My friendship with Kathy wasn’t a perfect friendship. I learned very soon in our relationship that Kathy was jealous. We would have great fun going out shopping but if I bought, say, a dress for a party and she thought my dress was better than hers, she would start to say slightly unkind things about it. She would be keen to come out with me to buy the dress. She would give me a lot of helpful advice while I was trying on the various dresses in the shops. Her advice would be good. She would even tell the shop assistant if she thought the price was too high. I can remember one occasion when she said this and, to my surprise, they knocked the price down so that I could afford to buy it. The trouble would come later. When we were actually going to the party and we were both dressed up and she was looking marvellous (for she was very beautiful) she would suddenly say, “I think, Sarah, we were both wrong about that dress. It looks a bit cheap, doesn’t it!”
Once or twice I “dropped” Kathy. I told her I was too busy to see her. Or I told her I had to see another friend. All these lies hurt me because I had no other friend and I was so lonely. But they never hurt her. She just smiled sweetly and said she’d see me next week. And of course, within a week or so, I’d be on the phone asking her to come out. She never minded this. She never sulked at me and pretended that she was too busy.
Students always celebrated the end of the college year with a fancy-dress ball. It was a big event. But as luck would have it, Kathy and I had made another arrangements for the day of the ball. We had booked to go to the theatre. We had talked for ages of going, and at last we had our tickets. For us it was a big event. It was a musical and our favourite singer star was in it, so our hearts were set on the theatre.
Then Kathy came round to see me. Mother was in at the time, and I had to speak to her on the doorstep because Mum had just been having a go at me for seeing too much of Kathy.
“I don’t want that girl coming in this house and nosing around.” So I told Kathy I couldn’t invite her in because my Mum had a bad headache.
Kathy didn’t mind. She smiled and said she was sorry about my mother’s bad head. I was sure she knew what had really happened.
But she carried on smiling, and then she said: “I’m sorry, but I can’t come to the theatre with you after all. My brother’s come home and he wants to take me to the fancy-dress ball at the college. I can’t let him down.” I couldn’t believe that she would let me down. She knew how much I had looked forward to the theatre trip. We had talked about it together for months.
I was almost in tears by the time I had said goodbye to her and closed the door. My Mum was kind and understanding. She made me promise I would never see Kathy again. I agreed, and felt that was the least I could do by way of revenge for my disappointment. I told myself that I would never so much as talk to Kathy if I saw her. Our relationship was at an end. I would never forget what she had done to me.
A 1) When Sarah says that Kathy was jealous she implies that Kathy didn’t like it when Sarah
1) had fun going out.
2)
managed to buy the dress cheaply.
3)
wore expensive clothes.
4)
wore clothes smarter than her own.
A 2) When Sarah was buying a dress in a shop Kathy would
1) start to say slightly unkind things about it.
2)
do her best to ensure that Sarah made the best buy.
3)
insist that Sarah should buy a cheap dress.
4)
be keen to buy a marvellous dress for herself.
A 3) When Sarah tried to “drop” her, Kathy
1) pretended to be busy.
2)
went to see another friend.
3)
felt hurt and lonely.
4)
always took it easy.
A 4) “But as luck would have it” in paragraph 3 means Kathy and Sarah
1) had the luck to get the tickets for the musical.
2)
were happy to have made arrangements for the ball.
3)
were looking forward to hearing their favourite singer.
4)
had by chance two events on the same day.
A 5) Sarah couldn’t invite Kathy to come in because
1) their house was in a mess.
2)
her mother was suffering from a bad headache.
3)
her mother disapproved of her daughter’s friend.
4)
Kathy had come to their house to nose around.
A 6) Kathy said she didn’t mind speaking to Sarah on the doorstep because she
1) didn’t want to make Sarah feel uncomfortable.
2)
believed that Sarah’s Mum had a headache.
3)
did not want anyone to overhear them talking.
4)
was in a hurry to see her brother.
A 7) Sarah decided not to see Kathy again because
1) her mother forbade her.
2)
she couldn’t forgive Kathy.
3)
her mother was disappointed.
4)
she wanted to revenge for her mother.
