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<v Speaker 1>This English short story is called The Last Seat. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>learning English through story is one of the most powerful

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<v Speaker 1>things that you can do. Here is how to do this. First,

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<v Speaker 1>listen to the story and read the story if you

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<v Speaker 1>are on YouTube, and then stay around because you can

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<v Speaker 1>learn ten different words and phrases all from the story

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<v Speaker 1>and get more examples to Let's get started. Ella hurried

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<v Speaker 1>through the crowded train station, her suitcase rolling noisily behind her.

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<v Speaker 1>The overhead speaker crackled. The two thirty train to Edinburgh

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<v Speaker 1>is now boarding at platform nine. She picked up her pace,

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<v Speaker 1>weaving between passengers, dodging suitcases, and people standing in the

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<v Speaker 1>middle of the walkway. She booked a ticket, but not

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<v Speaker 1>a seat, and now she was cutting it close. If

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<v Speaker 1>she didn't find a spot soon, she'd be standing for

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<v Speaker 1>the next four hours. Reaching the train just in time,

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<v Speaker 1>she stepped inside. Scanning the carriage. Every seat was taken.

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<v Speaker 1>People were settling in with their coffees, pulling out laptops,

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<v Speaker 1>or staring at their phones. Ella sighed great. Then she

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<v Speaker 1>spotted it, a single empty seat next to a guy

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<v Speaker 1>who was looking out the window headphones in. She hesitated

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<v Speaker 1>for a moment, then walked over excuse me, is this

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<v Speaker 1>seat taken? The guy pulled out one ear bud and

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<v Speaker 1>turned to look at her. He had dark blonde hair,

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<v Speaker 1>a slight stubble, and eyes that took a second to focus,

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<v Speaker 1>like he had been lost in thought. Oh, he said,

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<v Speaker 1>sitting up straighter, No go ahead. Ella smiled politely, shoved

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<v Speaker 1>her bag onto the overhead rack and sat down. The

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<v Speaker 1>train pulled away from the station, the movement making Ella

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<v Speaker 1>relax slightly. She pulled out a book and tried to read,

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<v Speaker 1>but after a few minutes she found herself staring out

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<v Speaker 1>the window instead. The countryside flashed by green fields stretching

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<v Speaker 1>far into the distance. The guy next to her took

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<v Speaker 1>out his earbuds and leaned back in his seat. He

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<v Speaker 1>glanced at her book. Any good, he asked. Ella turned

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<v Speaker 1>the cover towards him. It's all right, bit slow, though,

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<v Speaker 1>he smiled. That's the worst, isn't it. You keep reading

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<v Speaker 1>hoping it gets better, but it never does, she laughed. Exactly.

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<v Speaker 1>A few moments passed before he spoke again. You heading

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<v Speaker 1>to Edinburgh for a work of fun, Just visiting my sister,

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<v Speaker 1>she said, She lives there. You work trip, he replied,

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<v Speaker 1>But I lived there for a few years. Ella nodded, nice,

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<v Speaker 1>do you still like it? Yeah, it's a great city,

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<v Speaker 1>but I don't go back as often as I should.

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<v Speaker 1>She noticed the way his smile faded slightly, like there's

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<v Speaker 1>something more to the story. The conversation drifted from books

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<v Speaker 1>to travel, then to childhood memories. It was easy, like

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<v Speaker 1>they weren't complete strangers sitting next to each other on

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<v Speaker 1>a train, but two old friends catching up after years apart. Jake,

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<v Speaker 1>she learned his name, half way through the trip, told

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<v Speaker 1>her about his years living in Edinburgh, how he used

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<v Speaker 1>to work at a cafe near the university, how he

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<v Speaker 1>once got lost on a hike and ended up in

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<v Speaker 1>the wrong town. Ella told him about her job, her

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<v Speaker 1>sister's habit of collecting no teacups, and how she once

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<v Speaker 1>broke in her ankle trying to roll a skate in

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<v Speaker 1>a shopping center. Seriously, Jake laughed, a shopping center, Ella grinned.

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<v Speaker 1>In my defense, I was twelve and my best friend

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<v Speaker 1>dared me to do it. Let me guess you lost balance,

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<v Speaker 1>knocked over a display of biscuits and caused chaos. She gasped,

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<v Speaker 1>how did you know? He shook his head, smiling, I've

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<v Speaker 1>met enough people like you. By the time the train

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<v Speaker 1>reached Edinburgh, the sky had started to turn pink. Ella

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<v Speaker 1>looked at her phone. Four hours had passed faster than

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<v Speaker 1>she expected. As the train slowed, people stood up, pulling

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<v Speaker 1>down bags and stretching their legs. Ella reached for her suitcase,

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<v Speaker 1>but Jake had already grabbed it for her. Thanks, she said,

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<v Speaker 1>stepping into the aisle. No problem, he replied, Then, hesitating

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<v Speaker 1>for a second, he added, Hey, if you ever need

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<v Speaker 1>another book recommendation, she smiled, Are you about to suggest

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<v Speaker 1>that slow book you gave upon? Jake chuckled, All right, fine,

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<v Speaker 1>if you ever need a good book recommendation, let me know.

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<v Speaker 1>He pulled out his phone, holding it up. Ella took

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<v Speaker 1>out hers too, and in a few seconds they had

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<v Speaker 1>exchanged numbers. As she stepped off the train, she glanced back.

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<v Speaker 1>Jake was still standing in the doorway, hands in his

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<v Speaker 1>pockets and watching her. Go. Enjoy your visit, he said.

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<v Speaker 1>She smiled, you too. The train doors beaped and closed

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<v Speaker 1>behind her. Ella turned and walked towards the exit, her

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<v Speaker 1>suitcase rolling behind her. So that is a story. Now

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<v Speaker 1>let's analyze the key expressions their meanings. And also additional

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<v Speaker 1>examples so that you can learn more English. The first

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<v Speaker 1>one is cut it close now. This means to almost

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<v Speaker 1>run out of time, and in the story it said

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<v Speaker 1>Ella was cutting it close to finding a seat on

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<v Speaker 1>the train because she didn't want to stand for four hours.

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<v Speaker 1>Another example is I woke up late and cut it

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<v Speaker 1>close to missing my flight, which is a really bad feeling.

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<v Speaker 1>The next one is pull out to pull out. This

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<v Speaker 1>means to remove something from somewhere. For example, in the story,

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<v Speaker 1>the guy pulled out one ear bud and turned to

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<v Speaker 1>look at her. So he had his earbuds in his headphones,

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<v Speaker 1>and he pulled one of the earbuds out before or

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<v Speaker 1>looking at her. Another example is she pulled out the

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<v Speaker 1>product from the bag. The next one is this, sit

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<v Speaker 1>up straighter now. You can see from the picture if

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<v Speaker 1>you're watching on YouTube of somebody with a book on

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<v Speaker 1>their head to sit up straight now. This means to

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<v Speaker 1>adjust your posture and become more alert. For example, Jake

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<v Speaker 1>sat up straighter when Ella spoke to him, so he

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<v Speaker 1>sat up straighter when she spoke to him. Another example

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<v Speaker 1>is he set up straighter when the teacher asked a question,

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<v Speaker 1>which is common in classrooms. The next one is catch

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<v Speaker 1>up to catch up. This means to talk about things

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<v Speaker 1>that have happened after time apart, So if you haven't

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<v Speaker 1>seen somebody for a while, you can catch up with them.

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<v Speaker 1>In the story, it said it was easy, like there

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<v Speaker 1>were two old friends. Catching up suggests that they were

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<v Speaker 1>very friendly. Another example is from the picture is let's

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<v Speaker 1>meet for coffee and catch up. You might hear people

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<v Speaker 1>say as well, let's catch up soon. Let's catch up soon.

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<v Speaker 1>The next one is this drift into now. This is

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<v Speaker 1>probably a little bit more advanced or not as common,

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<v Speaker 1>and it means to slowly move into a topic or activity.

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<v Speaker 1>In this story said, the conversation drifted from books to

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<v Speaker 1>travel to childhood memories. So it went from the conversation

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<v Speaker 1>being about books to the conversation being about travel and

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<v Speaker 1>childhood memories, and the meeting drifted into small talk after

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<v Speaker 1>a while. The next one is end up end up.

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<v Speaker 1>This means to arrive somewhere or in a situation unexpectedly,

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<v Speaker 1>and this is very common in everyday English. For example,

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<v Speaker 1>Jake once got lost on a hike and ended up

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<v Speaker 1>in the wrong town, which is unexpected, and we took

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<v Speaker 1>the wrong bus and ended up at the beach. The

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<v Speaker 1>next one is slow down, slow down, and you probably

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<v Speaker 1>know this to reduce speed. As the train slowed down,

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<v Speaker 1>people stood up. So as the train slowed down, people

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<v Speaker 1>stood up. Now, there's always this thing on a plane

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<v Speaker 1>that people stand up as soon as the plane stops.

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<v Speaker 1>Another example with public transport. And here's another example. She

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<v Speaker 1>slowed down as she reached the traffic lights. The next

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<v Speaker 1>one is this pull down, pull down. This means to

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<v Speaker 1>bring something from a higher place. People stood up, pulling

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<v Speaker 1>down bags and stretching their legs and can you pull

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<v Speaker 1>down my bag for me? This is what somebody might

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<v Speaker 1>ask you on a plane, can you pull down my

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<v Speaker 1>bag for me? The next one is hold up, hold

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<v Speaker 1>up now, this means to lift or show something. Jake

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<v Speaker 1>pulled out his phone holding it up and you can

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<v Speaker 1>see from the picture she held up the map so

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<v Speaker 1>everyone could see. And then the next one is step

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<v Speaker 1>off to step off. This means to move off a train, bus,

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<v Speaker 1>or platform. For example, Ella stepped off the train and

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<v Speaker 1>turned back. And then be careful you don't step off

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<v Speaker 1>the edge. Want to learn more, be sure to click

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<v Speaker 1>another video on your screen now and go to the

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<v Speaker 1>description for more lessons and also to get the phrases

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<v Speaker 1>from this lesson