Shadowing Practice: 73K - Learn English Speaking with Video

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254 sentences

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Did you ever lose faith in your parents, the people you rely on the most?

Well, I definitely have.

Because of my parents, I was living a lie for so long.

They were hiding something that I could never have imagined.

I know my story is strange, but I'll explain from the beginning.

My name is Cassie, but my dad always calls me Princess Cassandra.

My mom passed away a few years ago.

She was really sick.

Cancer.

We cared for her as much as we could, but eventually the illness won and took her from us.

Since then, it was just me and Dad.

It was sad at first.

I remember crying myself to sleep for the longest time.

We lived in a small apartment and enjoyed doing simple things together like watching movies and eating pizza.

My dad always came home late and worked so hard.

But when he came home, he always gave me a big hug and asked, asked, how's my princess?

And then, how's the kingdom?

He always made an effort to be happy around me, smiling and hugging.

It felt good when we were together, sometimes at night.

I would still remember mom and cry, and he would come to my room and tell me it will be okay, and that mom will always be with us in our hearts.

My dad was a humble construction worker.

He's really good with fixing houses and making them look amazing.

If you ask me, he was the best worker in his company.

Life back then was nice and simple.

One day, a few months after things started getting back to normal, my father met this woman, Stephanie.

When he told me about her, he was smiling as if he got some life back into him.

He walked taller and dressed way nicer.

He started hanging out with Stephanie more and more.

I didn't mind, as I was really happy for him that he was finally laughing and happy again.

After a short while, he brought her to meet me at a restaurant.

She seemed okay, I guess.

She wasn't my mom, not by a long shot.

But she did make my dad happy.

I found her a little airheaded and silly.

I couldn't figure out what dad found in her.

But when I looked at him, I saw him smiling outside the house.

That was a rare thing.

almost never happened since mom passed away.

I wanted to see him smile for so long.

I was okay with it, as long as she was making him smile like that.

A few weeks after my dad and Stephanie met, she moved in with us.

But it was so obvious that she didn't like our apartment.

She would always make these sarcastic remarks, if we only had more space, we wouldn't bump into each other so much.

Or comparing us to some of her rich friends, how they had this nice home cinema or a big jacuzzi and we didn't.

Not too long after Stephanie moved in with us, my dad told me that we are moving to another house.

I was shocked.

Moving?

How?

I knew how the world works.

How can we move if we are barely making enough for this place?

For example, sometimes when I ask my dad to buy me stuff, he would tell me he wished he could, but we just don't have the money for it right now.

It looked like he and Stephanie have already decided, and I didn't have any say in the matter.

This was super weird, since until then, we always talked about any major decision and decided together.

We would make a list together with pros and cons, and then make a decision.

I was so hurt that he didn't even ask my opinion, like at all.

Then we all moved together to this big house.

It was huge, with many rooms, marble floors, and those poles inside the house, like a museum.

My dad said, a palace for my princess.

And I was so, so happy.

I ran through all the rooms with hands wide open, counting the number of rooms, and My dad was running after me.

When I got to room number 12, he caught me with his big bear hug and swung me in the air.

That night in my room, I started thinking, and something didn't make much sense.

I knew my father was not that rich.

I saw houses like this in those reality shows, with all the celebrities and other millionaires.

But I was so confused.

How can we suddenly afford this kind of house?

It's impossible.

Everything just looks so expensive.

It even came with furniture and a room just for me, with all the dolls in the world.

When I asked my dad how it was all possible, he smiled and said he got a big promotion at work.

I jumped into his arms and we hugged for the longest time.

I was so happy to hear that.

I didn't really mind our old life.

But this was really amazing.

Since we moved to a new area, I had to move to a new school too.

I was scared of how the kids will be like.

Will they accept me?

Will they ignore me?

I didn't know anyone, and it looked so massive.

They even had swimming pools in the school.

Not to mention the eight tennis courts, baseball, football, and soccer fields, and an absolutely huge gym.

I had to make new friends, join new clubs, know all the shortcuts to get to class.

Everything was new and all, but after a little while, it got easier.

This school was different from my old one.

Everyone here was so fancy, with their nice shoes and expensive makeup.

It was as if I entered one of those Hollywood shows with all the rich kids.

And yes, they gave me a uniform with that skirt and that bow.

It was okay, but I felt like everyone was looking and judging everyone all the time.

It was weird.

And it felt really weird.

They never showed that in the movies.

The other night, I heard my dad and Stephanie arguing in whispers when they thought I couldn't hear them.

Stephanie called my dad cheap and lazy, but that's impossible.

He was never any of those things.

He gave us this amazing house and everything.

We were living like royalty.

That winter, my dad took me aside and told me that we had to move again.

Again, super weird.

We just moved to this big fancy house and now we have to move again?

100

What's wrong with this house?

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Moving again meant starting over in the new school and, oh my god, I finally started having friends again.

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And all the clubs I joined, the debate team.

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Oh no, we have a match next week.

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It felt as if Stephanie was behind this.

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Dad wouldn't do this to me.

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This must be why he was acting so strange.

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And he didn't ask me, again.

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I was so angry at her, at him.

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Why would they do this to me?

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Why would they rip me from my friends and for the second time?

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This is unbelievable.

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And when I told him all of this, he shouted at me for the first time ever.

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Stop being such a baby.

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We need to move and that's final.

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I was shocked stiff.

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He scared me.

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He never behaved like this.

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He used to be just like a monk.

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Always happy, always calm.

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What is happening here?

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We moved to another big house.

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It was just as big as the first one, but this house had so many gadgets.

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It was one of those smart houses with remote fireplaces, TVs in the walls or dropping down from the ceiling of every room,

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and a pool that comes out when you press a button and the courtyard opens up.

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But none of this meant anything anymore.

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I thought it was all useless toys.

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I was so angry.

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Once again, I had to go to a new school and get a new uniform.

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Everyone looked at me as a new girl again, and I had no one.

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All my friends were at the other school, and they were so busy with their dances and parades that they completely forgot about me.

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I didn't understand why Dad and Stephanie would put me through this again.

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Don't they know what it's like?

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It was horrible.

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It felt as if I'm being ripped apart from the only good thing I had.

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I felt so lonely.

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My dad heard me cry, sat by my side, and said real softly, Don't worry, everyone loves you.

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You'll make new good friends again.

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We had to move because of my work, but I just want the best for you, my princess.

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I don't care, I hate it here!

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I cried even harder.

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He then brought me that tasty chocolate filled with peanut butter that I liked so much and asked, Who's my princess?

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Who can do anything?

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I smiled and agreed with him.

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He always knew what to say to make me happy.

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I hugged him so hard.

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One night, shortly after we moved to the new mansion, it still felt strange, as if it was someone else's home.

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I heard my dad and Stephanie arguing.

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Hearing them argue and fight wasn't unusual, but this time, it was really bad.

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Stephanie was shouting awful things at my dad, how he'll always be poor, how he's a fraud, and how everyone can see right through him.

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He in turn called her a witch.

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She took her suitcase and left the house.

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He went after her, but quickly returned.

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What did she even mean?

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I ran to my room and pretended to be asleep.

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Their fight ran over and over in my head.

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Why would she say such awful things?

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None of them can be true.

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It didn't make any sense.

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A few weeks after Stephanie left, something very strange happened.

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I arrived home from school just like any other day

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and was surprised to see strange people parking their car and entering our house, people I've never seen before.

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Oh no, we were getting robbed!

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I grabbed my phone and was about to call the police, but then I saw my dad in the driveway, with our car packed with all our stuff in it.

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I had no idea what was going on and ran to him.

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There are people in our house, I screamed, but he acted all casual-like and told me to go sit in the car.

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I opened the window while he shook the man's hand, and they seemed very happy.

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The stranger's kids looked happy too and ran into the house.

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There was a girl, a little younger than me.

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She had the same doll as the ones in my room.

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Everyone was acting as if everything is normal.

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But nothing was normal.

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Why would these people take our house?

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Why would my dad be so happy about it?

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I didn't know what to do.

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My head was spinning.

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Eventually, my dad entered the car and we drove away.

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I wanted to ask him about what had happened, but he said, Not now, honey.

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Not now.

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My head was about to explode.

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I didn't know what to make of it.

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I remember the fight my dad and Stephanie had back at the house, where she shouted at him that he was a fraud and a liar.

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A fraud and a liar.

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We went to a small motel on the road not far from the house and unpacked everything.

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My dad said to get settled in and went into the shower.

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When I finally had a moment to myself, I sat on the bed and started crying.

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Crying so hard, I couldn't stop myself.

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Was my dad really a fraud?

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Was he really a liar?

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What is happening here?

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None of it made any sense.

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None of it.

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My dad came out of the shower and saw me crying.

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He held me and said he was sorry and that I was not supposed to see that.

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He said that the business is a little slow now, so we'll stay here for just a little while and wait it out until his next job comes in.

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He said, My boss, Richard, you remember Richard, right?

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He said the next house should be ready in just a few weeks.

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A few weeks came and went.

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We were still homeless, and I was so angry at my dad that I couldn't even talk to him anymore.

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Every day when he called me for dinner, I would take the plate and eat in my room.

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How could I ever speak to him again?

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How could I ever trust him again.

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He's a fraud and a liar.

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And even worse, he lied to me, his princess, or so he said.

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Eventually, we moved to a small apartment, but it didn't change anything for me at all.

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I was still angry at my dad and we haven't spoken in weeks by then.

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I went to a public school in the area.

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Kids were normal there.

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It was not as fancy, but everyone was nice and welcoming.

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I joined the club and made new friends.

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By now, I was kind of an expert at making new friends

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and I was telling everyone stories about where I used to live.

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Everyone loved to hear the stories about the palace with a million rooms.

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The other day, I came into the kitchen to take something to eat.

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My dad was working on his laptop and talking on the phone.

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I overheard him on a call.

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He was talking on the speaker while working and didn't notice me at all.

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His boss was pretty much yelling at him.

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He was so angry.

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Why is the house not ready yet?

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Why is he not getting the team to work properly?

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Why are all the permits not signed?

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My dad tried to open his mouth to explain, but didn't get a chance to say anything when his boss hung up on him while saying, You're walking on thin ice here, mister.

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Really thin ice.

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My dad sat down quietly for a moment, holding his head with his hands, and I heard him weep.

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He was crying.

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My dad was crying.

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I've never in my life seen him cry.

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Ever.

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I came to him and asked, What's wrong, Dad?

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He quickly wiped the tears from his face and said, It's nothing, honey.

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It's nothing.

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Just work.

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I hugged him and he hugged me back.

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This is the first time I saw him.

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I mean, really saw him.

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And we talked.

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We really, really talked.

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Thinking about it now, we haven't had a real talk since mom died.

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He told me how sorry he was for the whole thing with Stephanie.

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How she wanted to impress her rich friends and feel rich.

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And how she made him live in the houses he was fixing before the owners came back from their summer homes.

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He asked if I remembered all the brunches we hosted with Stephanie's friends

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and told me how she threatened to leave him if he didn't do it.

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He was so sorry.

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He said over and over how he felt so lonely and thought he had no choice.

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I told him I felt lonely too and that he'll always have me and we talked for hours.

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We got pizza and ice cream and sat down in the living room.

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He promised he'll never do anything again to make me feel lonely.

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It was so stupid of him to ever think it was okay to do.

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And for what?

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It meant nothing, and I agreed.

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I guess sometimes adults can be irresponsible, but I couldn't stay mad at my dad any longer.

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What did you think of my story?

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Please share your thoughts with me in the comments, and don't forget to subscribe for more.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This video has 254 sentences and 2690 words to shadow. The speech runs for 14:11. The speaker talks fast, about 190 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 86% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.

Key vocabulary in this video

The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
hug verb	/hʌɡ/	To cling closely together.
liar noun	/ˈlaɪ.ɚ/	Someone who tells a lie; especially, a person who frequently lies.
lonely adjective	/ˈloʊnli/	Unhappy due to feeling isolated from contact with other people.
shout verb	/ʃaʊt/	To utter a sudden and loud cry, as in joy, triumph, exultation or anger, or to attract attention, to animate others, etc.
doll noun	/dɑl/	A small figure resembling a human being that is used as a toy.
scare verb	/skɛɚ/	To frighten, terrify, startle, especially in a minor way.
fixing noun	/ˈfɪksɪŋ/	The act of subverting (fixing) a vote.
uniform noun	/ˈjunɪˌfɔɹm/	A distinctive outfit that serves to identify members of a group, company, prison inmates, etc.
brunch noun	/bɹʌnt͡ʃ/	A meal eaten later in the day than breakfast and earlier than lunch, often in a leisurely, festive, and/or social way, and often consisting of typical foods…
gadget noun	/ɡæd͡ʒ.ɪt/	Any device or machine, especially one whose name cannot be recalled, often either clever or complicated.
jacuzzi noun	/d͡ʒəˈkuːzi/	A hot tub or whirlpool bath with underwater jets that massage the body.
overhear verb	/oʊ.vɚˈhɪɚ/	To hear something that was not meant for one's ears.
shortcut noun	/ˈʃɔːtkʌt/	A path between two points that is faster than the commonly used paths.
unpack verb	/ʌnˈpæk/	To remove from a package or container, particularly with respect to items that had previously been arranged closely and securely in a pack.
fireplace noun	/ˈfaɪɹpleɪs/	An open hearth for holding a fire at the base of a chimney.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
pass away verb		To die.
come back from verb		To become successful, confident or effective again after an injury, setback, failure, embarrassment, etc.
come out verb	/ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/	To be discovered; to be revealed.
drive away verb		To force someone or something to leave
figure out verb		To come to understand; to discover or find a solution; to deduce.
get back to verb		Return to (an activity)
open up verb		To open.
run over verb		To exceed the allotted time.

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

How can we suddenly afford this kind of house?
Why would they do this to me?
Why would these people take our house?
Why would my dad be so happy about it?
Was my dad really a fraud?

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

Structure	In the video
“Used to” used to + verb — a past habit or state that is no longer true	used to be · used to live
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	have imagined · have already decided · I've never seen
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	was shocked · being ripped
Past continuous was/were + -ing — an action in progress at a moment in the past	was living · were hiding · was smiling

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 43 contractions and reduced forms, such as didn't, couldn't, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shout /ʃaʊt/, shortcut /ˈʃɔːtkʌt/, mansion /ˈmæn.ʃən/, casual /ˈkæʒ(u)əl/, shoe /ˈʃu/
Long words — get the stress right: irresponsible /ˌɪɹ.əˈspɑn.sə.bəl/, millionaire /ˌmɪl.i.əˈnɛə(ɹ)/, unbelievable /ˌʌnbɪˈliːvəbl̩/, celebrity /səˈlɛb.ɹɪ.ɾi/

How to practise with this video

Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like hug, liar, lonely.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →