed into the dining room. Poor Katherine nearly fell off her shoulders. Her little claws had to work overtime just to hang on. "Dad!" Emily said, putting herself right in front of his face. "Not now, Emily," Dad said. "I am having a business meeting."

你哥哥的短腿小矮子会导致。” “这就是我一直想跟爸爸解释的，”我告诉艾米丽。 “公园里发生的事不是我的错。 而且肯定不是麦圈的。” 艾米丽飞快地转过身来，她的辫子打在我脸上。 她一言不发地冲进了餐厅。 可怜的凯瑟琳差点从肩膀上摔下来。 她的小爪子不得不加班加点才能坚持下去。 “爸爸!”爱米丽说着，站到他面前。 “现在不行，艾米丽，”爸爸说。 “我正在开一个商务会议。”