Page 190 - 9th-language-english-2

But she fled upstairs, nevertheless, with Sid and Mary on
her heels. And her face grew white, and her lips trembled. When
she reached the bedside, she gasped out, “You, Tom! Tom, what’s
the matter with you?”
Not to be republished
“Oh auntie, I’m......”

“What’s the matter with you? What’s the matter with you,
child?”
©KTBS
“Oh, auntie, my sore toe is mortified!”

The old lady sank down into a chair and laughed a little,
then cried a little, then did both together. This restored her and
she said:

“Tom, what a fright you gave me! Now I must get you to
stop this nonsense!”

The groans stopped and the pain disappeared from the toe.
The boy felt a little foolish, and he said, “Aunt Polly, it seemed
mortified, and it hurt so much, I don’t mind my tooth aching at
all.”

“Your tooth, indeed! What’s the matter with your tooth?”
“One of them is loose, and it aches terribly.”

“There, now. Don’t begin that groaning again. Open your
mouth. Well, your tooth is loose, but you’re not going to die of
that. I must now get Mary to bring me a few things.

“Mary, run along quickly and bring me a piece of silk thread
and some burning coals from the kitchen.”

“Oh, please auntie, don’t pull it out. It doesn’t hurt any
more. Please don’t auntie. I don’t want to stay home from school,”
Tom said.

“Oh, you don’t, do you? So all this row was because you
thought you’d stay home from school and go fishing. Tom, Tom,
I love you so, and you seem to try every way you can to break
my old heart.”

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