GRE Words and Short Stories #8
- austere-(adj)-severe or stern in appearance; undecorated
- credulous-(adj)-too trusting; gullible
- disabuse-(v)-to set right; to free from error
- engender-(v)-to produce, cause, or bring about
- exigent-(adj)-urgent; requiring immediate action
- laud-(v)-to give praise; to glorify
- obdurate-(adj)-hardening in feeling; resistant to persuasion
- pedant-(n)-one who shows off learning
- propitiate-(adj)-to conciliate; to appease
- tacit-(adj)-done without using words
- whimsical-(adj)-acting in a fanciful or capricious manner; unpredictable
- banal-(adj)-predictable, cliched, boring.
Story
He laid there, on the grass, in the middle of the soccer field located on top of a small hill. Thinking. There was not a cloud to be seen on the blue sky, and despite the cold breeze that made everything more comforting, nothing could
propitiate the discomforting feeling that came each time he thought of her. He wanted to go back to her, but knew it was not an option; she was
obdurate to the bone about the notion of returning to him; she wouldn't have it. Realizing that had
engendered the feeling he wanted to overcome and forget.
It was all his fault. He had never been good to her while they were together and that exacerbated everything in his head. She was the opposite to him; she would
laud him with that sweet voice of hers. She would smile each time she saw him, and at the time, he had thought of it as
banal of her.
Banal!? How retarded and selfish that sounded in retrospect. How full of himself he had been back then. If he could do something to
disabuse himself from all the wrongdoings, name-calling, and pain that he had thrown her way, he would have done so immediately.
They were so different, he realized as he remembered the first day they had met. At first glance, she had seemed
austere, standing a world apart with that khaki shirt that almost rendered her invisible when standing next to the beige wall. How different from the
whimsical persona he wanted to portray with that expensive outfit he had chosen for that night. Yet, as the evening had progressed, she had evolved to a loving, adoring creature, somewhat
credulous, true, but nonetheless sharp and sweet. He knew she had had a thing for him the instant she laid eyes on him, and he smiled, remembering the comforting feeling that warmed his chest each time he remembered the love she had had for him. As soon as he came back from reminiscing, and contemplated the current state of affairs, mainly that he no longer had her, made it all the more
exigent for him to get her back.
He needed her back! He hated himself; he hated the selfish,
pedant creature he had been with her when they were together.
How many times had he rubbed the love she had had for him on her face?
He began breathing slowly again, thinking again, and after moments of careful pondering a
tacit scheme had unexpectedly formed in his mind. A clear solution laid there before him in a lucid manner. He opened his eyes, for the first time admiring the beauty of his surrounding, and he whispered to himself, "yes...yes, that will work."
He stood up, oriented himself, and began heading to where soon she would be.
GRE Words and Short Story #7
- attenuate-(v)-to reduce in force or degree; to weaken.
- convoluted-(adj)-intricate and complicated
- dirge-(n)-a funeral hymn or mournful speech
- enervate-(v)-to reduce in strength
- exigent-(adj)-urgent; requiring immediate action
- impervious-(adj)-impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected
- laconic-(adj)-using few words
- mollify-(adj)-to calm or make less severe
- paragon-(n)-model of excellence or perfection
- prodigal-(adj)-lavish, wasteful
- stolid-(adj)-unemotional; lacking sensitivity
- waver-(v)-to fluctuate between choices.
Story
The bottle stood there, quiescent, luring me to it. I couldn't remember the last day I didn't wake up without the urge of trying its contents. Now, not even a glass full of the elixir could
attenuate my cravings for it. And now, it came to the point when, at the first signs of consciousness in the morning, the feeling would be
exigent beyond belief.
Now, at nine am, I laughed a sad laugh. It wouldn't be long when my sister, my next of kin, would be standing before a small crowd reciting a brief
dirge for her
prodigal brother. She would then give a
laconic speech, and then the onerous funeral would be over for her. There would be no sobs or tears, everyone would remain there
stolid...bastards.
Perhaps it was only that, death, that could
mollify permanently this destructive dependence on the
oh-so-beautiful,
amber rum.
How had it come to this! I pondered about it, but despite the greatest efforts to search for the root-cause, I could not reach out to the
impervious part of my brain that contained the answer. Even if I did, I thought, chances were that, far from being a pedestrian answer, the truth would be too
convoluted for me to grasp the lessons to be learned from it.
Well, no need to ponder about what couldn't be changed; there was nothing to stop the inevitable reality that made me the antithesis to the
paragon that was my successful, educated sister.
It was time to drink, and to stop the nonsense!
I poured myself half the bottle's contents in an oversized 7-11, Big Gulp cup. I proceeded immediately to take a massive gulp, the action automatically
enervating the aforementioned desires.
I went for a second round, but suddenly began to waver.
Was there really no cure for me? Could I not fight the urge? The same urge I had created? Couldn't I reach to the depths of what was still pristine and noble in me to help me fight this venomous tendency?
....
No, a whisper came and absconded instantly.
Cheers to that! I yelled to no one in particular, and furiously consumed the remnants of the bottle's alcoholic treasures.
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