Chapter 21

“So, what can you do?” Jenny poked¹ at her grilled² cheese. She couldn’t believe she’d gotten two sandwiches. Serena probably thought she was a disgusting pig. “Well, I’m pretty artistic³. I did the school hymnals, you know, in calligraphy⁴? And I’ve got some photographs in Rancor⁵ this year, and a short story,” Jenny explained. Rancor was Constance’s student-run arts magazine. Vanessa Abrams was the editor. “Oh, and I just did the invitations for that big party next week that everyone’s going to,” Jenny said, eager to impress. “Blair Waldorf asked me to do them. Actually . . .” Jenny reached into her bag and pulled out an envelope with Serena’s name printed on it in ornate calligraphy. “The guest list Blair gave me still had your boarding school address. I was going to put it in your locker⁶ or something,” Jenny said, blushing. “But now that you’re here . . .” She handed the envelope to Serena. Do I sound like a stalker? Jenny wondered. “Thanks,” Serena said, taking the envelope. She opened it and read the invitation inside, her eyes dark, her forehead creased⁷ in a frown. Oh, God. She thinks it’s ugly! Jenny thought, panicking. Serena put the invitation in her bag and picked up her fork again, looking distracted. She took a bite of lettuce⁸ and chewed on it. Jenny was taking mental notes on how to act as mysterious, poised⁹, and cool as Serena was acting¹⁰ at that very moment. If only she could have heard the livid thoughts in Serena’s head, railing against Blair. She didn’t want me to come to the party. She didn’t even tell methere was a party.
“Wow,” Serena said finally, still munching¹¹ her lettuce. “Okay, you’re hired.” She held out her hand and smiled sweetly at Jenny. “I’m Serena,” she said. “I know,” Jenny said, blushing even redder. “I’m Jenny.” Disclaimer: All the real names of places, people, and events havebeen altered or abbreviated¹² to protect the innocent. Namely, me.
hey people!
S AND B: HOT IN THE HOT TUB! This just in from an anonymous¹³ source: Apparently¹⁴, back when they were still tight, S and B shared a hot hot-tub moment together in C’s suite¹⁵ in the Tribeca Star. Was the kiss an expression of their true feelings for each other? Or were they just messing around like two silly drunk girls? Either way, it definitely adds a little tension to the mix. What fun! And in case you haven’t seen the poster plastered on all the buses, taxis, and subways all over town, the original photo of S can still be seen at the Whitehot Gallery in Chelsea, amidst portraits of other notorious scenesters, myself included. That’s right! The Remi brothers were just too sexy to resist. The fabulous¹⁶ are fabulous for a reason, people.

1 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》

2 grilled   

adj. 烤的, 炙过的, 有格子的 动词grill的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• He was grilled for two hours before the police let him go. 他被严厉盘查了两个小时后，警察才放他走。
• He was grilled until he confessed. 他被严加拷问，直到他承认为止。

3 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

4 calligraphy   

n.书法

参考例句：

• At the calligraphy competition,people asked him to write a few characters.书法比赛会上，人们请他留字。
• His calligraphy is vigorous and forceful.他的书法苍劲有力。

5 rancor   

n.深仇，积怨

参考例句：

• I have no rancor against him.我对他无怨无仇。
• Their rancor dated from a political dogfight between them.他们的积怨来自于他们之间在政治上的狗咬狗。

6 locker   

n.更衣箱，储物柜，冷藏室，上锁的人

参考例句：

• At the swimming pool I put my clothes in a locker.在游泳池我把衣服锁在小柜里。
• He moved into the locker room and began to slip out of his scrub suit.他走进更衣室把手术服脱下来。

7 creased   

（使…）起折痕，弄皱( crease的过去式和过去分词 )； （皮肤）皱起，使起皱纹； 皱皱巴巴

参考例句：

• You've creased my newspaper. 你把我的报纸弄皱了。
• The bullet merely creased his shoulder. 子弹只不过擦破了他肩部的皮肤。

8 lettuce   

n.莴苣；生菜

参考例句：

• Get some lettuce and tomatoes so I can make a salad.买些莴苣和西红柿，我好做色拉。
• The lettuce is crisp and cold.莴苣松脆爽口。

9 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。

10 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

11 munching   

v.用力咀嚼（某物），大嚼( munch的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was munching an apple. 他在津津有味地嚼着苹果。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Munching the apple as he was, he had an eye for all her movements. 他虽然啃着苹果，但却很留神地监视着她的每一个动作。 来自辞典例句

12 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.。

13 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

14 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

15 suite   

n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员

参考例句：

• She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
• That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

16 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。