Question

the detective began to take notes. \tell me,\ he said, \exactly where were you when you saw the strange lights?\
a \i was on the porch, i said, listening to music.\
b \i was on the porch,\ i said, \listening to music.\
c \i was on the porch,\ i said listening, to music.

Explanation:

This question tests correct punctuation for direct speech. When inserting a speaker tag ("I said") into a direct quote, we use commas to set off the tag, and continue the quoted clause with a lowercase letter after the tag, enclosed in quotation marks. Option B follows this rule properly, while A incorrectly places the tag without proper comma separation and C has incorrect punctuation and word order.

Answer:

B. "I was on the porch," I said, "listening to music."