请认真阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Before I turned 29, my parents moved to Queensland, where I arrived for a visit six months later.
I      upon my mother with hugs, and for the first time in my life I said, “I love you, mom!” Then I gently         , expecting some kind of reciprocation. But it never came. Instead, she appeared       in horror.
When I was back at work, I overheard a workmate on a call to her mother and she concluded it with “I love you, Mum.” As       as that. Why wasn’t it like that in mine? Something had to be done about this         situation once and for all.
My       came the next Sunday during my weekly phone call to my mother. After we had shared our usual pleasantries and      , I took a deep breath and asked, “Do you love me, Mum?” After a short      , she replied, “I love you. Don’t be silly. You know we never said things like that in my family.”
“Well, I want it to be said in ours. From now on I want to       our conversations with ‘I love you.’”
In May 2000 my mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She was       to hospital, and I phoned every day to       her. One evening when I rang, a nurse answered the phone and regretfully informed me that my mother’s condition had rapidly worsened. She wasn’t expected to       it through the night.
Knowing I couldn’t get a flight in time, I asked the nurse to put the phone next to my mother’s ear so I could talk to her. “She’s         conscious,” the nurse replied. “It’s unlikely she’ll hear you.” But I didn’t care. I wanted to do it      .
        she’d placed the phone by my mother’s ear, I started       and telling Mum over and over again that I loved her. At first, all I could hear was “Hmmmm” — but then, like a miracle, with a deep       she said, “Love you … love you, darling.” It was the last thing she said before drifting into      .
Although I was overwhelmed by her death, the surprising part was how well I      . Of course, losing a parent is extremely painful and I shed many tears, but receiving those lovely last words made it much more       . I had closure in the best possible way.

A．fell B．struck C．relied D．depended

A．pushed off B．turned up C．pulled away D．looked on

A．deserted B．frozen C．guilty D．clumsy

A．simple B．sacred C．apparent D．original

A．stress B．crisis C．emergency D．love

A．potential B．opportunity C．inspiration D．choice

A．interests B．secrets C．expectations D．updates

A．preparation B．friction C．hesitation D．identification

A．end B．start C．continue D．hold

A．permitted B．admitted C．allowed D．sentenced

A．check on B．attend to C．call on D．see to

A．take B．face C．make D．cool

A．entirely B．absolutely C．slightly D．barely

A．therefore B．otherwise C．anyway D．somehow

A．Before B．Once C．Unless D．Since

A．whispering B．yelling C．screaming D．sobbing

A．sigh B．conversation C．thought D．sleep

A．calmness B．unconsciousness C．hardness D．sickness

A．prayed B．clarified C．coped D．concluded

A．authentic B．arbitrary C．precise D．bearable