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Reading Short Stories/Content for English Learners

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Short Story 653 – The Great Gadget Mix-Up (Int)

It was a quiet Tuesday morning at “TechTopia,” a small electronics shop tucked between a bakery and a barber’s. The manager, Gary, was sipping tea behind the counter, watching the security cameras and wondering if the toaster in aisle three was plotting something. Gary had a vivid imagination.

Just then, a customer burst through the door. She was tall, wore sunglasses indoors, and carried a handbag that looked like it could hold a microwave.

“Excuse me,” she said, “I need a device that can make phone calls, take photos, play music, and toast bread.”
Gary blinked. “Toast bread?”

“Yes,” she said. “I multitask. I want my gadgets to do the same.”

Gary scratched his head. “You might be looking for a smartphone. But it doesn’t toast bread.”

She frowned. “Then what’s the point?”

Before Gary could answer, his assistant, Kevin, appeared from the back room holding a drone and a banana.

“Gary, the drone’s camera is working, but it keeps following me. Also, someone left fruit in the charging station.”

Gary sighed. “Kevin, that’s not a charging station. That’s the fruit bowl.”

“Oh,” said Kevin. “Then I’ve been charging my phone in a banana for three days.”

The customer raised an eyebrow. “Is this normal?”

Gary smiled. “Around here, yes.”

Suddenly, a loud beep came from aisle five. A robot vacuum had escaped its shelf and was chasing a Bluetooth speaker that kept shouting, “Pairing! Pairing!”

Kevin ran after them with a mop, shouting, “I’ll handle it!” and promptly slipped on a USB cable.

The customer looked around. “You know what? I’ll just take a phone. And maybe a toaster.”

Gary nodded. “Wise choice.”

As she left, the robot vacuum returned, dragging the Bluetooth speaker behind it like a trophy. Kevin gave a thumbs-up from the floor.

Gary sipped his tea again. “Another normal day at TechTopia.”


Vocabulary Notes

Multitask
Definition: To do more than one thing at the same time.
Example: “I multitask. I want my gadgets to do the same.”
Similar words:
juggle (informal, e.g. “She juggles work and family”), manage, handle several things

Eyebrow (raise an eyebrow)
Definition: To show surprise or doubt by moving your eyebrow upwards.
Example: “The customer raised an eyebrow.”
Similar expressions: look puzzled, give a funny look, furrow one’s brow (to show confusion or concern)

Slip (on something)
Definition: To lose balance and fall, often because the surface is slippery.
Example: “Kevin… promptly slipped on a USB cable.”
Similar words: trip, stumble, tumble (more dramatic fall)

Trophy
Definition: An object that shows victory or achievement, often won in a competition.
Example: “Dragging the Bluetooth speaker behind it like a trophy.”
Similar words: prize, award, badge of honour (figurative)

Normal (day)
Definition: Usual or typical, often used ironically when things are clearly not normal.
Example: “Another normal day at TechTopia.”
Similar expressions: business as usual, same old, same old, nothing out of the ordinary

Story written by Copilot AI on Windows 11 Pro.

Image created by Grok.

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