This…was turning out to be a strange meeting. Though the one in black doesn’t know it, the one white is beginning to share the darker girl’s lack of enthusiasm. Like a fire in a sudden chill wind, her hope flickers and wanes. Now she grows uncomfortable, anxious, and wary. A slight but unshakable atmosphere drifts between them, one that feels unmistakably off. To her, it seems as though their very meeting is something the world finds to be simply…“wrong”. The ever-present glass, now scattered unevenly throughout and above the broken grounds, reflects that strange feeling.
Ordinarily, these shards would flock to them without their bidding：“happiness”to the girl in white, “tragedies” to the girl in black. Right now, every piece of glass in the air stands still. Perhaps half a hundred mirrors are quietly
suspended around the girls, half-catching images of the empty place that surrounds them. When the girl in white tries to call out to them, they will not even waver. It unsettles her：happiness placed beside horror, equally glinting and equally motionless. The only piece that will follow her is the one she can hold—the one that set her free.
She stares hard at the shadow girl.“If we’re in this together, ”she begins, leaning forward, “then what do you think about staying together?We…We could help each other, and maybe…”
She stops. The other girl is staring into the empty, canvas-like sky with a blank and uninformative expression. She doesn’t seem to be listening, but in truth she has followed every word.
注意：1．续写词数应为150左右;
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
“Maybe…”the dark girl echoes.
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And the remnant of the girl she used to be, the Tairitsu who had first woken up in this world, rebelled against the prospect of “the end”—against the idea of giving up.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Karl was Fred’s son. When his son was little, Fred’s wife passed away, so a mountainous responsibility landed on Fred’s shoulders. Fred was fond of and cared about his son so much that he raised his son with all his heart and soul. He taught him to walk, talk, read and write. He also taught him how to be a true and moral man. When Karl came home with an injury due to falling off his bike or something else, it would hurt Fred’s heart more than it would hurt the boy. Whenever Karl went down with a fever, Fred would sit beside him day and night, barely sleeping a wink (合眼). He always supported Karl in every aspect. Gradually, Karl grew up to become an adult.
How deeply Fred loved his son! However, Fred was unprepared for the day when his beloved son Karl told him he would leave and start his own business in a new city.
“But, Karl, you are too young to start a business,” Fred warned his son. “You still have a long way to go. I think you can help me manage the cafe my grandma left to me first. This way, I’d be able to teach you more about business.” But Karl was stubborn and wouldn’t follow Fred’s advice. “Dad, I am not a kid anymore, so allow me to determine my life. OK?” said Karl. One week later, Karl packed his things and left for the new city, leaving the sad and worried father behind.
Three months passed. One night, Fred got a call from his son. It was strange because Karl seldom called him up after he left for the new city. “Dad, I should have followed your suggestions and stayed at home. I went bankrupt (破产的) and I am in debt now,” Karl said. “I knew this would happen someday,” Fred painfully thought. He planned to help his son and made one of his most difficult choices. “Don’t worry, my son. Luckily, you will succeed to (继承) a huge amount of money from your uncle, soon,” Fred told Karl.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
“Oh, I am so fortunate,” said Kurl.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________On his way back home, Kar l was wondering how his father was.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Laughter is said to be the best medicine in our life. Nothing works faster or more dependably to bring your mind and body back into balance than a good laugh. Laughter lightens your burdens, inspires hope, connects you to others, and keeps you more focused on the positive. I like to laugh and be happy whenever there is a reason for it. Cracking jokes usually makes us happy and light-hearted after a day of hard work, and so do many funny incidents which we may sometimes experience in our daily life.
However, today, I would like to talk about a funny incident that happened to me a few years ago, when I was still a student at primary school. That very incident took place at a birthday party held at my aunt’s house. In fact, it was a birthday party held for one of my little cousins.
On that special occasion, everybody, including all of my family members, close relatives and some of the little friends of my cousin’s, was invited to the party on a lovely summer evening in order to enjoy the party. By the way, the party was supposed to be concluded as early as possible, because all the little guests, friends of my cousin’s, needed to return to their homes safely before it was getting too late at night. So, after several hours of busy preparations, the party formally started at around 8 pm. The adults and the kids all came up to the table and gently opened up the various colorful gift boxes one by one with a formal ceremony. Once we were done with opening the gift boxes, the time came for us to sing the “Happy Birthday to You” song in chorus, and we all sang the song in order to wish a very happy birthday to my little cousin. Finally came the moment we all had been waiting for eagerly. And we were ready to open the cake box and cut the birthday cake.
注意： 1.续写词数应为150个左右；2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
To our surprise, the cake had already been cut!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Hearing what my aunt said, we expressed our willingness to give our share to the homeless.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Bill is a retired oil field engineer. His hands are thick, and his fingers branch out in all directions. He moved back to America late in his career. His wife died of a serious disease so he had to raise his three daughters on his own. In my parents’ eyes, Bill is hardworking and helpful.
Every day, when I pass by his yard to go to school in the morning, I often see him standing in his front door, smiling at me. But in my heart, Bill is the last person I am willing to talk with in the world. When I was 7 years old, I picked fruits in his garden without his permission. He scolded (责骂) me severely and let me apologize to him in front of my parents. I hated him and swore (发誓) not to talk with him any more. What’s more, there is a scar (伤疤) on his face, which makes me more afraid to get close to him.
Recently, Bill, in his seventies, invited my friends in our neighborhood to his house to spend weekends. Of course, Bill also invited me several times but I turned him down.
My friends told me that they were surprised to find Bill was also experienced in playing basketball, and they invited Bill to teach them to play basketball on weekends. Besides, Bill often offered them sodas. It’s rare to see a bond that bridges generations. But I didn’t care all of these any longer.
One week ago, my friends came to my home and expected me to join their basketball team to have a match with the team from another neighborhood. I like playing basketball and I am good at it so I agreed immediately. But when I was told Bill would give us guidance and it was he that let my friends invite me to join the team, I hesitated. Eventually, I was persuaded to have a try.
The match started. Because I wanted to prove myself, I tried my best to shoot every time I caught the ball. I didn’t pass the ball to my teammates. Ten minutes passed and our team didn’t win one point.
注意：1．续写词数应为150左右；2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I felt at a loss when Bill called time out.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When each player in our team was celebrating our winning the game, I came up to Bill.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________One click of my wooden stick, and the buffaloes (水牛) moved forward. I guided them along the road’s edge, through the heart of the village. We walked past mud homes and villagers bent over tending to their crops. We eyed the green fields, where the buffaloes could eat growing grass. This was my life in a small village in Sindh, Pakistan. We had little, but I had a big dream.
Up ahead laughter attracted my attention. A group of students came into view, their uniforms a contrast to my faded trousers and worn-out shoes. Fingers wrapped tight around my stick, I stepped forward and said sincerely, “Dear students, could you please show me your books?” The students looked from my face to my stick, to their books. They quickly opened their bags and showed me their books. Illustrations of people and places caught my imagination.
“Someday, I’ll go to school too,” I declared, returning their books. Actually, I was desperate to go to school so that I could broaden my horizons.
Months passed. Every day I rose to my chores and buffaloes. Until, one day I got my chance. My uncle came to visit. He and Father sat, drinking tea outside. “Brother, you must send Rasool Bux to school. Herding the buffaloes is not in his future,” Uncle convinced my father. that all children should go to school. The following week, I was studying in primary school. Now, armed with my own books, I set out to learn everything. I read textbooks, asked questions, and even read newspapers for my father and his companions.
By the end of the year, I proved to be one of the best students in the school. I resolved to study at college or university in Karachi, a big city over 150 kilometers away. Unfortunately, I suffered from a skin condition that left white spots on my skin. The constant loss of skin color was stressful, making me feel bad about myself and even drawing attention away from my studies.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The thought of not being able to finish school made me feel extremely depressed.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I visited my uncle after I did make it to university in Karachi.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Spreading Joy
This past Christmas season began for me as usual on the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday. My mom, sister, and I had gotten up early to go shopping. As we were driving out of a store parking lot, we caught sight of a dreadfully thin woman sitting on a walker. She was clearly homeless, with bird feathers stuck into her gray hair, and a dirty yellow raincoat.
That homeless woman got us thinking about what Christmas would be like for some one who has no place to call home. With no family to turn to and certainly no presents to open on Christmas morning, these people have nothing to look forward to but the cold and lonely place where they choose to camp. Even though we live in sunny California, the temperature can still fall below freezing on winter nights. Where would this woman sleep when the sun went down?
Sadly, homeless people are a common sight in our town. On our way home, we passed countless people pushing shopping carts overflowing with their belongings and people standing in the center dividers of roads holding cardboard signs with “Just Hungry” written on them.
The next day, my mom had a great idea. While we were out Christmas shopping, we purchased some blue tins (罐) of sugar cookies and a few boxes of candy canes. When we got home, I helped my mom carefully ti e each tin with a red ribbon and tape a candy cane on top. Next, we wrote “Call 211 for Help” on notes and taped them to the bottoms of the tins. “Not only will we be spreading Christmas cheer, but now the homeless people will have a number to call and get the help they need,” my mom explained as we worked.
We put all the tins in the car and, whenever we went for a drive, we searched the streets for individuals down on their luck. Usually, the streets are crowded with people carrying sleeping bags, but somehow when you are looking for something, it always seems to disappear.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
Eventually, we found a young man sleeping in the Lowe’s parking lot.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The day before Christmas, we drove around the streets again with our final tin.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“Jennifer, do you hike?” Karen said to me. “Yes, I hike,” I replied. Karen’s slim figure and sun-kissed cheeks suggested she was a regular hiker.
“Great, do you want to come with us tomorrow? We will meet in front of Bobbie’s house at 6:30 before it is too hot, and we will go over to Thunderbird Mountain. It is about three miles in total. Does that sound OK?”
Three miles. I wasn’t sure how long that was, partly because I didn’t actually hike. I was somewhat familiar with the area where they planned to go, but our family had just moved from Oregon to Arizona. I walked our dog around the neighbourhood all the time before we moved here. But I wasn’t sure if I had gone three miles. Being new to town and excited about an invitation from women I wanted to befriend, I accepted, saying, “Sure. That sounds great. We all benefit from hiking.”
When this hiking conversation among my new friends occurred, I was at a monthly dinner for moms in my new neighborhood. The group was four women in their forties, all with high-school kids, jobs, a fondness for reading and music and tricks for simplifying work-life.
I was honored to be invited since making friends in my forties in a new town wasn’t easy. After this re-location for my husband’s career, making friends wasn’t as simple for me as it was for him. He came to the community for a full-time position at a busy university. Our teenaged son and daughter immediately plugged into school through sports and clubs. I was enormously grateful for the ease of the transition for my family, but nervous for myself. So, while at the monthly ladies’ gathering, when hiking came up, I just played along, wanting to try something new.
The next day, I got up early and carefully selected comfortable hiking clothes. When I arrived at the designated friend’s driveway a little early, Karen was standing there waiting. “Hey, Jennifer, I’m glad that you can come to hike,” she said cheerfully and hugged me. When the others joined us, we started walking. I was sweaty and a little out of breath before we even started going uphill.
注意：1．续写词数应为150个左右；2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
“So, where did you hike in Oregon?” one of them asked, offering me a bottle of water.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________By accepting the invitation to hike that day, I received a lot.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A Regret
As I sat on the couch, my heart was filled with guilt. I recalled how terrible my mistake was, regretting my every move.
It was finally the start of the school holidays. As soon as I reached home, I jumped into my bed. “Freedom!” I shouted with joy.
“Tim, stop relaxing. Didn’t you say that you wanted to learn how to skate? Your father bought you a new skateboard. He will start teaching you tomorrow!” my mother said with delight. Immediately, I jumped out of my bed and sped downstairs. Lying on the dining table was a wonderful skateboard with my name carved on it. The colours, shape and size of each pattern were incredible.
“Can I start now?” I questioned impatiently. My mum shook her head and firmly said that it was too dangerous. A frown (皱眉) filled my face. Disappointed, I took my new skateboard up to my room.
As I stared at the window, I realized how perfect the weather was. The sun was shining, and the birds were singing. There were not many people as well. “No one will know that I stole out secretly and it will not be dangerous. There aren’t many people anyway!” Without hesitation, I tiptoed out of the house. “I can’t wait any longer! I can’t wait!” I spoke to myself in a whisper.
At a nearby park, I placed the skateboard on the ground. Despite being clueless on how to skate, I found a creative way to do so. One of my favourite moves was sitting on the skateboard, with two hands on it, using my legs to move forward.
Not long after, I crowned myself “Master of Skating”. I finally got the hang of it and was skating all around. “My method is amazing!” I announced. At that moment, I saw a long and steep slope (陡坡). My face lit up and I quickly headed towards it. I was filled with confidence to the edge. I flew down the slope with excitement and joy.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Suddenly a six-year-old boy rushed into my path because his ball had rolled away.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Fortunately, his injuries were minor and not infected but I got severely lectured by my parents.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Police chief Matthew Bruce’s son, Adam, came late into his lives, so he always spoiled him and never said no to him for anything. As Adam grew older, he began to take his parents’ love and concern for granted, as if it were permission for him to do whatever he pleased. There were certainly times when he was criticized for bad grades or sneaking out of the house, but that was limited to only minor blame. Adam thought that if he pretended to be an “ideal” son, he would have to face absolutely no blame from his parents. So he began to act like a good son in front of them while engaging in all sorts of wrongdoing behind their backs, such as breaking the law. However, Adam always got away with it.
One day, Adam was driving back from a party with his friend Freddie when he began over-speeding. Freddie warned him to slow down, but Adam didn’t listen. Adam’s driving worried Freddie. He asked Adam to slow down again, and when Adam didn’t, he grabbed the steering wheel himself, causing the car to slide off the road and ran into a tree on the side. Then they heard the alarm of a police car behind them. The car came to a stop in front of them, and a police officer approached them.
“I’ve been following your car for a while now, and I’m afraid I’ll have to take you to the station for speeding. May I have your driver’s license first?” the police officer said.
Freddie was scared. “Here’s my driver’s license, sir,” he said, offering it to the officer. Adam tried to explain that he was the police chief’s son, but the police officer turned a deaf ear to him. They drove him to the station, and when Adam stepped inside, he was surprised to see his father there. He had been called to the station for an urgent case.
注意：1.续写词数应为 150 左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Adam felt no worries and thought he was out of trouble.
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He told Adam he would need to earn money himself to pay for the fine.
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Mrs Thompson, who was in her seventies, lived alone in her old house, with her children and grandchildren living far away in a big city. Every day, she would sit by her window, watching the world go by. Next to her house lived an eight-year-old boy named Sam. Sam seemed to be always busy. He would go to school, come home, do his homework, and then rush off to his part-time job at a local flower store. He was saving up to buy a new bike for traveling to and from school and his part-time job. His parents struggled with money, so Sam wanted to offer his help any way he could.
One day, Mrs Thompson noticed that Sam seemed sad. She called him over and asked, “You seem to be unhappy. What’s wrong, dear? Is everything okay at school? Do you need help with any of your homework?”
Sam hesitated, and then said, “I have a big test coming up, but I don’t have time to study. I have to work part-time at that flower store every day after school.”
Mrs Thompson thought for a moment. “How about this?” she offered. “I can help you. Come over after school, and I’ll watch over you while you study. I can even make some snacks for you.”
Sam’s eyes lit up. “Really? That would be very amazing, Mrs Thompson!”
And so, it began. Every day after school, Sam would come over to Mrs Thompson’s house. She would prepare some delicious cookies or a sandwich for him, and quietly, he would sit at her old wooden table and study. Mrs Thompson would knit or read a book, occasionally helping Sam with a tough question.
As the days went by, Sam’s grades improved gradually. He and Mrs Thompson became close friends. They would talk about everything—from his dreams of going to college to her memories of her youth.
注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
One day, Sam came home from his job to find a new bike waiting for him.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Years passed, and Sam went off to college.
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