Learn English through Stories Level 3 ⭐ Alone At Night - Graded Reader | English Audio Podcast Story
My name is Rosa Brown. I am forty-seven years old. I lived near the center of town, but my small house had a garden. I liked my garden very much. It had a lot of flowers. I liked sitting there in the evenings and at weekends. My husband left me three years ago. He said he found someone else. I had no children, no family. #gradedreaderlevel3 #learnenglishthroughstorylevel3 #ieltspreparation #improveyourenglish #ielts_listening #englishstorywithsubtitle #englishstorywithsubtites #englishlisteningpractice #englishaudiobook #gradedreader #englishstories #learnenglishthroughstories #englishstory #englishstoryforlisteningtoimproveenglish #listeningenglishstory #englishstoryforlistening #gradedreader #learnenglishonline #bestenglishstory #bestenglishstories
00:00My name is Rosa Brown. I am 47 years old. I lived near the center of town, but my small house had a garden.
00:12I liked my garden very much. It had a lot of flowers. I liked sitting there in the evenings and at weekends.
00:23My husband left me three years ago. He said he found someone else. I had no children, no family.
00:33But I had a job. I worked in an office. It wasn't near my house, so I often went to work on the bus. I came home on the bus, too.
00:46I was a lonely woman. I didn't have many friends, and I didn't talk to many people, and so I was sad and often bored.
00:57One very hot day, I walked home. I didn't want to go on the bus that day. I wanted a walk in the warm sun.
01:08In one street there was a small shop. I looked in the window. There were very old things in the window, and I liked old things.
01:21I went into the shop. Good afternoon, said the man in the shop. Good afternoon, I said. Can I look round the shop?
01:31Please do, he said. So I looked at the things in the shop. I saw an old doll with a sad face. It wasn't a pretty face, but I liked it.
01:43The doll was a little old man with white hair and black clothes. I thought, perhaps the doll is lonely, too.
01:54I asked, how much do you want for this old doll? The man thought, oh, that. Three pounds, he said.
02:03I wanted the doll. Why? I didn't know. But I wanted it. Three pounds was a lot of money for an old doll, but I paid it.
02:15I went out with the doll in my hand. I looked at its face. Is it smiling? I wondered. No, I thought. It's only a doll. I said to it, I'm going to take you home.
02:30The doll didn't answer. It was only a doll. So why did I speak to it? Because I was lonely. I put it in my case with my papers from the office.
02:42I was tired now, so I got on the bus. The man came for my money, and I bought a ticket. Suddenly, somebody on the bus spoke.
02:55Go away, said the person. You stupid man. Go away. Everybody on the bus looked at me.
03:05Did she say that? They wondered. The ticket man was angry with me. Why did she say that? He wondered.
03:15He gave me a ticket and went away. He didn't like me. When I got home, I was very tired. Who spoke on the bus? I wondered.
03:27I didn't know. I took the doll out of my bag and looked at it. It was only a doll. It wasn't very pretty. It was quite ugly, but it had a smile on its face.
03:41That's strange, I thought. I put the doll on the table and had my dinner. I wasn't very hungry, so I only ate some bread and butter. Then I went to bed and slept.
03:59I forgot the doll. It was on the table. Morning came, and the sun shone into the room. I opened my eyes. There was something on my bed. What is it? I wondered.
04:15I looked, and I looked, and I saw the doll. But I left it on the table. It can't walk. It's only a doll.
04:23I didn't understand it. It was very strange. I went to the front door. Are there any letters for me? I wondered.
04:33Yes, there were three letters with my name and address. But what was this? The letters were open. Who opened them? I didn't know.
04:45I ate my breakfast. Then I went to the bus stop and waited. My bus came and stopped for me. I got on with my bag and sat down.
04:57There were a lot of people on the bus, and one old woman couldn't sit down. Her face was tired, and I was a kind woman. I stood up for her, and she sat down. Then suddenly, somebody spoke.
05:16You stupid old thing! The woman turned and looked at me. She was very angry. My face went red. Then I remembered the doll. I got off the bus. I couldn't understand it.
05:31What? That doll's at home, I thought. Or is it? I opened my bag and looked inside. The doll was there, with a big smile on its ugly face.
05:46I put the doll down on the street and left it there. Then I went to work. That's the end of that doll, I thought. I worked well all day.
05:58After work, I walked to the bus stop. But what was that? The doll was at the bus stop. I saw the white hair and the black clothes. And I saw the smile, too.
06:12What's happening? I wondered. It's waiting for me. It isn't only a doll. But what is it? I turned and ran away from the bus stop. Then I walked home.
06:25I had to walk three kilometers to my house. I was very tired. I sat down in a chair and went to sleep. I slept for an hour. Suddenly, there was a big noise in another room. Crash! Smash! I opened my eyes.
06:47What's wrong? I wondered. I went into the other room. The doll was there again. It sat on the table and looked at me. My cups and plates were all on the floor.
07:03It isn't only a doll, I thought. And it isn't a friend. This is difficult. What can I do?
07:12I took the doll into the garden and buried it in the ground. That really is the end of you, I said.
07:22You're under the ground now. You won't get out of there. Next day, I went to work on the bus. I didn't have the doll now and nobody spoke. I worked hard and I was happy.
07:39I came home again that night. I watched television. This is good, I thought. At eleven o'clock, I went to bed.
07:48The house was dark and quiet. But an hour later, there was a sudden noise in the night. I sat up in bed. I was cold and afraid.
08:02What was that noise? I wondered. The noise was coming from the back door. I was afraid, but I opened the door.
08:12It was the doll again. It was dirty from the ground, but it looked at me and smiled. It was a cold smile, and I was very afraid.
08:28I looked at the doll and said, Go away. Please, go away. The doll didn't speak. It only smiled again.
08:38I was very angry now. I took the doll into the garden again. I found some wood, and I made a big fire. I lit the fire. Then I put the doll on the top.
08:55Now die, I said. It's different this time. This will be the end of you. And I smiled.
09:03The fire was hot and red. The fire got bigger and bigger. Suddenly, there was a loud cry, and people ran out of their houses.
09:17What's wrong? They shouted.
09:20There's a big fire in Rosa Brown's garden, somebody said. Look, and there was a big fire.
09:30What do you think happened to Rosa Brown that night?
09:56Great. If you were Rosa Brown, what would you have done?
10:01Do let me know in the comments below.
10:05If you liked this story, please like, comment, share, and subscribe.
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