79 The Penny Drops

79 The Penny Drops The day at school passed without incident. The teachers bought Peanut and Rockwell's explanations for being late— doctor (Peanut) and dentist (Rockwell)— and even the physics test went surprisingly well. Thermodynamics featured heavily and Peanut had to admit begrudgingly to Rockwell that she'd learned a thing or two from him during their time sketching hang-gliders back in the Ink District. She didn't tell him that she'd actually quite enjoyed doing the test. Neither Rockwell nor Peanut were ready for such an out-there revelation. She got home just after four o'clock, grabbed herself a snack and plonked herself down on the sofa. Leo came in a few minutes later with Little-Bit.

79 恍然大悟 学校的这一天平安无事地过去了。 老师相信了花生和罗克韦尔迟到的借口——花生去看医生，罗克韦尔去看牙医，就连物理测验都考得出乎意料地顺利。 这次测验大部分都是热力学内容，花生不太情愿地向罗克韦尔承认，之前他们在墨水区画悬挂式滑翔机草图的时候，她确实从他那儿学到了一两招。 她没告诉他，其实自己还挺喜欢这次测验的。 罗克韦尔和花生都没做好准备接受这个出乎意料的惊人念头。 四点刚过花生就回了家，抓了点零食，一屁股坐到了沙发上。 几分钟后，利奥带着小比进来了。

"PEEEEEEAAAAAANNNNNNUUUUUTTTTTTTT!" She ran into the living room and jumped on her big sister. I've not spoken about YOU-KNOW-WHERE to anyone at school today I've been soooo good I didn't even tell Marley." She paused to catch her breath. "Anyway, when are we going back?" "Going back where?" asked Leo, suddenly interested. "Oh, er, nowhere," replied Peanut. "It's just a game LB has invented." Leo looked at Peanut. His eyes narrowed slightly. She shifted her position on the sofa. A game?" He shook his head. "Right. Well, I'm going to my room." Five minutes later, the girls heard the sound of the key in the front door. "I'M HOME!" shouted Mum from the hallway. Hearing Mum's voice suddenly made Peanut realise how much she'd missed her. "You're early!" she shouted, as she happily jumped up and ran into the hallway. She stopped dead in her tracks, however, when she saw who was standing next to her mother. It was somebody she'd forgotten all about. Hello there, Pernilla," sneered Mr Stone in his high tenor. His piercing, pale grey eyes glinted as he looked her up and down as if seeing her for the first time. Peanut shuddered. "Your mother, utterly charming woman that she is, has invited me to dinner." He smiled, revealing a set of perfectly

"花生————！" 她冲进客厅，一下子扑到自己的大姐姐身上。 我今天在学校半个字都没提那个你懂的地方，我超乖对不对 我连马利都没说哦。" 她停下来喘了口气。 "对了，我们什么时候回去呀？" "回哪儿去？"利奥一下子来了兴趣，问道。 "哦，呃，没什么地方啦，"花生回答道。 "这只是小比发明的一个游戏而已。" 利奥看向花生。 他微微眯起了眼睛。 花生在沙发上不安地挪了挪身子。 "一个游戏？" 他摇了摇头。 "好吧。 那我回我房间了。" 五分钟后，姐妹俩听到前门插钥匙的声音。 "我回来啦！"妈妈在玄关喊道。 听到妈妈的声音，花生才忽然反应过来自己有多想念她。 "你回来得好早呀！" 她大喊着，开心地跳起身冲向玄关。 可当她看到站在妈妈身边的人时，一下子僵在了原地。 那是一个她早就忘得一干二净的人。 "你好呀，佩妮拉，"斯通先生用尖利的嗓音冷笑着说。 他上下打量着花生，那双锐利的浅灰色眼睛闪着光，好像第一次见到她似的。 花生打了个寒颤。 "你妈妈这么迷人，邀请我来吃晚饭。" 他笑了笑，露出一口完美的

straight white teeth. "I hope you don't mind. I wonder, would you be so kind as to take my hat and coat?" Before she could answer, he flung his black jacket (with very, very, very dark grey stripes) at her, covering her head and shoulders entirely. She pulled it from her face to find that he was already holding out his hat for her to take. Peanut gasped. Somewhere deep inside her brain, a penny, that had been teetering on a precipice for quite some time, finally dropped. Mr Stone's hat was a white fedora.

洁白整齐的牙齿。 "我希望你不要介意。 不知道你能不能帮我拿一下帽子和外套呢？" 她还没来得及回答，他就把那件带有深得不能再深的灰色条纹的黑外套扔向她，整件外套完全罩住了她的头和肩膀。 她把外套从脸上扯下来，发现他已经把帽子递过来让她接了。 花生倒吸了一口凉气。 在她脑海深处，一枚悬在悬崖边晃了很久的硬币，终于落了下来。 斯通先生的帽子，是一顶白色费多拉礼帽。