A SAD STORY
Three men came to New York for a holiday. They came to a very large hotel and took a room there. Their room was on the forty-fifth floor.
In the evening the three men went to the theatre and came back to the hotel very late.
‘I am very sorry,’ said the hotel clerk, ‘but our lifts are not working. If you do not want to walk up to your room, you will have to sleep in the hall.’
‘No, no,’ said one of the three men, ‘no, thank you. We do not want to sleep in the hall. We shall walk up to our room.’
Then he turned to his two friends and said: ‘It is not easy to walk up to the forty-fifth floor, but I think I know how to make it easier. I shall tell you some jokes. Then you, Andy, will sing us some songs. Then you, Peter, will tell us some interesting stories. That will pass the time.’
So they began to walk up to their room. Tom told them many jokes. Andy sang some songs. At last they came to the thirty-fourth floor. They were very tired.
‘Well,’ said Tom, ‘now it is your turn, Peter. Tell us a long and interesting story with a sad ending.’
‘I shall tell you a story’, said Peter. ‘It is not long, but it is sad enough: we left the key to our room in the hall.’
clerk |klɑːk| - клерк
one of the… - один з…
pass the time - гаяти час
at last - нарешті