Night Shift on the Ring

Sven cleaned windows at night. His job was on the Ring. It was a big hotel in space. It went around the Earth once every ninety minutes. The guests slept, and the halls were quiet.

Sven membersihkan jendela di malam hari. Tempat kerjanya di Ring. Itu sebuah hotel besar di luar angkasa. Hotel itu mengelilingi Bumi sekali setiap sembilan puluh menit. Para tamu tertidur, dan lorong-lorongnya sunyi.

Sven liked the night shift. He had a soft cloth and a bottle of cleaner. He also had a small radio. He walked down the long hall with his cart. At every window he stopped and cleaned the glass.

Sven suka giliran jaga malam. Ia membawa kain lembut dan sebotol pembersih. Ia juga punya sebuah radio kecil. Ia berjalan menyusuri lorong panjang dengan kereta dorongnya. Di setiap jendela ia berhenti dan membersihkan kacanya.

The windows were his favorite part. Outside, Earth was big and blue. White clouds moved over the sea. Sometimes Sven stopped for a minute just to look.

Jendela-jendela itu bagian yang paling ia sukai. Di luar, Bumi tampak besar dan biru. Awan putih bergerak di atas lautan. Kadang-kadang Sven berhenti semenit hanya untuk memandang.

On the fourth night, he heard a small sound. He turned around. A boy in blue pajamas stood in the hall. He was about seven years old. He held a toy rabbit.

Pada malam keempat, ia mendengar bunyi kecil. Ia berbalik. Seorang anak laki-laki berpiyama biru berdiri di lorong. Umurnya sekitar tujuh tahun. Ia memegang boneka kelinci.

"Hello," said Sven. "It is very late. Where is your mother?"

"Halo," kata Sven. "Ini sudah larut sekali. Di mana ibumu?"

"She is asleep," said the boy. "I walked out very quietly."

"Ibu tidur," kata anak itu. "Aku keluar diam-diam sekali."

"I cannot sleep," said the boy. "My name is Pavel. My room has no window."

"Aku tidak bisa tidur," kata anak itu. "Namaku Pavel. Kamarku tidak ada jendelanya."

"Ah," said Sven. "That is a problem."

"Ah," kata Sven. "Itu masalah."

Pavel looked at the cart. "What are you doing?"

Pavel melihat kereta dorong itu. "Kamu sedang apa?"

"I clean the glass," said Sven. "Do you want to help?"

"Aku membersihkan kaca," kata Sven. "Mau membantu?"

Pavel's eyes got big. Sven gave him a cloth. He showed him how to move his hand in circles. Pavel rubbed the window hard. His rabbit sat on the cart and watched.

Mata Pavel membulat. Sven memberinya selembar kain. Ia menunjukkan cara menggerakkan tangan dengan gerakan melingkar. Pavel menggosok jendela kuat-kuat. Kelincinya duduk di kereta dorong dan menonton.

"Is it clean?" Pavel asked.

"Sudah bersih?" tanya Pavel.

"Nearly," said Sven. "One more circle."

"Hampir," kata Sven. "Satu putaran lagi."

When the glass was clean, they looked out together. The Ring moved to the dark side. The blue turned dark. Little yellow lights came out on the ground. They looked like sugar on a black table.

Ketika kacanya sudah bersih, mereka memandang ke luar bersama-sama. Ring bergerak ke sisi yang gelap. Warna biru berubah gelap. Lampu-lampu kuning kecil bermunculan di daratan. Kelihatannya seperti gula di atas meja hitam.

"Those are cities," said Sven. "People are home. They eat dinner, and they watch TV."

"Itu kota-kota," kata Sven. "Orang-orang ada di rumah. Mereka makan malam, dan menonton TV."

Pavel put his hand on the glass. "I see a big one!" he said.

Pavel menaruh tangannya di kaca. "Aku lihat yang besar!" katanya.

"That is a very big city," said Sven.

"Itu kota yang sangat besar," kata Sven.

"My grandma lives in a city," said Pavel. "She is very far away. I want to say hello."

"Nenekku tinggal di sebuah kota," kata Pavel. "Jauh sekali. Aku ingin menyapanya."

Sven thought for a moment. "Which country?"

Sven berpikir sejenak. "Di negara mana?"

"A cold one. It has a lot of snow."

"Yang dingin. Banyak salju."

"Then she is up there," said Sven. He pointed to the top of the window. "Look. There is a line of lights by a black sea."

"Kalau begitu dia ada di atas sana," kata Sven. Ia menunjuk bagian atas jendela. "Lihat. Ada sederet lampu di dekat laut yang hitam."

Pavel looked for a long time. He lifted the rabbit to the window. Then he waved a small, slow wave.

Pavel memandang lama sekali. Ia mengangkat kelincinya ke jendela. Lalu ia melambai, lambaian yang kecil dan pelan.

"She cannot see me," he said.

"Nenek tidak bisa melihatku," katanya.

"No," said Sven. "But maybe she looks at the sky tonight."

"Tidak," kata Sven. "Tapi mungkin malam ini dia memandang langit."

Pavel yawned. He held his rabbit tight. His eyes closed for a second and then opened again. Sven took him back down the hall to his room. He opened the door. The room was dark, and the bed was warm.

Pavel menguap. Ia memeluk kelincinya erat-erat. Matanya terpejam sebentar lalu terbuka lagi. Sven mengantarnya kembali menyusuri lorong ke kamarnya. Ia membuka pintu. Kamarnya gelap, dan tempat tidurnya hangat.

"Thank you for the job," said Pavel.

"Terima kasih untuk pekerjaannya," kata Pavel.

"You are a good cleaner," said Sven. "Good night."

"Kamu tukang bersih yang bagus," kata Sven. "Selamat malam."

He walked back to his cart. At the window, he stopped and looked down. Far below, one yellow light in the snow blinked. It blinked two times.

Ia kembali ke kereta dorongnya. Di jendela, ia berhenti dan memandang ke bawah. Jauh di bawah sana, sebuah lampu kuning di tengah salju berkedip. Ia berkedip dua kali.

Sven did not know what it was. He did not say so. He picked up the radio and kept it low.

Sven tidak tahu apa itu. Ia tidak mengatakannya. Ia mengambil radionya dan memelankan suaranya.