Page 15 - Ext. Listening Reading_Neat

then sets to work on it. It’s not infectious. It wasn’t until she’d left and I was clearing
It’s not contagious. It’s not a threat to the table that I noticed the paper lid that
anyone else. It exists to live off, then kill had covered the marmalade jar. I picked
off its host. And in killing its host it kills it up and smiled. On it the old lady had
itself. written

And I had moved on. A few months later, ‘For Mike.’
despite protests and concern from family
and friends I’d sold up and moved here to I lay awake a long time that night thinking
this small, white washed village in the about Ruth. Smiling through tears, I
province of Seville. A few mornings later remembered our countless little private
the old lady entered the garden and jokes. Then I slept and dreamt deeply and
approached me as I sat reading at the vividly. We were at home in the evening
wooden trestle table. I beckoned her to sit and it was peaceful. I was watching her
down. She chose the bench seat opposite reading a book. I was thinking God, I
me and, once she’d made herself really love you when she suddenly looked
comfortable, retrieved a jar of marmalade up and caught my gaze. Slow, knowing
and a loaf of uncut bread from her basket smiles broke across our faces. Ruth had a
and laid them on the table. repertoire of smiles and this was the
vulnerable, lop-sided one that always
‘‘Mermelada!’’ she exclaimed, excitedly. I made me feel so protective of her.
smiled and went to the kitchen, returning
with a bread knife, two plates and two I’d kept a long, pink ribbon, its colour a
mugs of coffee. recognised symbol of defiance against the
cancerous invader. After breakfast the
‘‘Café con leche!’’ I exclaimed, pleased with next day I retrieved it from a ‘yet to be
my pronunciation. The old lady cut two unpacked’ trolley bag and went out to the
thick slices off the loaf then removed the garden. Under a brilliant blue white sky I
paper lid which had been held onto the jar followed the path’s meandering journey
with an elastic band. Finally, she smeared down to the orange grove. There were six
the thick orange marmalade onto the two trees; four almost identical in size and
slices of bread and passed one to me. We shape were huddled together and off to
ate in comfortable silence. Suddenly the one side a larger tree with a smaller one in
memory of companionship caused a lump its shadow. This stunted tree’s main
to form in my throat. I looked down as a bough had grown out in an unusual angle
wave of grief overcame me. The old lady’s in order to receive sunlight from under the
rough, calloused hands moved across the larger tree’s canopy and had a, kind of,
table to cover my own. Her face had an lop-sided look about it. I tied the ribbon
expression of understanding and tightly round the trunk of this little fighter
compassion. She didn’t speak but nodded then slowly retraced my steps to the
slowly which somehow soothed me as she cottage.
rubbed her course fingers across the back
of my hands. Salty tears slipped down my Time heals all and today the hurt began to
face and I nodded slowly in silent fade.
acknowledgement. Adapted from: https://short-story.me/romance-stories

Glossary

Word Definition
Jot not at all or not even a small amount
dyke a wall built to prevent the sea or a river from covering an area
nibbles small pieces of food that are eaten between or before meals
contagious describes a disease that can be caught by touching someone with the disease
smear to spread a liquid or a thick substance over a surface
repertoire all the music or plays, etc. that you can do or perform or that you know
huddled standing or sitting close together

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