(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
we present a story written by Special English reporter and producer Caty Weaver. It's called "The Boy on Graves-End Road. Kelly Ryan was making dinner. Her ten-year-old son Benjamin was watching television in the living room. Or at least she thought he was. "Benny-boy, do you want black beans or red beans?" "Red beans, Mama." "Don't do that, Ben. You scared me half to death! You're going to get it now ... " Ben had come up quietly right behind her. "I'll get back to you, stinker!" Kelly goes to the phone, but as soon as she lays her hand on it, the ringing stops. "How strange. Oh, the beans!" Kelly turns her attention back to cooking. As soon as she does, the phone rings again. "Honey, can you get that?" "Hello? Oh, hi. Yes, I remember. Sure, it sounds fun. Let me ask my mom. Can you hold? She might wanna talk to your mom. Oh, um, OK. See you tomorrow." "Ben, your rice and beans are on the table. Let's eat." "So, what was that call about?" "That was Wallace Gray. You know him, from class. He wants to play tomorrow. Can I go home with him after school? Please, Mom? I get bored around here waiting for you after work."
"But, Ben, I don't even know his parents. Maybe I should talk to them." "You can't, Mom. He was with his babysitter. He said his parents wouldn't be home until late tonight and they would leave before he went to school in the morning. Please Mom, Wallace lives right over on Graves-End Road. It's a five-minute walk from here. PLEASE?" "Well, OK. What's so great about this guy, anyway? You've got a ton of friends to play with." "I know. But Wallace is just different. He's got a lot of imagination." The school week passes, and Ben starts to go home almost every day with Wallace. Kelly notices a change in her son. He seems tired and withdrawn. His eyes do not seem to really look at her. They seem ... lifeless. On Friday night she decides they need to have a talk. "Sweetie, what's going on with you? You seem so tired and far away. Is something wrong? Did you and your new friend have a fight?" "No, Mom. We've been having a great time. There's nothing wrong with us. Why don't you like Wallace? You don't even know him, but you don't trust him." "Benjamin, what are you talking about? I don't dislike Wallace. You're right, I don't know him. You just don't seem like yourself. You've been very quiet the past few nights."
"I'm sorry, Mom. I guess I'm just tired. I have a great time with Wallace. We play games like cops and robbers, but they seem so real that half of the time I feel like I'm in another world. It's hard to explain. It's like, it's like ... " "I think the word you're looking for is intense." "Yeah, that's it -- it's intense." "Well, tell me about today. What kind of game did you play?" "We were train robbers. Or Wallace was. I was a station manager. Wallace was running through a long train, from car to car. He had stolen a lot of money and gold from the passengers. I was chasing right behind him, moving as fast as I could. Finally he jumps out of the train into the station to make his escape. But I block his path. He grabs a woman on the station platform. She screams 'No, no!' But he yells 'Let me through, or she dies.' So I let him go." "What happened then?" "Well, that's what was weird and, like you said, intense. Wallace threw the lady onto the tracks. And laughed. He said that's what evil characters do in games. They always do the worst." Later, after Ben went to bed, Kelly turned on the eleven o'clock news. She was only half-listening as she prepared a list of things to do the next day, on Halloween.
"Let's see, grocery shopping, Halloween decorating, dog to the groomer, hardware store, clean up the garden ... "... the victim, who has not been identified, was killed instantly. Reports say it appears she was pushed off the station platform into the path of the oncoming train. It happened during rush hour today. Some witnesses reported seeing two boys running and playing near the woman. But police say they did not see any images like that on security cameras at the station. In other news, there was more trouble today as workers protested outside the Hammond ... " "No! It can't be. The station is an hour away. They couldn't have gotten there. How could they? It's just a coincidence." The wind blew low and lonely that night. Kelly slept little. She dreamed she was waiting for Ben at a train station. Then, she saw him on the other side, running with another little boy. It must be Wallace she thought. The little boy went in and out of view. Then, all of a sudden, he stopped and looked across the tracks -- directly at her. He had no face.
Saturday morning was bright and sunny, a cool October day. Kelly made Ben eggs and toast and watched him eat happily. "You know, Benny-boy, a woman DID get hurt at the train station yesterday. She actually got hit by a train. Isn't that strange?" She looked at Ben. "What do you mean, Mom?" "Well, you and Wallace were playing that game yesterday. About being at a train station. You said he threw a woman off the platform, and she was killed by a train." Kelly felt like a fool even saying the words. She was speaking to a ten-year-old who had been playing an imaginary game with another ten-year-old. What was she thinking? "I said we played that yesterday? I did? Hmmm. No, we played that a few days ago, I think. It was just a really good game, really intense. Yesterday we played pirates. I got to be Captain Frank on the pirate ship, the Argh. "Wallace was Davey, the first mate. But he tried to rebel and take over the ship so I made him walk the plank. Davey walked off into the sea and drowned. Wallace told me I had to order him to walk the plank. He said that's what evil pirates do." "I guess he's right. I don't know any pirates, but I do hear they're pretty evil!"
"So can I play with Wallace today when you are doing your errands? Please, Mom? I don't want to go shopping and putting up Halloween decorations." "Oh, whatever. I guess so. I'll pick you up at Wallace's house at about five-thirty, so you can get ready for trick or treating. Where does he live again? "Graves-End Road. I don't know the street number but there are only two houses on each side. His is the second one on the left." "OK. I can find that easy enough. Do you still want me to pick up a ghost costume for you?" "Yep. Oh, and guess what, Mom: Wallace says he's a ghost, too! I suppose we'll haunt the neighborhood together." Everywhere Kelly went that day was crowded. She spent an hour and a half just at the market. When she got home, decorating the house for Halloween was difficult. But finally she had it all up the way she wanted. "Oh, gosh, five already. I don't even have Ben's costume." She jumped into her car and drove to Wilson Boulevard. The party store was just a few blocks away. Kelly soon found the ghost costume that Ben wanted. She bought it and walked out of the store.
"Hey, Kelly! Long time no see. How's Benjamin doing?" "Eileen! Wow, it's great to see you. How's Matt? We've been so busy since the school year started, we haven't seen anyone!" "Matt's good. Well, he broke his arm last month so no sports for him. It is driving him crazy, but at least he's got a lot of time for school now!" "Anyway, Matt was wondering why Benny-boy never comes by anymore. We saw him running around the neighborhood after school last week. It looks like he's having fun, but he's always alone. We don't need to set up a play date. Ben should know that. You just tell him to come by anytime -- " "Wait, wait a minute. Alone? What do mean alone? He started playing with a new friend, Wallace somebody, after school, like everyday this past week. Ben hasn't been alone. Wallace Gray, that's it. Do you know him? Does Matt?" "Oh, Kell. Kelly, I'm sure he's a fine kid. I don't know him but don't worry, Ben's got great taste in friends, we know that! I'm sure he wasn't really alone, he was probably just playing hide and seek or something. I didn't mean to worry you. I guess everybody's on edge because of what happened to the Godwin boy this morning."
Kelly suddenly felt cold and scared. What Godwin boy? And what happened to him? She was not sure she wanted to know, but she had to ask. "Frank Godwin's youngest boy, Davey, the five-year-old. You know Frank, we call him Captain. He used to be a ship captain. Well, this morning the rescue squad found Davey in Blackhart Lake. They also found a little toy boat that his dad made for him. Davey and his dad named it the Argh. Davey must have been trying to sail it. It's so sad." "Wait, he's dead? "Yes. Davey drowned." "Where's Blackhart Lake?" "It's right off Graves-End Road, right behind that little cemetery. That's why they call it Graves-End. Kelly, where are you going?" "I've got to get Benjamin."
Kelly raced down Main Street. She had no idea who Wallace Gray was or how he was involved in any of this. But she did not trust him and she knew her child was in danger. Finally she was at Graves-End Road. "Only two houses on each side." She remembered what Ben had told her. "Right behind that little cemetery." And what Eileen had told her. Kelly got out of the car and walked down the street. She looked around. "It's the second one on the left." She could see the lake. Some fog was coming up as the sky darkened on this Halloween night. But there was no second house. Instead, what lay before her was grass and large white stones. The cemetery. Kelly walked through the gate into the yard of graves. "Ben?" No answer. She kept walking. "Ben? Answer me. I know you're here." Again no answer. But the wind blew and some leaves began to dance around a headstone. Kelly walked slowly toward the grave. Suddenly the sky blackened -- so dark, she could not see anything. She felt a force pushing at her. It tried to push her away from the grave. But she knew she had to stay.
"Benjamin Owen Orr, this is your mother. Come out this second!" No one answered, except for the sound of the blowing wind. The darkness lifted. Silvery moonlight shone down directly onto the old gravestone in front of her. But Kelly already knew whose name she would see. "'Wallace Gray. October thirty-first, nineteen hundred, to October thirty-first, nineteen hundred and ten. Some are best when laid to rest.'" Kelly took a deep breath. Then ... "Wallace Gray this play date is OVER! Give me back my son. Wallace, you are in TIME-OUT." Suddenly, the ground shoots upward like a small volcano. Soil, sticks and worms fly over Kelly's head and rain down again -- followed by her son, who lands beside her. "Ben! Ben!" "Mom, Mom! Are you there? I can't see. All this dirt in my eyes." "Ben, I'm here, I'm here baby, right here. Oh, sweet Benny-boy. Can you breathe? Are you really ok? What happened? How long were you in there?" "I don't know, Mom. But I didn't like it. I didn't like where Wallace lives. I want to go home." "Oh, me too, Sweetie. C'mon, Ben, put your arm around me. C'mon. "And Mom, one more thing ... " "What is it, Ben?" "I don't want to be a ghost for Halloween."
重点解析
1.at least 起码；最少
He's been away for at least a week.
他走了至少有一星期了。
2.a ton of 许多；大量的
You lost a ton of blood.
你流了很多血了。
3.trick or treating 不给糖果就捣蛋；不给糖就捣乱
And after "trick or treating" is over, the celebrating is in and a third of adults will attend parties.
给儿童派发了糖果之后，庆祝活动尚未结束，有三分之一的成年人会来参加派对。
4.set up 设置；建立
A few scarecrows were set up in the field.
田里竖起了几个稻草人。
参考译文
我们将讲述由美国之音慢速英语的记者兼制片人凯蒂·威佛撰写的故事，名叫《格雷夫斯街的男孩》。凯莉·瑞恩正在做晚饭。她十岁的儿子本杰明在客厅看电视，至少她是这样认为的。“本尼，你想要黑豆还是红豆？”“红豆，妈妈。”“别这样，本。你把我吓得半死！马上就好了……”本在她身后悄悄地走了过来。“你等着，小臭鬼！”凯莉去接电话，但她的手刚放到电话上，铃声就停了。“真奇怪。哦，豆子！”凯莉专注于她的烹饪。她这么做的时候，电话又响了。“亲爱的，你能接一下电话吗？”“喂？哦，嗨。是的，我记得。当然，听起来很有趣。我问问妈妈。你能等一下吗？她可能想和你妈妈谈谈。哦，嗯，好吧。明天见。”“本，你的米饭和豆子在桌上，快吃吧。”“电话里说了什么事？”“是华莱士·格雷，你知道他吧，是同学。他想明天找我玩。我能放学后和他一起回家吗？求求你，妈妈？我在这儿等你下班很无聊。”
“但是，本，我甚至都不认识他的父母。也许我应该和他们谈谈。”“不行，妈妈。他和他的保姆住在一起。他说他的父母今晚很晚才回家，他们会在他早上上学之前就离开。拜托，妈妈，华莱士就住在格雷夫斯街那边。从这里走五分钟就到了。求你了？”“好吧，好吧。这家伙有什么好的？你有很多朋友可以和你一起玩。”“我知道，但华莱士不一样，他想象力丰富。”一周的在校时间过去了，本几乎每天都和华莱士一起回家。凯莉注意到儿子的变化。他似乎很疲惫，还沉默寡言。他的眼睛似乎没有看着她，它们看起来……死气沉沉。星期五晚上，她决定和他谈谈。“宝贝，你怎么了？你看起来很累，而且在走神。出什么事了？你和新朋友吵架了吗？”“不，妈妈。我们度过了愉快的时光。什么事也没有。你为什么不喜欢华莱士？你甚至不认识他，但你不信任他。”“本杰明，你在说什么？我不是不喜欢华莱士。你说得对，我不认识他。你看起来根本不像你自己。过去几天晚上你一直很安静。”
“对不起，妈妈。我想我只是累了。我和华莱士在一起度过了愉快的时光。我们玩警察和强盗之类的游戏，但它们跟真的一样，我有一半时间都觉得自己是在另一个世界里。这很难解释。就像......”“我想你要用强烈这个词。”“对，就是它，非常强烈。”“好，给我说说今天的事，你玩了什么游戏？”“我们是火车抢劫犯，或者说华莱士是。我是车站经理，华莱士正在一列长长的火车上奔跑，从一节车厢跳到一节车厢。他从乘客那里偷了很多钱和金子。我用最快的速度在他身后追赶，最后，他跳下火车，蹿进车站想逃走，但我挡住了他的去路，他在车站月台上抓住了一个女人。那女人尖叫着，‘不，不！’但是他大喊：‘让我过去，否则她就会死。’所以我让他过去了。”“那后来怎么了？”“嗯，然后就很怪异了，就像你说的，很强烈。华莱士把那位女士扔到铁轨上，随后大笑。他说邪恶的角色在游戏中就是这样做的。他们总是做最坏的事。”后来，本上床睡觉后，凯利听十一点的新闻，她没太仔细听，她在列第二天万圣节要做的事情。
“来看一下，去杂货店购物，做万圣节装饰，送狗去美容，去五金店，清理花园……“……一名身份不明的受害者当场死亡。有报道说，她似乎是从站台上被推到即将进站的火车铁轨上的。该事件发生在高峰时段。一些目击者报告，看到两个男孩在那个女人附近奔跑、玩耍。但是警察说，他们在车站的监控中并未看到这样的画面。来看看其他新闻，今天还有更多的麻烦事发生，工人们在哈蒙德外面抗议……”“不！不可能。去车站要一个小时的路程。他们不可能到那儿。怎么会呢？这只是一个巧合。”那晚风吹得低沉又孤寂。凯利没怎么睡着，她梦到自己正在火车站等本。然后，她看见他在另一边，和另一个小男孩一起奔跑。她想，那一定是华莱士。那个小男孩在她的视野里跑进跑出。然后，突然，他停下来，隔着铁轨看过来——直视着她。他没有脸。
周六的早晨阳光明媚，十月里凉爽的一天。凯利给本做了鸡蛋和烤面包，看着他开心地吃着。“本尼，昨天火车站真的有个女人出事了。她是被火车撞了。这不奇怪吗？”她看着本。“妈妈，你是什么意思？”“嗯，你和华莱士昨天在玩那个游戏，在火车站的事。你说他把一个女人从月台上摔下来，她被火车撞死了。”凯利说这些话时，都觉得自己像个傻瓜。她正在和一个十岁的孩子说话，而他一直在和另一个十岁的孩子玩想象中的游戏。她在想什么？“我说我们昨天玩过那个吗？是吗？嗯。不，我想我们几天前玩过，那是个特别有趣的游戏，非常激烈。昨天我们扮海盗，我要成为海盗船阿尔格号上的弗兰克船长。“华莱士扮的是大副戴维。但他试图反抗，并接管那艘船，所以我让他走木板。戴维走偏掉到海里淹死了。华莱士告诉我，我得命令他走木板。他说邪恶的海盗就是这样做的。”“我想他是对的。我不认识海盗，但我听说他们很邪恶！”
“那今天你办事的时候，我能和华莱士一起玩吗？拜托，妈妈？我不想去买东西，也不想挂万圣节的装饰品。”“哦，随便了。我想可以的。我大约五点半到华莱士家接你，这样你就可以准备去要糖吃了。他住在哪着？“格雷夫斯街，我不知道门牌号码，但每边只有两栋房子，他家是左边的第二栋房子。”“好的，我能很容易找到。你还想让我给你买套鬼装吗？”“是的，你猜怎么着，妈妈：华莱士说他也是个鬼！我想我们会在附近一起游荡。”那天凯利所到之处都很拥挤，她光在市场就呆了一个半小时。她到家时，很难再为万圣节装饰房子了。但最终，她还是如愿以偿的装饰了一番。“哦，天哪，已经五点了。我还没给本买服装。”她跳上车，开车去威尔逊大道，派对用品商店就在几个街区外。凯利很快就找到了本想要的鬼装。她买了它，走出商店。
“嘿，凯莉！好久不见。本杰明怎么样？”“艾琳！哇，见到你真高兴。马特怎么样？开学后我们一直很忙，都没和任何人聚！”“马特很好。嗯，上个月他摔断了手臂，不能做运动了。这快把他逼疯了，但至少他现在有很多时间去上学了！” “不管了，马特想知道为什么本尼不再来找他了。我们上周放学后，看到他在附近跑来跑去。他看起来很开心，但他总是一个人。我们不用定游乐日了，本应该知道，告诉他随时都可以来—”“等等，等等。一个人？独自一人是什么意思？放学后，他开始和一个新朋友华莱士玩，这周每天都是。本不是一个人，他和华莱士·格雷在一块。你认识他吗？马特认识吗？”“哦，凯利，凯利，我肯定他是个好孩子。我不认识他，但别担心，本对朋友很有鉴赏力，我们都知道！我肯定他并不是一个人，他可能只是在玩捉迷藏什么的。我不是有意让你担心的。我想大家都很紧张，全是因为今天早上戈德温家孩子出了事。”
凯莉突然感到浑身发冷，非常害怕。戈德温家的孩子？他怎么了？她不确定她是否想知道，但她不得不问。“弗兰克·戈德温最小的儿子，五岁的戴维。你知道弗兰克，我们叫他船长，他以前是船长。今天早上，救援队在布莱克哈特湖找到了戴维。他们还找到了他爸爸为他做的玩具船。戴维和他爸爸给那条船取名为阿尔格。戴维一定是想驾驶它，太悲惨了。”“等等，他死了？“是的，戴维淹死了。”“布莱克哈特湖在哪儿？”“就在格雷夫斯街旁边，就在那个小墓地后面，所以大家把那叫格雷夫斯。凯莉，你要去哪儿？”“我得去找本杰明。”
凯利沿着大街飞驰，她不知道华莱士·格雷是谁，也不知道他是如何卷入这一切的。但她不相信他，她知道她的孩子有危险了。最后，她来到了格雷夫斯街。“两边只有两栋房子。”她记得本告诉她的话。“就在那个小墓地后面。”还有艾琳告诉她的。凯利下车沿街走去，她环顾四周。“是左边第二个。”她能看到那个湖。在这个万圣节的夜晚，天空暗淡下来，一些雾正在升起。但这儿没有第二个房子。相反，她面前是青草和白色的大石头，那是块墓地。凯利穿过大门走进墓地。“本？”没有人回应，她一直往里走。“本？回答我。我知道你在这儿。”还是没有人回答。但是起风了，一些树叶开始在墓碑周围飞舞。凯利慢慢走向墓地。突然，天空变得一片漆黑——黑到她什么也看不见。她感到有一股力量在推她，试图把她推出坟墓。但她知道，她必须留下来。
“本杰明·欧文·奥尔，这是你的妈妈，快出来！”除了风吹过的声音，没有人回答。黑暗消失了。银色的月光直射在她面前的老墓碑上。但凯莉已经知道，她会看到谁的名字。“‘华莱士·格雷，生于1900年10月31日，死于1910到10月31日，在此安息。’”凯利深吸了一口气，然后……“华莱士·格雷，这场游戏结束了！把儿子还给我，华莱士，你出局了。”突然，地面像一座小火山一样向上喷发。土壤、树枝和虫子飞过凯利的头顶，又掉落下来——她的儿子紧随其后，落在她身边。“本！本！”“妈妈，妈妈！你在吗？我看不见，我眼里全是土。” “本，我在这儿，我在这儿，宝贝，就在这里。哦，可爱的本尼，你能呼吸吗？你真的没事吧？怎么了？你在里面呆多久了？”“我不知道，妈妈。但我不喜欢这样，我不喜欢华莱士住的地方。我想回家。”“哦，我也是不喜欢，亲爱的。来吧，本，抱住我，快。“妈妈，还有一件事……”“怎么了，本？”“我不想在万圣节扮鬼了。”
