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Us and them, she thought. The ones who would do well, the ones who would crawl and sweat and barely pass. Two predetermined groups. Asafa, generous and wise, leaned over and said to Shadia: That boy Bryan is excellent."
我们和他们，她想，一群人的成绩会很好，另一群人拼尽全力可能才会勉强通过，这两组人的成绩116已经决定了，善良又聪明的阿萨法弯下身子，对莎迪雅说：“那个叫布莱恩的男孩特别优秀。”
The one with the earring?
“那个戴耳环的？”
Asafa laughed. "The earring doesn't mean anything. He'll get the Distinction. He was an undergraduate here; got First Class Honours. That gives him an advantage. He knows all the lecturers, he knows the system.
阿萨法笑了，“戴耳环又能怎么样，他会得到优秀奖。他在这里念的本科，得了一等奖。他有优势，他认识所有的老师，对学校的制度了如指掌。”
So the idea occurred to her of asking Bryan for the notes of his graduate year. If she strengthened her background in stochastic process and time series, she would be better able to cope with the new material they were bombarded with every day. She watched him to judge if he was approachable. He was devoid of manners. He mumbled and slouched and did not speak with respect to the lecturers. He spoke to them as if they were his equals. And he did silly things. When he wanted to throw a piece of paper in the bin, he squashed it into a ball and aimed it at the bin. If he missed, he muttered under his breath. She thought that he was immature. But he was the only one who was sailing through the course.
因此，她想到了向布莱恩借他本科毕业时的笔记。如果她能够加强自己在随机过程和时间序列这两门课的背景知识，她应该能更好地解决老师每天所提出的新材料。她观察他，看他是否容易接近。他没有礼貌。说话的时候含含糊糊，站着的时候懒懒散散，和老师说话时也毫无尊重可言。他和老师说话的时候，就好像老师是他的同龄人。他还做一些愚蠢的事情。当他想要把纸扔到垃圾箱里时，他把纸挤压成一个球，对准垃圾箱。如果他没投进去他会轻声地嘟囔。她认为他很幼稚。但他又是班级里唯一一个能顺利通过考试的人。
The glossy handbook for overseas students had explained about the "famous British reserve" and hinted that they should be grateful, things were worse further south, less "hospitable." In the cafeteria, drinking coffee with Asafa and the others, the picture of "hospitable Scotland" was something different. Badr, the Malaysian, blinked and whispered, "Yesterday our windows got smashed; my wife today is afraid to go out."
印刷漂亮的海外留学生手册解释了“人人皆知的英国人的拘谨矜持”，并暗示，留学生应该感到庆幸，因为再往南（指英格兰），情况更糟糕，那里还不如这里“热情友好”。莎迪雅阿萨法还有其他几个非洲留学生一起在咖啡厅喝咖啡聊天，和“热情友好苏格兰”的图片有些不同，巴德尔，一个马来西亚人，眨着眼睛低声说，“昨天我们家的窗户被打碎了，我妻子今天都不敢出门。”
Thieves?" asked Shadia, her eyes wide.
“有贼？”莎迪雅睁大眼睛问。
Racists, said the Turkish girl.
“种族主义者，”一个土耳其女孩说。
In the cafeteria, Bryan never sat with them. They never sat with him. He sat alone, sometimes reading the local paper. When Shadia walked in front of him he didn't smile. "These people are strange… One day they greet, the next day they don't…"
在咖啡厅，布莱恩从不和他们坐在一起。他们也从不和他坐在一起，他独自坐着，有的时候读当地的报纸。当莎迪雅经过他面前的时候他没有微笑。“这些人很奇怪……偶尔某一天打招呼，第二天就视而不见…………”
