Can you fill in the missing words in bold?
‘I tell you,’ I said angrily, ‘there are no ghosts. I do not b. i. them.’ I sat i. f. o. the fire with a glass in my hand. I l. a. the old man and woman. They sat i. f. o. the fire with me and warmed their hands.
‘It is your choice,’ said the old man.
‘I am twenty-eight years old,’ I said, ‘and only children b. i. ghosts.’
The old woman l. i. the fire. ‘Yes,’ she said, ‘you are twenty-eight years old but you don’t know anything.’
‘You are trying to make me afraid,’ I said and put my glass down on the table. I s. u. There was a big mirror i. f. o. me. I l. a. the mirror and saw my face. ‘I say again, there are no ghosts.’
The old man l. a. me and I saw the fire in his eyes. ‘That is your choice.’
Just then, the door opened and another old man came in. He walked very slowly and he looked a lot older than his friends. He had no hair and his teeth were yellow. He did not l. a. me. He went and sat in one of the chairs. I watched him s. d. slowly.
‘My husband is right: this has nothing to do with us. It is your choice,’ said the old woman.
‘I know,’ I said. ‘I heard you and I choose to stay. Now please take me to the room, I am tired and I want to sleep.’
‘You can go alone,’ said the old woman. ‘I am not taking you to that room.’
‘All right,’ I said. ‘Where do I go?’
‘The room is upstairs. Go along the corridor and through a door. The red room is o. y. l.,’ said the old man.
‘Goodnight to you all,’ I said but I did not move.
The three of them l. a. me and I did not like the look on their faces. I laughed. ‘I am not going to die tonight. There is no ghost.’
They said nothing.
‘Goodnight,’ I said again and this time I left the room. When I closed the door, I heard the oldest man say something.
I heard him say: ‘Goodbye.’
This task is an adaption of an idea by Leo Selivan. The original article can be found at the British Council website (http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/revisiting-texts)
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