Cody and his sister April decide they want a dog. They head down to the local pet store and have a look around.
It is a very small pet store that doesn't have many animals.
The owner of the shop is a nice old man named Mr. Smith. He walks over and greets Cody and April.
"How can I help you?" he asks.
"We would like to buy a dog," April responds.
"Ah, well, we are not a big pet shop," Mr. Smith tells her. "So we only have two dogs to choose from."
They ask Mr. Smithto show them the dogs.
Mr. Smith leads them to the back of store where the two dogs are. One of them is a very big bulldog named Buster. The other is a very tiny chihuahua named Teacup.
April wantsTeacup. Cody wants Buster. They walk outside to discuss.
They can’t agreeon a dog. April suggests they race home for it. The winner of the race choosesthe dog.
Cody agrees, then tells April her shoelace is untied. When April looks down, he runs off and gets a head start.
Cody runs as hard as he can. He really wants that bulldog. He looks back. April is so far behind he can’t even see her.
Cody finally getshome. He is tired but he is happy. He knows he is the winner.
April arrives a few minutes after Cody. She congratulates him. They return to the pet store to purchase Buster the bulldog.
However, when they arrive they only see Teacup the chihuahua.
They ask Mr. Smithwhere Buster is.
Mr. Smith gives the details. He explains that a few minutes after April and Cody leave, two boys walk in and buy the bulldog.
Cody looks at April, and she holds back a smile. Cody sighs. He turns back to Mr. Smith.
"Sometimes you win the race, but not the prize!" Cody smiles sadly. "We’ll takethe chihuahua, please."
THE END
【关键词】
1. pet (n.) 宠物
2. head down to （phrase）前往
3. bulldog (n.) 斗牛犬
4. chihuahua (n.) 吉娃娃
5. shoelace (n.) 鞋带
6. get a head start (phrase) 获得先机
7. far behind (phrase) 差得远
8. congratulate (v.) 恭喜；祝贺
9. detail (n.) 细节；详情
10. sigh（v.）叹气
【译文】 宠物店
科迪和他的妹妹阿普丽尔决定养只狗。他们前往当地的宠物商店看看。
这是一个非常小的宠物商店，里面动物并不是很多。
店主是位好老头史密斯先生。他走过去迎接科迪和阿普丽尔。
“想买什么？”他问。
“我们想买一条狗，”阿普丽尔回应道。
“嗯，好吧，我们的店不大，”史密斯先生告诉她。 “所以我们只有两只狗可供选择。”
他俩让史密斯先生展示这些狗。
史密斯先生将他们带到两只狗所在的商店后面。这两只狗，一个名叫巴斯特，属于个头硕大的斗牛犬。另一个名为茶杯，属于个头娇小的吉娃娃。
阿普丽尔想要茶杯。科迪想要巴斯特。他们走到外面讨论。
俩人无法达成一致意见。阿普丽尔提议跑步比赛。谁先跑到家谁说了算。
科迪同意，然后告诉阿普丽尔她的鞋带开了。当阿普丽尔低头时，他获得先机，撒腿就跑。
科迪竭尽全力奔跑着。他真的想要那个斗牛犬。他回头张望。阿普丽尔被远远地甩在后面，他甚至都看不到她的影子。
科迪终于到家了。他很累，但也很开心。他知道自己赢了。
阿普丽尔比科迪晚到几分钟。她向他表示祝贺。俩人返回到宠物商店购买斗牛犬巴斯特。
然而，当他们到达店里时，却只看到了茶杯吉娃娃。
他们问史密斯先生巴斯特在哪儿。
史密斯先生道出实情。他解释说，就在阿普丽尔和科迪离开后几分钟，两个男孩进来买走了斗牛犬。
科迪看看阿普丽尔，她在强忍笑容。科迪叹了口气。他转身面向史密斯先生。
“有时候你赢了比赛，但得不到奖品！”科迪苦笑一下。 “我们买吉娃娃，拜托。”
（完）
