Chapter 21

In Mrs. Jewls's class there were three children named Eric: Eric Fry, Eric Bacon, and Eric Ovens¹. They were known throughout the school for being fat. Eric Fry sat at this end of the room. Eric Bacon sat in the middle of the room. And Eric Ovens sat at that end of the room. There was a joke around Wayside School that if all three Erics were ever at the same end of the room at the same time, the whole school would tip over.

Eric Bacon hated jokes like that. That's not surprising. After all, he wasn't even fat. In fact, he was the skinniest kid in Mrs. Jewels's class. But nobody seemedto notice.
83The other two Erics were fat, and so everyone just thought that all Erics were fat.
"But I'm not fat!" Eric Bacon insisted.

"What's your name?" asked Jason.

"Eric," said Eric Bacon.

"Then you're fat," Jason concluded.

And pretty soon, skinny little Eric Bacon, the skinniest kid in Mrs. Jewls's class, had the nickname² "Fatso."

Eric Fry reallywasfat. He was also the best athlete in Mrs. Jewls's class. His body was solid muscle. However, nobody ever noticed.

The other two Erics weren't very good at sports. Eric Ovens was clumsy³. Eric ("Fatso") Bacon was a good athlete for his size, but because he was so skinny he didn't have much power.

So, naturally, everybody just assumed⁴ that Eric Fry was also clumsy and weak. After all, his namewasEric.

Whenever the other kids chose up teams, Eric Fry was the last one picked. They never noticed his home runs or the fabulous⁵ catches he made. Like all great athletes, he made the impossible look easy. Of course, the other kids did notice the one time that he dropped the ball.

Eric Fry was playing right field. Terrence belted a deep fly to left. Eric Fry raced all the way across the field after the ball and at the last second dived at it. He caught it in midair on his fingertips, but as he hit the ground the ball squirted loose.

"Well, what do you expect from 'Butterfingers,' " said Stephen.
84And since that time Eric Fry has had the nickname "Butterfingers."
Eric Ovens was the nicest person in Mrs. Jewls's class. He treated everyone equally and always had a kind word to say. But because his name was Eric, everyone thought he was mean.

"Fatso" was mean because everyone called him "Fatso."

"Butterfingers" was mean because he always had to play right field.

So, naturally, everyone just assumed that Eric Ovens was also mean. They called him "Crabapple."

"Good morning, Allison," said Eric Ovens. "How are you?"

"Lay off, 'Crabapple'! Will ya?" answered Allison. "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all."

All three of the Erics had nicknames⁶. It was better that way. Otherwise when someone said, "Hey, Eric," no one knew to whom he was talking. One time all the Erics would answer, and the next time none of them would answer. But when someone said, "Hey, 'Crabapple,' " then Eric Ovens knew they were talking to him. And if someone said, "Hey, 'Butterfingers,' " Eric Fry knew they meant him. And when someone said, "Hey, 'Fatso,' " Eric Bacon knew that he was being called.

1 ovens   

n.烤箱，炉( oven的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Bakers bake in huge ovens. 面包师用大烤炉烤面包。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Cleaning ovens is a real fag. 清洗烤箱是一件累人的活。 来自辞典例句

2 nickname   

n.绰号，昵称；v.给...取绰号，叫错名字

参考例句：

• She called me by my nickname.她叫我的外号。
• Why do you fasten such a nickname on her?你为什么给她取这样一个绰号？

3 clumsy   

adj.笨手笨脚；不圆滑的，缺乏技巧的

参考例句：

• He is clumsy with his hands.他的一双手很笨。
• Its body looks heavy and clumsy when it has eaten its fill.它步态蹒跚，吃饱了的身体更显得笨拙可笑。

4 assumed   

adj.假定的, 假装的 动词assume的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The assumed linearity of these equations can be related to the uniformity of space and time.所假定的这些方程的线性，可归因于空间和时间的均匀性。

5 fabulous   

adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的

参考例句：

• We had a fabulous time at the party.我们在晚会上玩得很痛快。
• This is a fabulous sum of money.这是一笔巨款。

6 nicknames   

n.绰号，诨名，昵称( nickname的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The other children taunted him with nicknames. 其他的孩子用绰号取笑他。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He tried to amuse her by calling her the affectionate nicknames "Dark Sweetie" and "Miss Chocolate." 方鸿渐要博鲍小姐欢心，便把“黑甜”、“朱古力小姐”那些亲昵的称呼告诉她。 来自汉英文学 - 围城