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Nicholls David One Day, Nicholls David One Day 1

Nicholls David One Day 1

Chapter one The Future Friday, 15th July 1988

Rankeillor Street, Edinburgh, Scotland

'The important thing in life is to make a difference - to make a change to something,' the girl said.

'Ah - you mean we have to change the world?' the boy replied.

'No, not all of the world, we just have to change the bit of it around us,' the girl said. She was silent for a moment, then she laughed at herself. 'I can't believe I said that. It's such a predictable thing to say, isn't it? But what are you going to do with your life? What's your plan?'

'Well, my parents are coming to collect me later today,' he told her. 'Then I'll go to France for a few weeks and after that, maybe I'll go to China.'

'Oh, you're going travelling,' she said wearily. 'You're predictable too. You've got too much money, that's your problem, Dexter. What you really mean is that you're running away from real life.'

'Travelling broadens the mind, Emma,' he said slowly. He was trying to copy the girl's accent. Suddenly, he leaned over her and kissed her.

'I think you're too broad-minded now,' the girl said, quickly turning her face away from him.

The girl was from Yorkshire, in the north of England. She was used to posh boys from the south making fun of her soft northern accent. Sometimes she didn't care, but now she suddenly felt annoyed with the boy. Everything was going wrong tonight.

'Anyway, I'm not talking about the immediate future,' she told him. 'I'm not asking about tomorrow, I'm asking what you want to be in twenty years from now.' At first, the best answer he could think of was 'I want to be rich and famous'. But then he thought a bit more and spoke seriously. 'I don't ever want to be different from this,' he said. 'I'd like to stay exactly as I am now. Every fifteenth of July, I want to be just like this.'

The girl was called Emma Morley. The boy's name was Dexter Mayhew. They were lying on the narrow bed in Emma's room in a shared flat. It was four o'clock in the morning. The two young people didn't know each other very well, but certainly this was a night for thinking about the future. It was the last night of their university life in Edinburgh. Earlier in the day, after four years, they had finally graduated. Soon they would go in separate directions.

Emma looked up at the boy as he leaned over her. She was a little annoyed with him, but she still thought that he was handsome. 'Mm - handsome. Perhaps "beautiful" is a better word,' she thought. And she knew that lots of the other girl students agreed with her - especially the posh ones from the south. They all knew that he would get their clothes off and get them into his bed. His body was muscular and the skin of his face was tight. His eyebrows were slim and his lips were full. 'Yes, he's beautiful, but he looks a little like a cat,' Emma told herself.

'I think I can imagine you when you're forty,' she said unkindly. 'You'll have an expensive red sports car and live in the most expensive part of London. You'll be married to your third wife - no, I'm wrong, your fourth wife. There won't be any children. You're too selfish for children. No children, just three expensive divorces.' 'Well, Em,' Dexter began crossly.

'Who's "Em"?' Emma quickly asked.

'Your friends call you "Em", I've heard them call you that,' he said.

'Ah, yes, my friends call me that,' Emma replied.

'Can't I call you that?' he asked.

He sounded worried.

'Oh, all right then, Dex,' she said. 'Go on.'

'Well, if you think I'm so terrible why are you sleeping with me?' he asked.

'Well, I don't think I really have slept with you, have I?' she replied. 'You can choose either meaning of "sleep" - I mean, we haven't been to sleep and we haven't done anything else, have we?'

'No,' the boy said, 'no, we haven't quite done that.'

Tonight Emma had wanted something different. She wasn't sure what it was, but their names sounded good together. 'Emma and Dexter,' she thought. 'Em and Dex.'

'Wait there,' Emma said. 'I'm just going to the bathroom. Don't go away.' She put on her thick glasses and walked towards the door.

In the bathroom, Emma asked herself why she was being difficult with the boy. 'He's certainly very bourgeois and he isn't very clever, but I really like him,' she told herself.

Emma had liked Dexter since she'd first met him at a party two years before. But she'd never got to know him and in just a few hours he would be gone. And he certainly wasn't going to ask her to go to China with him. It was a bit sad. For the first time in four years she was with a boy she really liked. But she couldn't relax with him. They had been kissing and talking for eight hours now and she still didn't know what she wanted. Dexter, waiting in the bedroom, looked around him. He had been in so many rooms like this one - rooms where girls like Emma lived. These girls always wore t-shirts with political slogans on the fronts. There were always political posters on their walls. There were always CDs of political songs. They were all the same, these girls with socialist ideas. They always thought that he was horribly bourgeois and they always thought that being bourgeois was bad. Well, he had news for them. He thought that being bourgeois was just fine.

Dexter hadn't really decided yet on a map for his future life. But he was twenty-three years old and he had some ambitions. He wanted to be successful at something - he just didn't know at what. He wanted to make his parents proud of him. He wanted to meet lots of women. He wanted to have lots of fun in his life and he wanted never to be sad.

Thinking about fun and sadness, Dexter was now feeling that this night had been a mistake. There were going to be tears. There were going to be angry phone calls.

Emma returned and lay down beside him again. She had put on a t-shirt with a political slogan on the front.

'Do you mind if we just cuddle, Dex?' Emma said.

Dexter didn't think this was a good idea at all, but he didn't say so. 'OK, if that's what you want,' he said, without interest.

'I can't believe I just said "cuddle",' Emma said, after a minute of silence. 'What a terrible bourgeois word for me to use! I'm sorry.' 'We must get some sleep,' said Dexter. He was thinking, 'This must never happen again.'

There was daylight outside the window. Dexter was still awake and he was looking at Emma, who was sleeping next to him. 'I could leave quietly now, before she wakes up,' he told himself. 'Then I don't need to see her again. Will she mind? Probably, girls usually do mind. But will I mind?'

It was strange, but the answer to this was not clear to Dexter. There was something about Emma. She was pretty, but she seemed to hate herself for that. The red colour of her hair was out of a bottle and her hairstyle was awful. Dexter guessed that Emma's hair had been cut by Tilly Killick, the large, noisy girl who lived in the other room in this flat. 'But never mind the hair,' Dexter thought. 'Her face is really pretty and her body's amazing.'

Soon he decided that he would leave quietly, never mind what Emma's face and body were like. 'I'll probably never see her again,' he told himself.

Dexter was about to get quietly out of bed when Emma woke up.

'What are you doing later today?' she asked, sleepily.

'Tell her you're busy!' said a voice in Dexter's head.

'I don't have any plans,' he said aloud.

'Shall we do something together then?' she asked.

'Yes, all right,' Dexter said.

A moment later, Emma was asleep again.


Nicholls David One Day 1

Chapter one The Future Friday, 15th July 1988

Rankeillor Street, Edinburgh, Scotland

'The important thing in life is to make a difference - to make a change to something,' the girl said. "Найголовніше в житті - це щось змінити - щось змінити", - сказала дівчина.

'Ah - you mean we have to change the world?' "Ах - ви маєте на увазі, що ми повинні змінити світ?" the boy replied.

'No, not all of the world, we just have to change the bit of it around us,' the girl said. "Ні, не у всьому світі, ми просто повинні змінити частинку цього навколо нас", - сказала дівчина. She was silent for a moment, then she laughed at herself. Вона якусь мить мовчала, а потім засміялася над собою. 'I can't believe I said that. `` Не можу повірити, що я це сказав. It's such a predictable thing to say, isn't it? É uma coisa tão previsível de se dizer, não é? Це така передбачувана річ, чи не так? But what are you going to do with your life? Але що ти збираєшся робити зі своїм життям? What's your plan?'

'Well, my parents are coming to collect me later today,' he told her. "Ну, мої батьки підуть забрати мене пізніше сьогодні", - сказав він їй. 'Then I'll go to France for a few weeks and after that, maybe I'll go to China.' "Тоді я поїду до Франції на кілька тижнів, а після цього, можливо, поїду до Китаю".

'Oh, you're going travelling,' she said wearily. - Oh, você vai viajar - disse ela, cansada. - О, ти їдеш у подорож, - втомлено сказала вона. 'You're predictable too. - Você também é previsível. - Ти теж передбачуваний. You've got too much money, that's your problem, Dexter. Você tem muito dinheiro, esse é o seu problema, Dexter. У вас занадто багато грошей, це ваша проблема, Декстер. What you really mean is that you're running away from real life.' O que você realmente quer dizer é que está fugindo da vida real. ' Ви маєте на увазі те, що тікаєте від реального життя '.

'Travelling broadens the mind, Emma,' he said slowly. - Viajar amplia a mente, Emma - disse ele lentamente. - Подорожі розширюють наш розум, Емма, - повільно сказав він. He was trying to copy the girl's accent. Ele estava tentando copiar o sotaque da garota. Suddenly, he leaned over her and kissed her. De repente, ele se inclinou sobre ela e a beijou.

'I think you're too broad-minded now,' the girl said, quickly turning her face away from him. - Acho que você tem a mente aberta demais agora - disse a garota, afastando rapidamente o rosto dele. - Думаю, ти зараз надто широкий, - сказала дівчина, швидко відвернувшись від нього.

The girl was from Yorkshire, in the north of England. A menina era de Yorkshire, no norte da Inglaterra. She was used to posh boys from the south making fun of her soft northern accent. Ela estava acostumada com os meninos elegantes do sul zombando de seu sotaque suave do norte. Її звикли шикувати хлопчиків з півдня, висміюючи її м’який північний акцент. Sometimes she didn't care, but now she suddenly felt annoyed with the boy. Às vezes ela não se importava, mas agora de repente se sentia irritada com o menino. Іноді їй було все одно, але тепер вона раптом відчула роздратування з хлопчиком. Everything was going wrong tonight. Tudo estava dando errado esta noite. Сьогодні ввечері все йшло не так.

'Anyway, I'm not talking about the immediate future,' she told him. "De qualquer forma, não estou falando sobre o futuro imediato", disse ela. "У будь-якому випадку, я не кажу про найближче майбутнє", - сказала вона йому. 'I'm not asking about tomorrow, I'm asking what you want to be in twenty years from now.' 'Não estou perguntando sobre amanhã, estou perguntando o que você quer ser daqui a vinte anos.' "Я не питаю про завтра, я питаю, якою ти хочеш стати через двадцять років". At first, the best answer he could think of was 'I want to be rich and famous'. No início, a melhor resposta que ele conseguiu pensar foi 'Eu quero ser rico e famoso'. But then he thought a bit more and spoke seriously. Mas então ele pensou um pouco mais e falou sério. 'I don't ever want to be different from this,' he said. “Nunca quero ser diferente disso”, disse ele. 'I'd like to stay exactly as I am now. Every fifteenth of July, I want to be just like this.'

The girl was called Emma Morley. The boy's name was Dexter Mayhew. They were lying on the narrow bed in Emma's room in a shared flat. Eles estavam deitados na cama estreita do quarto de Emma em um apartamento compartilhado. Вони лежали на вузькому ліжку в кімнаті Емми у спільній квартирі. It was four o'clock in the morning. Eram quatro horas da manhã. The two young people didn't know each other very well, but certainly this was a night for thinking about the future. Os dois jovens não se conheciam muito bem, mas certamente esta foi uma noite para pensar no futuro. Двоє молодих людей не дуже добре знали одне одного, але, звичайно, це була ніч для роздумів про майбутнє. It was the last night of their university life in Edinburgh. Це була остання ніч їх університетського життя в Единбурзі. Earlier in the day, after four years, they had finally graduated. No início do dia, após quatro anos, eles finalmente se formaram. Раніше того дня, через чотири роки, вони нарешті закінчили навчання. Soon they would go in separate directions. Logo eles seguiriam direções diferentes.

Emma looked up at the boy as he leaned over her. Emma olhou para o menino quando ele se inclinou sobre ela. She was a little annoyed with him, but she still thought that he was handsome. Ela estava um pouco irritada com ele, mas ainda o achava bonito. Вона трохи дратувалась над ним, але все одно вважала, що він гарний. 'Mm - handsome. 'Mm - lindo. Perhaps "beautiful" is a better word,' she thought. Talvez "bonito" seja uma palavra melhor ', pensou ela. And she knew that lots of the other girl students agreed with her - especially the posh ones from the south. І вона знала, що багато інших дівчат-студентів погоджуються з нею - особливо шикарні з півдня. They all knew that he would get their clothes off and get them into his bed. Todos sabiam que ele iria tirar suas roupas e colocá-los em sua cama. Всі вони знали, що він зніме з них одяг і занесе їх у своє ліжко. His body was muscular and the skin of his face was tight. Seu corpo era musculoso e a pele de seu rosto era rígida. His eyebrows were slim and his lips were full. Suas sobrancelhas eram finas e seus lábios carnudos. 'Yes, he's beautiful, but he looks a little like a cat,' Emma told herself. 'Sim, ele é lindo, mas parece um pouco com um gato', Emma disse a si mesma.

'I think I can imagine you when you're forty,' she said unkindly. - Acho que posso imaginar você aos quarenta anos - disse ela com grosseria. - Думаю, я можу уявити тебе, коли тобі буде сорок, - сказала вона недоброзичливо. 'You'll have an expensive red sports car and live in the most expensive part of London. You'll be married to your third wife - no, I'm wrong, your fourth wife. There won't be any children. Não haverá filhos. You're too selfish for children. Você é muito egoísta para crianças. No children, just three expensive divorces.' Sem filhos, apenas três divórcios caros. 'Well, Em,' Dexter began crossly. - Bem, Em - Dexter começou irritado.

'Who's "Em"?' Emma quickly asked. Emma perguntou rapidamente.

'Your friends call you "Em", I've heard them call you that,' he said. 'Seus amigos chamam você de' Em ', já ouvi eles te chamarem assim', disse ele.

'Ah, yes, my friends call me that,' Emma replied.

'Can't I call you that?' - Não posso te chamar assim? "Чи не можу я вас так назвати?" he asked.

He sounded worried. Ele parecia preocupado. Він прозвучав стурбований.

'Oh, all right then, Dex,' she said. - Ah, tudo bem então, Dex - disse ela. - О, добре тоді, Декс, - сказала вона. 'Go on.' 'Prossiga.'

'Well, if you think I'm so terrible why are you sleeping with me?' - Bem, se você acha que sou tão terrível, por que está dormindo comigo? he asked.

'Well, I don't think I really have slept with you, have I?' - Bem, acho que realmente não dormi com você, dormi? "Ну, я не думаю, що я насправді спав з тобою, так?" she replied. 'You can choose either meaning of "sleep" - I mean, we haven't been to sleep and we haven't done anything else, have we?' 'Você pode escolher qualquer um dos significados de' dormir '- quero dizer, não fomos dormir e não fizemos mais nada, não é?' "Ви можете вибрати будь-яке значення" спати "- я маю на увазі, ми не спали і не робили нічого іншого, правда?"

'No,' the boy said, 'no, we haven't quite done that.' "Não", disse o menino, "não, ainda não fizemos isso." "Ні," сказав хлопець, "ні, ми ще не зовсім цього зробили".

Tonight Emma had wanted something different. Esta noite Emma queria algo diferente. Сьогодні ввечері Емма хотіла чогось іншого. She wasn't sure what it was, but their names sounded good together. Ela não tinha certeza do que era, mas seus nomes soavam bem juntos. Вона не була впевнена, що це, але їх імена добре звучали разом. 'Emma and Dexter,' she thought. 'Em and Dex.'

'Wait there,' Emma said. - Espere aí - disse Emma. 'I'm just going to the bathroom. Don't go away.' She put on her thick glasses and walked towards the door. Ela colocou os óculos grossos e caminhou em direção à porta.

In the bathroom, Emma asked herself why she was being difficult with the boy. 'He's certainly very bourgeois and he isn't very clever, but I really like him,' she told herself. “Ele é certamente muito burguês e não é muito inteligente, mas gosto mesmo dele”, disse ela a si mesma.

Emma had liked Dexter since she'd first met him at a party two years before. Emma gostava de Dexter desde que o conhecera em uma festa, dois anos antes. But she'd never got to know him and in just a few hours he would be gone. Mas ela nunca o conheceu e em apenas algumas horas ele teria partido. Але вона ніколи не знала його, і лише за кілька годин його не буде. And he certainly wasn't going to ask her to go to China with him. E ele certamente não iria pedir que ela fosse para a China com ele. І він точно не збирався просити її поїхати з ним до Китаю. It was a bit sad. Foi um pouco triste. For the first time in four years she was with a boy she really liked. Pela primeira vez em quatro anos, ela estava com um garoto de quem realmente gostava. But she couldn't relax with him. Mas ela não conseguia relaxar com ele. They had been kissing and talking for eight hours now and she still didn't know what she wanted. Eles estavam se beijando e conversando por oito horas agora e ela ainda não sabia o que queria. Вони цілувались і розмовляли вже вісім годин, і вона все ще не знала, чого хоче. Dexter, waiting in the bedroom, looked around him. Dexter, esperando no quarto, olhou em volta. He had been in so many rooms like this one - rooms where girls like Emma lived. Ele tinha estado em tantos quartos como este - quartos onde moravam garotas como Emma. Він був у стількох кімнатах, подібних до цієї, - кімнатах, де жили дівчата, як Емма. These girls always wore t-shirts with political slogans on the fronts. There were always political posters on their walls. There were always CDs of political songs. They were all the same, these girls with socialist ideas. Усі вони були однакові, ці дівчата з соціалістичними ідеями. They always thought that he was horribly bourgeois and they always thought that being bourgeois was bad. Eles sempre pensaram que ele era horrivelmente burguês e sempre pensaram que ser burguês era ruim. Вони завжди думали, що він жахливо буржуазний, і завжди думали, що бути буржуа - це погано. Well, he had news for them. Bem, ele tinha novidades para eles. Ну, він мав для них новини. He thought that being bourgeois was just fine. Ele achava que ser burguês estava bem.

Dexter hadn't really decided yet on a map for his future life. Dexter ainda não havia decidido um mapa para sua vida futura. Декстер ще не визначився з картою свого майбутнього життя. But he was twenty-three years old and he had some ambitions. He wanted to be successful at something - he just didn't know at what. He wanted to make his parents proud of him. He wanted to meet lots of women. Ele queria conhecer muitas mulheres. He wanted to have lots of fun in his life and he wanted never to be sad. Ele queria se divertir muito em sua vida e nunca queria ficar triste.

Thinking about fun and sadness, Dexter was now feeling that this night had been a mistake. Pensando em diversão e tristeza, Dexter agora sentia que aquela noite tinha sido um erro. Думаючи про веселощі та смуток, Декстер тепер відчував, що ця ніч була помилкою. There were going to be tears. Iria haver lágrimas. Були сльози. There were going to be angry phone calls. Haveria ligações furiosas. Були розлючені телефонні дзвінки.

Emma returned and lay down beside him again. Emma voltou e se deitou ao lado dele novamente. She had put on a t-shirt with a political slogan on the front. Ela vestiu uma camiseta com um slogan político na capa.

'Do you mind if we just cuddle, Dex?' - Você se importa se nós apenas nos acariciarmos, Dex? - Ти не заперечуєш, якщо ми просто обіймемось, Декс? Emma said.

Dexter didn't think this was a good idea at all, but he didn't say so. Dexter não achou que fosse uma boa ideia, mas não disse isso. 'OK, if that's what you want,' he said, without interest. "Tudo bem, se é isso que você quer", disse ele, sem interesse.

'I can't believe I just said "cuddle",' Emma said, after a minute of silence. - Não acredito que acabei de dizer "abraço" - disse Emma, após um minuto de silêncio. "Я не можу повірити, що я просто сказала" обнятись ", - сказала Емма, після хвилини мовчання. 'What a terrible bourgeois word for me to use! - Que palavra burguesa terrível para eu usar! - Яке страшне буржуазне слово для мене! I'm sorry.' 'We must get some sleep,' said Dexter. - Precisamos dormir um pouco - disse Dexter. He was thinking, 'This must never happen again.' Ele estava pensando: 'Isso nunca deve acontecer novamente.'

There was daylight outside the window. Dexter was still awake and he was looking at Emma, who was sleeping next to him. Dexter ainda estava acordado e olhando para Emma, que dormia ao lado dele. 'I could leave quietly now, before she wakes up,' he told himself. "Я міг би спокійно піти зараз, поки вона не прокинеться", - сказав він собі. 'Then I don't need to see her again. Will she mind? Ela vai se importar? Чи буде вона проти? Probably, girls usually do mind. Provavelmente, as meninas geralmente se importam. Напевно, дівчата зазвичай роблять щось проти. But will I mind?' Але я заперечу? '

It was strange, but the answer to this was not clear to Dexter. Це було дивно, але відповідь на це для Декстера не був зрозумілим. There was something about Emma. Щось було в Еммі. She was pretty, but she seemed to hate herself for that. Ela era bonita, mas parecia se odiar por isso. Вона була вродлива, але, здавалося, ненавиділа себе за це. The red colour of her hair was out of a bottle and her hairstyle was awful. A cor vermelha de seu cabelo estava fora de forma e seu penteado era horrível. Dexter guessed that Emma's hair had been cut by Tilly Killick, the large, noisy girl who lived in the other room in this flat. Dexter adivinhou que o cabelo de Emma fora cortado por Tilly Killick, a garota grande e barulhenta que morava no outro cômodo deste apartamento. 'But never mind the hair,' Dexter thought. 'Mas não importa o cabelo', pensou Dexter. 'Her face is really pretty and her body's amazing.'

Soon he decided that he would leave quietly, never mind what Emma's face and body were like. Незабаром він вирішив, що піде спокійно, не зважаючи на те, якими були обличчя та тіло Емми. 'I'll probably never see her again,' he told himself.

Dexter was about to get quietly out of bed when Emma woke up. Dexter estava prestes a se levantar silenciosamente da cama quando Emma acordou.

'What are you doing later today?' 'O que você vai fazer mais tarde hoje?' she asked, sleepily.

'Tell her you're busy!' "Скажи їй, що ти зайнятий!" said a voice in Dexter's head.

'I don't have any plans,' he said aloud.

'Shall we do something together then?' she asked.

'Yes, all right,' Dexter said.

A moment later, Emma was asleep again. Um momento depois, Emma estava dormindo novamente.