翻译 （三十七）：消失的过去/茱迪o皮考特 Vanishing Acts/Jodi Picoult

” 我能做什么？“

直到听到了狄利亚轻柔的声音，我才意识到她已经在厨房里站了好一会儿了。当她说话的时候，她不敢直视我的眼睛，这是一件好事。她帮助我把我的母亲扶到沙发上，移到她那边，这样如果她再生病，就不会被窒息。我打开电视机，放了一个我知道她喜欢看的肥皂剧。” 埃里卡，宝贝，你能给我...",我的母亲含含糊糊地说，但她没有说完就又晕了过去。当我环顾四周的时候，迪莉娅已经走了。

好吧！我并没有感到惊讶。实际上，这就是我一直对着我的两个最好的朋友保守这个秘密原因；一旦他们看到了真相，我敢肯定他们一定会调头逃跑。

我走回了厨房，每一只脚都如灌铅一样的沉重。迪莉娅站在那里，手里拿着一块海绵，盯着地上的油毡。“地毯清洁剂即使不用在地毯上也能起作用吗？“ 她问。

“ 你应该离开”，我告诉她。我看着地面上，假装我对那蓝色小点图案很感兴趣。

迪莉娅走过来向我靠近，看到了怪异而真实的我。她用一根手指在她的胸前划了一个X。 “我不会告诉任何人“。

一串眼泪如叛徒一样顺着我的脸颊流了下来；我用拳头把它擦掉。” 你应该离开“，我重复着，这是我最不愿意做的事情。

” 好的“，她回答道。但是她并没有离开。

“ what can I do?"

It wasn't until I heard Delia's quiet voice that I realized she had been standing in the kitchen for a while.

When she spoke, she couldn't meet my eyes, and that was a good thing. She helped me get my mother to the couch, onto her side, where if she got sick again she wouldn't choke. I turned on the TV, a soap I knew she liked. " Eric, baby, would you get me..." my mother slurred, but she didn't finish her sentence before she passed out again. When I looked around, Delia was gone.

Well, it didn't surprise me. It was, in fact, the reason I'd kept this secret from my two best friends; once they saw the truth, I was sure they'd turn tail and run.

I walked back to the kitchen, each foot a lead weight. Delia stood there, holding a sponge and staring down at the linoleum. " Will carpet cleaner work even if it's not used on carpet?" she asked.

" You should go," I told her. I looked down at the floor and pretended to be fascinated with the little blue dot pattern.

Delia came closer to me, seeing the freak I truly was. With one finger, she traced an X over her chest. " I won't tell."

One traitor tear slicked it's way down my cheek; I scrubbed it away with a fist. " You should go", I repeated, the last thing in the world that I wanted. " Okay," Delia agreed. But she didn't leave.