To this end, I had sat well back on the form, and while seeming to be busy with my sum, had held my slate in such a manner as to conceal my face: I might have escaped notice, had not my treacherous slate somehow happened to slip from my hand, and falling with an obtrusive crash, directly drawn every eye upon me; I knew it was all over now, and, as I stooped to pick up the two fragments of slate, I rallied my forces for the worst.
Para ello procuré sentarme en la última fila de la clase y, fingiendo estar absorta en mis cuentas, coloqué la pizarra de modo que ocultase mi rostro. Pero no había contado con lo imprevisto: la traidora pizarra se me deslizó, no sé cómo, de entre las manos y cayó al suelo con ominoso ruido.