- Tomorrow's September 1st," said Mom. - And then autumn came, and you will go to the second grade. Oh, how time flies!
- And on this occasion, - Daddy picked up, - we will now "cut" the watermelon!
And he took a knife and cut the watermelon. When he was cutting, I could hear such a full, pleasant, green crackling that my back got cold with a feeling of how I would eat this watermelon. And I had already opened my mouth to cling to the pink watermelon crowbar, but then the door opened and Pavlo entered the room. We were all terribly glad, because he hadn't been here for a long time and we missed him.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! - Dad said. - Pavla himself. Pavla-Borodavlia himself!
- Sit down with us, Pavlik, there is a watermelon," said Mom, "Deniska, move over.
- I said:
- Hi," he said, "and gave him a place next to him.
- Hello! - he said and sat down.
Pavla eats watermelon
And we started eating, and we ate and kept silent for a long time. We didn't want to talk. What's there to talk about when our mouths are so delicious!
- And when Paul was given the third piece, he said:
- Oh, I love watermelon. Even very much. My grandmother never lets me eat it on my own.
- And why? - My mother asked.
- She said that after a watermelon I have no dream, but running.
- It's true," said Dad. - That's why we eat watermelon early in the morning. In the evening its action ends, and you can sleep peacefully. Eat it, don't be afraid.
- I'm not afraid," Pavla said.
- And we all did it again and kept silent for a long time. And when Mom started to clean up the crust, Dad said:
- Have you been away from us for so long, Pavla?
- Yes," I said. - Where have you been? What were you doing?
- And then Pavla poured himself, blushed, looked around, and suddenly dropped so carelessly, as if unwillingly:
- What did you do, what did you do? I was learning English, that's what I was doing.
Denis and Dad were eating watermelon
I'm just being overwhelmed. I knew at once that I had missed all this summer for nothing. I was playing with hedgehogs, playing with my foot, doing nothing. But Pavla, he didn't waste any time, no, you're not, he was working on himself, he was raising his level of education. He studied English and now he can probably write to English pioneers and read English books! I immediately felt like I was dying of envy, and then my mother added:
- Here, Deniska, study. This is not your foot!
- Well done," said Dad. - I respect you!
Pavla shone right into the air.
- A student came to visit us, Seva. So he's working with me every day. It's been two months now. I tortured him right away.
- And what, difficult English language? - I asked.
- It's crazy," Pavla sighed.
- It wouldn't be hard," Daddy said. - There, their leg would be broken by the devil himself. It's a very complicated spelling. Liverpool is spelled and Manchester is pronounced.
- Yes!" I said. - Right, Pavla?
- It's a disaster," Pavla said. - I'm exhausted from these activities, I've lost two hundred grams in weight.
- So why don't you use your knowledge, Paula? - Mom said. - Why didn't you tell us hello when you walked in?
- I haven't gone through "hello" yet," Pavla said.
- Well, you ate a watermelon, why didn't you say "thank you"?
- I said," Paula said.
- Well, yes, you said it in Russian, but in English?
- We haven't made it to "thank you," Pavla said. - It's a very difficult job to do.
- Then I said:
- Pava, teach me, as in English, "one, two, three.
- I haven't learned that yet," Pavla said.
- What did you learn? - I shouted. - Did you learn anything in two months?
- I learned how to use Petya in English," Pavla said.
- How was it?
- Pete! - Pavla solemnly announced. - Petya will be Pete in English. - He laughed joyfully and added: "Tomorrow I will come to class and tell Petya Gorbushkin: "Pete, Pete, give me the eraser! My mouth will probably crack, it won't understand anything. It's going to be fun! Right, Denis?
- That's right," I said. - Well, what else do you know in English?
- That's all for now," Pavla said.