Advanced English Conversations (2) - Robert Allans, Matt Edie, A. Mustafaoglu 2020

Set 22 - I never felt an ounce of remorse

James: I was bullied in middle school. Two boys bullied me for no reason. One boy died several years ago and I never felt an ounce of remorse. The other is successful and though I don't keep up with him, I will always have disdain for him. Every time I see him, I avoid bumping into him. I still harbor the feelings of animosity and bitterness against them.

Bill: Well; had I not gotten bullied, I might have never learned how to actually interact with people. It taught me how to stand up for myself and I'm a stronger person as a result. I was bullied because I was new. My uncle told me to stand up for myself, no matter the cost. He and my parents promised that I wouldn't get any consequences from them and that they'd support me through any consequences from school.

James: Really? That’s thrilling. What happened then?

Bill: To cut a long story short. One day, my normal two bullies we're having a picnic beating on me, then forced my friends to chime in. Then, this overwhelming atom bomb of anger just exploded inside me and I went nuts on them. Gave one kid a black eye, another got a concussion, and my "friends" fell right in line.

Vocabulary;

bully: to hurt or frighten someone, often over a period of time, and often forcing that person to do something they do not want to do

an ounce of: a very small amount.

keep up with: to move or progress at the same rate as someone or something else.

disdain: dislike of someone or something that you feel does not deserve your interest or respect

bump into: to chance on someone; to meet someone by chance.

harbor: to think about or feel something, usually over a long period.

animosity: strong dislike, opposition, or anger

stand up for: to defend or show one's support for someone or something.

no matter the cost: no matter what expense or difficulty is involved. at any price.

to cut a long story short: to skip boring, extraneous, or unnecessary details; to get to the point.

chime in: to join.

go nuts: to become extremely angry.

black eye: an area of bruised skin around the eye resulting from a blow.

concussion: temporary unconsciousness or confusion caused by a blow on the head.

fall in line: starts to follow the rules and behave according to expected standards of behavior.

Exercise;

Fill in the gaps with the appropriate phrases or words;

1. The man's will was to do right , sure enough, but his heart didn't .......... in.

2. If he has an .......... of common sense, he'll realize that this project is bound to fail.

3. My leg was hurt, but I was able to .......... up with the rest of the team during our run.

4. Our survey indicates that one in four children is .......... at school.

5. How did you get that .......... eye? Were you in a fight?

6. Drinan suffered a .........., a broken left hip, a broken left foot and a bruised lung in a Saturday crash.

7. My sister will go .......... when she finds out I've wrecked her car.

8. We didn't mean to exclude you! When Chad and I went out, we just .......... into the rest of the group, that's all.

9. My friend introduced me to her at a work function a year ago, and, to cut a .......... story short, we're moving in together next month.

10. She was driven to provide a good life for the two of them, no .......... the cost.

11. Thank you for .......... up for me back there. It just felt like everyone was against me.

12. The European Community helped France and Germany forget the old .......... between them.

13. He's been .......... a grudge against her ever since his promotion was refused.

14. The mayor’s .......... for his opponents was well known.

15. Most lagging addicts quickly fall in .......... to avoid being ostracized.

1. chime 2. ounce 3. keep 4. bullied 5. black 6. concussion 7. nuts 8. bumped 9. long 10. matter 11. standing 12. animosities 13. harboring 14. disdain 15. line