American accent
Sam wanted one thing. He wanted to be strong.
And he didn’t just want to be strong—he wanted to be the strongest. Stronger than everyone he knew. He thought about it all day. In the morning, at night, even before sleep. He wanted to be number one.
Every day was the same for Sam. He woke up early and ate the same food—eggs, chicken, and rice. No change.
Then he went to the gym.
At the gym, Sam worked very hard. He lifted heavy weights again and again. He did not smile. He did not stop. He went in the morning before work and again in the evening before coming home. He spent most of his weekend there too.
His body hurt, but he did not care. “This is good,” Sam said. “This makes me strong.”
He watched his body change. His arms got big. His back got wide. His body was hard. He liked it.
People watched him too. Some were quiet. Some moved away when he trained. No one talked to him. Sam liked that.
He did not go out. He did not see friends. He did not rest for long. Everything was for one thing—to be the strongest.
At home, his wife Cara saw this change.
At first, she waited.
“Sam, eat with me,” she said.
“Not now,” Sam said. “I already ate.”
“Sam, sit with me.”
“I am tired.”
“Sam, talk to me.”
“Later.”
But later never came.
Weeks passed. Then more weeks. Then months. Cara stopped asking. The house became very quiet.
One night, Cara sat at the table.
“Sam,” she said, “do you still see me?”
Sam looked at her. “Yes. You are here.”
Cara moved her head. “But you are not here. You never think about me. All you think about is getting stronger.”
Sam felt a little angry. “I work very hard. This is important.”
Cara looked down. “Am I important?”
Sam said nothing.
The next day, Sam went to the gym again. He wanted more—more strength.
He added more weights than before.
A man said, “That is too much.”
Sam said nothing. He held the weights and lifted.
At first, it moved.
Then—
A strong, fast pain came into his arm.
Sam cried out. The weights fell to the floor with a loud sound. Everyone looked at him.
Sam stood still. His arm hurt.
“I am okay,” he said.
But he was not okay.
At the hospital, the doctor said, “You are hurt. You must stop training.”
“For how long?” Sam asked.
“A long time,” the doctor said. “If you do not stop, your arm may not get better.”
Sam went home.
The house felt strange. Too quiet. Too empty.
Cara was not there.
Her shoes were gone. Her bag was gone.
On the table, there was a note.
Sam picked it up.
Sam,
I waited for you.
I tried to stay.
But you chose the gym again and again.
I cannot stay here alone.
— Cara
Sam read the note many times. He sat down.
His strong arms could lift heavy weights—but they could not bring Cara back.
Days passed. Sam did not go to the gym. He walked in the house. He looked at the empty chair. He sat alone.
For the first time, he felt weak.
Weeks later, Sam went back to the gym. He stood in front of the weights.
He did not add too much.
He stopped.
He thought.
Then he lifted slowly and carefully.
After that, he looked in the mirror.
He was still strong.
But now he knew:
He lost something more important.
And no weight in the world could fix that.
📒 Key vocabulary
- gym – a place where people go to exercise and get fit
- lifted (lift, lifted, lifted) – pick up something heavy, usually with your hands or body
- weights – heavy objects used for exercise to build muscle
- hurt – to feel pain in your body
- trained (train, trained, trained) – practise or exercise to get better or stronger
- strength – the power to be strong or to lift, push, or carry things
- empty – having nothing inside; feeling alone or without people or things
- weak – the opposite of strong
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