本文是经典爱情电影听力系列The Lake House(湖边小屋,又叫“触不到的恋人”)的第十六段对白。
Kate的时间里,生日又一次到来,她却只身坐在酒吧,算是给自己的生日礼物。同事Anna也来到这里。各有各的寂寞。Anna依然清晰记得女儿在泥水地乱跑摔跤的情形,可现在女儿却已经念大学了。
两年前的生日,Morgan召集一大帮朋友给Kate过生日,Kate似乎不太喜欢这种热闹的场面。对客人只是应付而已。生日宴会上,Kate认识了Alex,但此时的她,应付的心理怎么会记得这个人呢?
时空就在这两年的生日里转换。Kate告诉Anna那个活生生站在自己面前,想和她结婚的男人,她推开了;而这个只能感觉到,却触摸不到的人,她却想给他整个全部……
Anna:According to most accepted social norms, a person should not drink alone after 10 p.m unless they have a good excuse. What's yours?
Kate:Gosh, don't have one.
Anna:I do. My youngest left for college this morning. Marie. One day she's splashing around a wading pool in diapers then she's packing up a Volvo and driving to California. I just hope she knows what she's getting into.
Kate:Don't tell me. Premed?
Anna:Bingo.
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Morgan:Hey, how are you? Good to see you.
Alex:I'm well, thanks.
Morgan:I want you to meet some friends of mine. Alex, Mona, the Wootch. Susan, Johnny.
Alex:Hi.
Morgan:Let's get you something to drink. Come on. Bar's back here. Come on. Hey, this is Marjorie.
Anna:Why didn't you mention it was today? We would have had a cake for you or something.
Kate:Oh, it's just time passing. I hate making a big deal out of it.
Anna:You keep a lot to yourself. Nothing wrong with it. But I've sometimes wondered what else you have in your life besides work. Family? Boyfriend?
Kate:Well, I did. Once. His name was Morgan.
Anna:Morgan? Morgan. That's a sexy name.
All:Surprise! Happy birthday, Kate. Happy birthday. Happy birthday. We got you.
Morgan:This is Kate, obviously.
Someone:Hi, Kate.
Morgan:This is Alex and Mona. This guy's gonna help us find our lake house. Right?
Alex:You haven't had cake.
Kate:Anyway, well, I ended it. And I'm happy now, and it was the right thing to do.
Anna:So who is it you write to? I couldn't help... every time you get a break at the hospital...you're writing something.
Kate:There is someone. It's kind of a long-distance relationship.
Anna:How did you meet?
Kate:We haven't.
Anna:What?
Kate:No. The story of my life.
Anna:You're kidding.
Kate:Keep everything at a distance. Everyone. The man who was standing in front of me, the one that wanted to marry me, him, I push away. I run from him. In the meantime, the...the one man I can never meet...him, I would like to give my whole heart to.
Anna:He must write one hell of a letter.
Kate:It's nice. It's safe.
Anna:Christ, he's in prison, isn't he?
Kate:No.
Anna:You're one of those women, aren't you?
Kate:No. No, he's just a guy who lives on a lake. He's an architect.
注释:
1. social norm:社会规范
2. gosh:感叹词,唉,糟糕
3. diaper:尿布。Anna依然记得小女儿很小的时候摔跤的情景,而现在就要去读大学了。
4. make a big deal out of:小题大做
5. long-distance:长途,远距离。Kate形容和Alex的关系距离很远。
6. You're kidding:美国常用的口语,意思是“你在开玩笑吧”
7. push away:推开