Five Kilos of Sea

Henna runs the car wash by the motorway. At eleven at night, the cars come slowly. Each one enters the tunnel like a quiet animal. Foam falls on the glass. The big brushes turn and turn.

Henna mengelola tempat cuci mobil di dekat jalan tol. Pada pukul sebelas malam, mobil-mobil datang dengan lambat. Masing-masing masuk ke terowongan seperti binatang yang tenang. Busa jatuh di atas kaca. Sikat-sikat besar berputar dan berputar.

She sits in a small office with a heater and a window. On the desk sits a screen and a cold coffee. The motorway hums beyond the fence. Every few seconds, white lights pass in the dark.

Ia duduk di kantor kecil yang punya pemanas dan sebuah jendela. Di atas meja ada sebuah layar dan secangkir kopi dingin. Jalan tol berdengung di balik pagar. Setiap beberapa detik, lampu-lampu putih melintas dalam gelap.

The door opens. A man walks in with a box in his arms. He wears a dusty jacket. His van waits outside with its engine off.

Pintu terbuka. Seorang pria masuk sambil membawa kotak di pelukannya. Ia memakai jaket berdebu. Mobil boksnya menunggu di luar dengan mesin mati.

"Sorry," he says. "I do not need a wash. I need a favour."

"Maaf," katanya. "Saya tidak perlu cuci mobil. Saya perlu bantuan."

"Everyone needs a favour at eleven," says Henna. "What is it?"

"Semua orang butuh bantuan pada pukul sebelas," kata Henna. "Apa itu?"

"My name is Lev." He puts the box on her desk. "The courier van stops here at midnight. Your sign says so. I need to send this."

"Nama saya Lev." Ia menaruh kotak itu di meja Henna. "Mobil kurir berhenti di sini tengah malam. Papan Anda bilang begitu. Saya perlu mengirim ini."

"That is true. The driver picks up at the side door."

"Benar. Pengemudinya mengambil paket di pintu samping."

"He checks the weight on every label." Lev shows her a paper sticker. "My label says one kilo. But I think the box is heavier."

"Dia memeriksa berat di setiap label." Lev menunjukkan stiker kertas. "Label saya tertulis satu kilo. Tapi menurut saya kotaknya lebih berat."

Henna lifts the box. It is a plain cardboard box with tape on the lid. She frowns. It feels like a bag of wet sand.

Henna mengangkat kotak itu. Kotak kardus polos dengan selotip di tutupnya. Ia mengerutkan kening. Rasanya seperti sekantong pasir basah.

"That is not one kilo," she says.

"Ini bukan satu kilo," katanya.

"I know. I printed the label at my hotel. I guessed the weight." Lev rubs his eyes. "The driver will send it back if the weight is wrong. And then it will not arrive tomorrow."

"Saya tahu. Saya mencetak labelnya di hotel. Saya hanya menebak beratnya." Lev menggosok matanya. "Pengemudi akan mengembalikannya kalau beratnya salah. Dan itu berarti paketnya tidak sampai besok."

"What is tomorrow?"

"Memangnya besok ada apa?"

"My sister's birthday." He looks down at the box. "She lives far from the sea. This is for her."

"Ulang tahun adik perempuan saya." Ia menunduk menatap kotak itu. "Dia tinggal jauh dari laut. Ini untuknya."

Henna does not ask more. She looks at the clock. It is twenty past eleven.

Henna tidak bertanya lebih jauh. Ia melihat jam. Sudah pukul sebelas lewat dua puluh.

"Where can we weigh it?" asks Lev. "Do you have a scale?"

"Di mana kita bisa menimbangnya?" tanya Lev. "Apa Anda punya timbangan?"

"Only a kitchen scale. It stops at two kilos." Henna taps her chin. "A kitchen scale will not work."

"Hanya timbangan dapur. Batasnya dua kilo." Henna mengetuk-ngetuk dagunya. "Timbangan dapur tidak akan cukup."

"The petrol station?"

"Bagaimana dengan pom bensin?"

"It closed at ten."

"Tutup pukul sepuluh."

Lev sits down on a plastic chair. He looks very tired. The heater clicks. A car rolls into the tunnel, and the brushes start to hum. Henna presses a green button on the wall. Water sprays, white and heavy, against the glass.

Lev duduk di kursi plastik. Ia tampak sangat lelah. Pemanas berbunyi klik. Sebuah mobil masuk ke terowongan, dan sikat-sikat mulai berdengung. Henna menekan tombol hijau di dinding. Air menyembur, putih dan deras, ke kaca.

Then she turns back. Her eyes stop on a door in the corner.

Lalu ia berbalik lagi. Matanya berhenti pada sebuah pintu di sudut.

"Wait here," she says.

"Tunggu di sini," katanya.

She walks into the staff room. She returns with a square white scale. It is flat and a little dirty. "This is the bathroom scale," she says. "It goes to a hundred and fifty kilos."

Ia berjalan ke ruang staf. Ia kembali membawa timbangan putih berbentuk persegi. Timbangan itu datar dan agak kotor. "Ini timbangan badan," katanya. "Bisa sampai seratus lima puluh kilo."

"A bathroom scale is for people," says Lev. "It cannot weigh a small box."

"Timbangan badan itu untuk orang," kata Lev. "Tidak bisa menimbang kotak kecil."

"It can, if we are clever." Henna puts the scale on the floor. "You step on it. Then you step on it again with the box. We take away the first number from the second."

"Bisa, kalau kita pintar." Henna menaruh timbangan itu di lantai. "Anda naik dulu. Lalu naik lagi sambil memegang kotaknya. Kita kurangkan angka pertama dari angka kedua."

Lev stares at her. Then he smiles for the first time. "That is a very good idea."

Lev menatapnya. Lalu ia tersenyum untuk pertama kalinya. "Itu ide yang sangat bagus."

"It is not a big idea. It is a small trick."

"Bukan ide besar. Cuma trik kecil."

He takes off his heavy boots and puts them by the door. His socks have a hole at the toe. He steps on the scale. Both of them watch the number.

Ia melepas sepatu botnya yang berat dan menaruhnya di dekat pintu. Kaus kakinya berlubang di bagian jempol. Ia naik ke timbangan. Mereka berdua memperhatikan angkanya.

"Eighty-one," says Henna.

"Delapan puluh satu," kata Henna.

"Eighty-one," Lev says. "Now the box."

"Delapan puluh satu," kata Lev. "Sekarang kotaknya."

He lifts the box and holds it against his chest. He steps on the scale again. The number jumps, shakes, and stops.

Ia mengangkat kotak itu dan memeluknya di dada. Ia naik ke timbangan lagi. Angkanya melompat, bergetar, lalu berhenti.

"Eighty-six," says Henna.

"Delapan puluh enam," kata Henna.

They look at each other.

Mereka saling memandang.

"Five kilos," says Lev. "It is not one kilo. It is five."

"Lima kilo," kata Lev. "Bukan satu kilo. Lima."

"Five kilos exactly. Your label was wrong by four."

"Lima kilo pas. Label Anda salah empat kilo."

"My sister's present is heavy." He laughs and shakes his head. "I carried it from the beach for three days. I did not feel it."

"Hadiah untuk adik saya berat sekali." Ia tertawa dan menggeleng. "Saya membawanya dari pantai selama tiga hari. Saya tidak merasakannya."

"What is in it?"

"Isinya apa?"

Lev lifts the tape and opens the top flap a little. Inside lies a flat grey stone, wrapped in a blue cloth. It has a hole through the middle. A thin line of salt shines on its edge. The room suddenly smells of the sea.

Lev mengangkat selotipnya dan membuka sedikit tutup atasnya. Di dalamnya ada batu abu-abu pipih yang dibungkus kain biru. Di tengahnya ada lubang. Garis tipis garam berkilau di tepinya. Tiba-tiba ruangan itu berbau laut.

"I found it on the shore," he says. "When we were small, she looked for stones like this. She always wanted one with a hole."

"Saya menemukannya di pantai," katanya. "Waktu kecil, dia suka mencari batu seperti ini. Dia selalu ingin yang berlubang."

Henna puts out one finger and touches the cold stone. For a second she says nothing. The brushes hum in the tunnel behind the wall.

Henna mengulurkan satu jari dan menyentuh batu yang dingin itu. Sesaat ia tidak berkata apa-apa. Sikat-sikat berdengung di terowongan di balik dinding.

"I will print a new label," she says. "My printer is old, but it works."

"Saya akan mencetak label baru," katanya. "Printer saya sudah tua, tapi masih berfungsi."

Lev takes out his phone. He opens the shipping page and changes the weight. Henna sends the label to the printer. It groans and pushes the paper out. She peels the old sticker off the box. She presses the new one down. Lev closes the flap, and she presses the tape down again.

Lev mengeluarkan ponselnya. Ia membuka halaman pengiriman dan mengubah beratnya. Henna mengirim label itu ke printer. Printer itu mengerang dan mendorong keluar kertasnya. Ia mengelupas stiker lama dari kotak. Ia menekan stiker baru ke atasnya. Lev menutup tutup kotak, dan Henna menekan selotipnya lagi.

The clock says eleven fifty-four. Outside, white lights slide along the fence. A van turns off the motorway. It stops at the side door.

Jam menunjukkan pukul sebelas lewat lima puluh empat. Di luar, lampu-lampu putih meluncur di sepanjang pagar. Sebuah mobil keluar dari jalan tol. Mobil itu berhenti di pintu samping.

"Just in time," says Henna.

"Tepat waktu," kata Henna.

The courier knocks once. Henna opens the door and gives him the box. He reads the label, lifts the box and nods. A moment later, the van is gone.

Kurir mengetuk satu kali. Henna membuka pintu dan menyerahkan kotak itu. Kurir membaca label, mengangkat kotak, lalu mengangguk. Sesaat kemudian, mobil itu sudah pergi.

Lev stands in the office with one boot in his hand. The car in the tunnel comes out clean and shining. Henna presses the green button and the water stops.

Lev berdiri di kantor sambil memegang sebelah sepatu botnya. Mobil di terowongan keluar dalam keadaan bersih dan berkilau. Henna menekan tombol hijau dan air pun berhenti.

"Thank you," he says. "I do not know how to pay you."

"Terima kasih," katanya. "Saya tidak tahu bagaimana harus membayar Anda."

"Pay with a wash. Your van is very dusty." She sits back in her chair. "And tell her something from me."

"Bayar dengan cuci mobil. Mobil Anda sangat berdebu." Ia bersandar di kursinya. "Dan sampaikan sesuatu dari saya kepadanya."

"What should I tell her?"

"Apa yang harus saya sampaikan?"

"Tell her the stone is heavier than it looks."

"Katakan padanya batu itu lebih berat daripada kelihatannya."

Lev puts on his boot. At the door, he turns around.

Lev memakai sepatu botnya. Di pintu, ia berbalik.

"She will say it was always heavier," he says.

"Dia akan bilang batu itu memang selalu lebih berat," katanya.

"Most good things are," says Henna.

"Kebanyakan hal yang baik memang begitu," kata Henna.