Chapter 15

I wasn’t ready before, but now I am. My Mom and Cyrus are going away on Friday and I really want you to sleep over. I love you. Call me. Love, Blair. Nate read Blair’s e-mail twice and then closed the file so he wouldn’t have to look at it anymore. It was only Wednesday. Was it possible that Blair could remain ignorant about him and Serena until Friday, even though she was in school with Serena every day and they were best friends and told each other everything? Chances were, no. And what about Chuck Bass¹? He wasn’t exactly good at keeping secrets. Nate rubbed his pretty green eyes viciously. It didn’t matter how Blair found out. Any way he looked at it, he was fucked. He tried to come up with a plan, but the only plan he could think of was to wait and see what happened when he saw Blair on Friday night. There was no point in getting all worked up about it now. Just then the door to the computer lab opened, and Jeremy Scott Tompkinson poked² his head around the door. “Yo, Nathaniel, we’re cutting Gym. Come to the park with us and play some ball.” The second bell rang. Nate was late for Gym anyway, and after Gym he had lunch. Cutting sounded like an excellent idea. “Yeah, sure,” Nate said. “Hold on a sec.” He clicked on Blair’s e-mail and dragged it across the screen and into the trash. “Okay,” he said, standing³ up. “Let’s go.” Hmmm, if he really loved her, he probably would’ve saved the e-mail, or at least answered it, right? It was a sunny October day in Central Park. Out in Sheep Meadow lots of kids were cutting school, just lying in the grass, smoking, or playing Frisbee⁴. The trees surrounding the meadow were a blaze of yellows, oranges, and reds, and beyond the trees loomed⁵ the beautiful old apartment buildings on Central Park West. A guy was selling weed, and Anthony Avuldsen bought some to add to what Nate had picked up at the pizza place yesterday at lunch. Nate, Jeremy, Anthony, and Charlie Dern passed an enormous joint⁶ between them as they dribbled⁷ a soccer ball around on the grass. Charlie puffed⁹ on the joint and passed it to Jeremy. Nate shot him the ball and Charlie tripped over it. He was six feet tall, and his head was too big for his body. People called him Frankenstein. Ever the blond athletic¹⁰ one, even when he was stoned, Anthony dove for the ball, kicked it up in the air and headed it at Jeremy. It hit Jeremy in his puny¹¹ chest and he let it roll to the ground, dribbling¹² it between his feet. “Shit, this stuff is strong,” Jeremy said, hitching¹³ up his pants. They were always sliding down below his skinny hips¹⁴, no matter how tightly he buckled¹⁵ his belt. “Yeah, it is,” Nate agreed. “I’m all fucked up.” His feet were itchy. It felt like the grass was growing through the rubber soles of his sneakers. Jeremy stopped dribbling the ball. “Hey, Nate. Have you seen Serena van der Woodsen yet?” he asked. “I heard she’s back.” Nate looked at the ball longingly¹⁶, wishing he had it so he could dribble⁸ it away across the field and pretend he hadn’t heard Jeremy’s question. He could feel the other three boys staring at him. He bent¹⁷ down and pulled his left shoe off so he could scratch the bottom of his foot. Damn, it itched¹⁸. “Yeah, I saw her Monday,” he said casually¹⁹, hopping²⁰ up and down on one foot. Charlie cleared his throat and spit in the grass. “What’d she look like?” he asked. “I heard she got into all sorts of trouble up at Hanover.” “Me too,” Anthony said, sucking on the roach. “I heard she got kicked out for having sex with this whole group of guys in her room. Her roommate ratted her out.” He laughed. “Like, couldn’t she afford a hotel room?” Charlie laughed. “I heard she has a kid. I’m serious. She had it in France and left it there. Her parents are paying to have it raised in some fancy French convent. It’s like a fucking movie, man.” Nate couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He dropped his shoe and sat down in the grass. Then he took off his other shoe and pulled off both of his socks. He didn’t say anything, he just sat there, scratching his bare feet. “Can you imagine Serena with all these guys in her dorm room? Like, Ooh, baby. Harder, harder!” Jeremy fell down on the grass, rubbing his skinny belly²¹ and cackling hysterically²². “Oh, man!” “Wonder if she even knows who the daddy is,” Anthony said. “I heard there was a pretty major drug thing going on, too,” Charlie said. “She was dealing²³ and got addicted²⁴ to whatever it was. She was in rehab in Switzerland all summer. After the baby was born, I guess.” “Whoa, that is fucked up,” Jeremy said. “You and her had a thing, didn’t you, Nate?” Charlie said. “Where’d you hear that?” Nate asked, frowning. Charlie shook his head and smiled. “I don’t know, man. Around. What’s the problem? She’s hot.” “Yeah, well, I’ve had hotter,” Nate said, and immediately regretted it. What was he talking about? “Yeah, Blair’s pretty hot too, I guess,” Charlie said. “I bet she gets pretty crazy in bed,” Jeremy agreed. “Dude’s tired just thinking about it!” Anthony said, pointing at Nate and cackling. Nate laughed and shook his head, trying to shake their words out of his ears. He lay back in the grass and stared at the empty blue sky. If he tilted²⁵ his head all the way back, he could just see the rooftops of the penthouses along Fifth Avenue, Serena’s and Blair’s included. Nate let his chin fall so all he could see was blue sky again. He was too baked to deal with any of this. He tuned²⁶ his friends out and tried to clear his mind completely, his head as empty and blue as the sky. But he couldn’t get the images of Serena and Blair out of his mind’s eye, floating naked above his head. “You know you love me,” they were saying. Nate smiled and closed his eyes. Disclaimer: All the real names of places, people, and events havebeen altered or abbreviated²⁷ to protect the innocent. Namely, me.
hey people! I know it hasn’t been long. But I can’t resist writing more about N. My new favorite topic. He is so stunningly²⁸ beautiful, after all. Even if he is kind of lacking in the balls department.

1 bass   

n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴

参考例句：

• He answered my question in a surprisingly deep bass.他用一种低得出奇的声音回答我的问题。
• The bass was to give a concert in the park.那位男低音歌唱家将在公园中举行音乐会。

2 poked   

v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 )；戳出；拨弄；与（某人）性交

参考例句：

• She poked him in the ribs with her elbow. 她用胳膊肘顶他的肋部。
• His elbow poked out through his torn shirt sleeve. 他的胳膊从衬衫的破袖子中露了出来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

4 frisbee   

n.飞盘(塑料玩具)

参考例句：

• We always go to the park on weekends and play Frisbee.我们每个周末都会到公园玩飞盘。
• The frisbee is a light plastic disc,shaped like a plate.飞盘是一种碟形塑料盘。

5 loomed   

v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• A dark shape loomed up ahead of us. 一个黑糊糊的影子隐隐出现在我们的前面。
• The prospect of war loomed large in everyone's mind. 战事将起的庞大阴影占据每个人的心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

7 dribbled   

v.流口水( dribble的过去式和过去分词 )；（使液体）滴下或作细流；运球，带球

参考例句：

• Melted wax dribbled down the side of the candle. 熔化了的蜡一滴滴从蜡烛边上流下。
• He dribbled past the fullback and scored a goal. 他越过对方后卫，趁势把球踢入球门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 dribble   

v.点滴留下，流口水；n.口水

参考例句：

• Melted wax dribbled down the side of the candle.熔化了的蜡一滴滴从蜡烛边上流下。
• He wiped a dribble of saliva from his chin.他擦掉了下巴上的几滴口水。

9 puffed   

adj.疏松的v.使喷出( puff的过去式和过去分词 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧

参考例句：

• He lit a cigarette and puffed at it furiously. 他点燃了一支香烟，狂吸了几口。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He felt grown-up, puffed up with self-importance. 他觉得长大了，便自以为了不起。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

11 puny   

adj.微不足道的，弱小的

参考例句：

• The resources at the central banks' disposal are simply too puny.中央银行掌握的资金实在太少了。
• Antonio was a puny lad,and not strong enough to work.安东尼奥是个瘦小的小家伙，身体还不壮，还不能干活。

12 dribbling   

n.（燃料或油从系统内）漏泄v.流口水( dribble的现在分词 )；（使液体）滴下或作细流；运球，带球

参考例句：

• Basic skills include swimming, dribbling, passing, marking, tackling, throwing, catching and shooting. 个人基本技术包括游泳、带球、传球、盯人、抢截、抛球、接球和射门。 来自互联网
• Carol: [Laurie starts dribbling again] Now do that for ten minutes. 卡罗：（萝莉开始再度运球）现在那样做十分钟。 来自互联网

13 hitching   

搭乘； （免费）搭乘他人之车( hitch的现在分词 )； 搭便车； 攀上； 跃上

参考例句：

• The farmer yoked the oxen before hitching them to the wagon. 农夫在将牛套上大车之前先给它们套上轭。
• I saw an old man hitching along on his stick. 我看见一位老人拄着手杖蹒跚而行。

14 hips   

abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的

参考例句：

• She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
• They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 buckled   

a. 有带扣的

参考例句：

• She buckled her belt. 她扣上了腰带。
• The accident buckled the wheel of my bicycle. 我自行车的轮子在事故中弄弯了。

16 longingly   

adv. 渴望地 热望地

参考例句：

• He looked longingly at the food on the table. 他眼巴巴地盯着桌上的食物。
• Over drinks,he speaks longingly of his trip to Latin America. 他带着留恋的心情，一边喝酒一边叙述他的拉丁美洲之行。

17 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

18 itched   

v.发痒( itch的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Seeing the children playing ping-pong, he itched to have a go. 他看到孩子们打乒乓，不觉技痒。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He could hardly sIt'still and itched to have a go. 他再也坐不住了，心里跃跃欲试。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

19 casually   

adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地

参考例句：

• She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。
• I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。

20 hopping   

n. 跳跃 动词hop的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The clubs in town are really hopping. 城里的俱乐部真够热闹的。
• I'm hopping over to Paris for the weekend. 我要去巴黎度周末。

21 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

22 hysterically   

ad. 歇斯底里地

参考例句：

• The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。
• She sobbed hysterically, and her thin body was shaken. 她歇斯底里地抽泣着，她瘦弱的身体哭得直颤抖。

23 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

24 addicted   

adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的

参考例句：

• He was addicted to heroin at the age of 17.他17岁的时候对海洛因上了瘾。
• She's become addicted to love stories.她迷上了爱情小说。

25 tilted   

v. 倾斜的

参考例句：

• Suddenly the boat tilted to one side. 小船突然倾向一侧。
• She tilted her chin at him defiantly. 她向他翘起下巴表示挑衅。

26 tuned   

adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• The resort is tuned in to the tastes of young and old alike. 这个度假胜地适合各种口味，老少皆宜。
• The instruments should be tuned up before each performance. 每次演出开始前都应将乐器调好音。 来自《简明英汉词典》

27 abbreviated   

adj. 简短的，省略的 动词abbreviate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He abbreviated so much that it was hard to understand his article. 他的文章缩写词使用太多，令人费解。
• The United States of America is commonly abbreviated to U.S.A.. 美利坚合众国常被缩略为U.S.A.。

28 stunningly   

ad.令人目瞪口呆地；惊人地

参考例句：

• The cooks, seamstresses and other small investors are stunningly vulnerable to reversals. 那些厨师、裁缝及其他的小投资者非常容易受到股市逆转的影响。
• The production cost of this huge passenger liner is stunningly high. 这艘船城造价之高令人惊叹。