Sample Seven

The pool closed at nine. Anselm liked that hour best. The music stopped and the last children left. The water became flat and quiet.

Kolam renang tutup pukul sembilan. Anselm paling menyukai jam itu. Musik berhenti dan anak-anak terakhir pulang. Airnya menjadi datar dan tenang.

Anselm was the lifeguard on the late shift. He walked along the edge and checked every lane. He picked up a towel and one blue sock. Then he saw something pale at the bottom of the shallow end.

Anselm adalah penjaga kolam shift malam. Ia berjalan di tepi dan memeriksa setiap lintasan. Ia memungut sebuah handuk dan sebelah kaus kaki biru. Lalu ia melihat sesuatu yang pucat di dasar bagian dangkal.

He took the long net and reached down. The thing came up slowly. It was a small brown envelope, closed with tape. It was not soft. It was not wet. It was dry.

Ia mengambil jaring panjang dan menjangkaunya ke bawah. Benda itu naik perlahan. Sebuah amplop cokelat kecil, direkatkan dengan selotip. Amplop itu tidak lembek. Tidak basah. Amplop itu kering.

"That is strange," Anselm said.

"Aneh sekali," kata Anselm.

He held the envelope up to the light. Something small and hard moved inside.

Ia mengangkat amplop itu ke arah cahaya. Sesuatu yang kecil dan keras bergerak di dalamnya.

Piet came out of the cleaning room with his mop. Piet cleaned the building every night. He was tall and slow, and he never hurried.

Piet keluar dari ruang kebersihan sambil membawa pelnya. Piet membersihkan gedung itu setiap malam. Ia tinggi dan lamban, dan tidak pernah tergesa-gesa.

"What did you catch?" Piet asked.

"Apa yang kamu tangkap?" tanya Piet.

"An envelope from the bottom of the pool," said Anselm. "Look at it. It is completely dry."

"Amplop dari dasar kolam," kata Anselm. "Lihat ini. Benar-benar kering."

Piet touched it with one finger. "There is tape on every side," he said. "And a plastic bag inside. Someone wanted it to stay dry."

Piet menyentuhnya dengan satu jari. "Ada selotip di setiap sisinya," katanya. "Dan kantong plastik di dalamnya. Seseorang ingin isinya tetap kering."

On the front, someone wrote two words in blue pen. SAMPLE SEVEN. Under the words was a drawing of a planet with a ring.

Di bagian depan, seseorang menulis dua kata dengan pena biru. SAMPEL TUJUH. Di bawah kata-kata itu ada gambar planet bercincin.

Anselm loved science fiction. He read one space book every week. His heart beat fast.

Anselm menyukai fiksi ilmiah. Ia membaca satu buku luar angkasa setiap minggu. Jantungnya berdebar cepat.

"Piet, this is not normal," he said. "Someone left a sample here. Maybe it comes from another world."

"Piet, ini tidak normal," katanya. "Seseorang meninggalkan sampel di sini. Mungkin berasal dari dunia lain."

Piet looked at him for a long time. "Maybe somebody dropped it," he said.

Piet menatapnya lama. "Mungkin seseorang menjatuhkannya," katanya.

"No, think! Who writes Sample Seven? That means six more samples are out there."

"Tidak, coba pikir! Siapa yang menulis Sampel Tujuh? Itu berarti ada enam sampel lain di luar sana."

"Or it is one very long game," said Piet.

"Atau ini satu permainan yang sangat panjang," kata Piet.

They carried the envelope to the small office. They put it on the desk. Anselm did not want to open it yet. He found a pen and a notepad.

Mereka membawa amplop itu ke kantor kecil. Mereka meletakkannya di meja. Anselm belum mau membukanya. Ia mencari pena dan buku catatan.

"A good detective starts with clues," he said. "We will not open it until we understand it."

"Detektif yang baik mulai dari petunjuk," katanya. "Kita tidak akan membukanya sampai kita memahaminya."

"I want to go home at ten," said Piet. But he sat down.

"Aku mau pulang pukul sepuluh," kata Piet. Tetapi ia duduk.

"Clue one," said Anselm. He pointed at the writing. "Look at the letters."

"Petunjuk satu," kata Anselm. Ia menunjuk tulisannya. "Lihat huruf-hurufnya."

The letters were big and round. None of the letters stood in a straight line.

Huruf-hurufnya besar dan bulat. Tak satu pun huruf berdiri dalam garis lurus.

"A child wrote this," said Piet. "Or a very bad alien."

"Seorang anak yang menulisnya," kata Piet. "Atau alien yang sangat buruk."

Anselm wrote on his notepad. Clue one: a child, or a bad alien. He underlined the word alien twice.

Anselm menulis di buku catatannya. Petunjuk satu: seorang anak, atau alien yang buruk. Ia menggarisbawahi kata alien dua kali.

"Clue two," he said. He turned the envelope over. In the corner was a number. It was a small black four with a circle around it.

"Petunjuk dua," katanya. Ia membalik amplop itu. Di sudutnya ada sebuah angka. Angka empat hitam kecil dengan lingkaran di sekelilingnya.

"Four," said Piet. "Lane four?"

"Empat," kata Piet. "Lintasan empat?"

"What happens in lane four?"

"Apa yang terjadi di lintasan empat?"

"Swimming lessons for the little ones. Every Thursday at five."

"Pelajaran renang untuk anak-anak kecil. Setiap Kamis pukul lima."

"Today is Thursday," said Anselm slowly. He wrote it down. His hand shook a little.

"Hari ini Kamis," kata Anselm perlahan. Ia menuliskannya. Tangannya gemetar sedikit.

Piet pulled the envelope toward himself. He looked at the tape. The tape was plain. But at the end there was a small sticker. It showed a green shark with a big smile.

Piet menarik amplop itu ke arahnya. Ia memperhatikan selotipnya. Selotipnya polos. Tetapi di ujungnya ada stiker kecil. Gambar seekor hiu hijau dengan senyum lebar.

Piet did not say anything. He went to his locker in the hall. He came back with his phone and looked at the screen. Then he closed his eyes.

Piet tidak berkata apa-apa. Ia pergi ke lokernya di lorong. Ia kembali membawa ponselnya dan memandang layarnya. Lalu ia memejamkan mata.

"What is clue three?" Anselm asked.

"Apa petunjuk tiga?" tanya Anselm.

"The shark," said Piet. "I know this shark. It is on our fridge. It is on our front door. It is on my lunch box."

"Hiu itu," kata Piet. "Aku kenal hiu ini. Ada di kulkas kami. Ada di pintu depan kami. Ada di kotak bekalku."

"Why is it on your lunch box?"

"Kenapa ada di kotak bekalmu?"

"Because my daughter puts it everywhere." Piet held up the phone. "My wife sent six messages. I left my phone in the locker."

"Karena putriku menempelkannya di mana-mana." Piet mengangkat ponselnya. "Istriku mengirim enam pesan. Aku meninggalkan ponselku di loker."

Anselm read the last message over his shoulder. "Did you find her envelope? She lost it at swimming. She will not sleep."

Anselm membaca pesan terakhir dari balik bahunya. "Kamu menemukan amplopnya? Dia kehilangannya di kolam. Dia tidak akan bisa tidur."

"Your daughter is the alien?" Anselm asked.

"Putrimu si alien?" tanya Anselm.

"My daughter is eight," said Piet. "She swims in lane four. At school this week, the teacher gave her a game. A visitor from space comes to Earth. The class must collect eight samples to show the visitor."

"Putriku berumur delapan tahun," kata Piet. "Dia berenang di lintasan empat. Di sekolah minggu ini, gurunya memberinya permainan. Seorang pengunjung dari luar angkasa datang ke Bumi. Kelas harus mengumpulkan delapan sampel untuk ditunjukkan kepada si pengunjung."

"What are the samples?"

"Apa saja sampelnya?"

"Sand. A leaf. A drop of lake water. She told me about it all week." Piet rubbed his forehead. "I did not listen well. I was tired."

"Pasir. Sehelai daun. Setetes air danau. Dia bercerita padaku sepanjang minggu." Piet mengusap dahinya. "Aku tidak mendengarkan dengan baik. Aku lelah."

Anselm looked at the envelope again. Now the planet with the ring looked like a child's drawing. Of course it did.

Anselm memandang amplop itu lagi. Sekarang planet bercincin itu tampak seperti gambar anak kecil. Tentu saja begitu.

"Sample seven," he said.

"Sampel tujuh," katanya.

"Let us open it," said Piet.

"Mari kita buka," kata Piet.

Anselm cut the tape with great care. Inside the envelope was a small plastic bag, the kind for sandwiches. Inside the bag was a folded note. Next to the note was a tiny white tooth.

Anselm memotong selotip itu dengan sangat hati-hati. Di dalam amplop ada sebuah kantong plastik kecil, jenis untuk roti lapis. Di dalam kantong ada secarik catatan terlipat. Di samping catatan itu ada sebutir gigi putih mungil.

Piet took out the note and read it aloud. "Sample seven. Baby tooth. It fell out on Monday. Please do not lose it. From Earth."

Piet mengeluarkan catatan itu dan membacanya dengan suara keras. "Sampel tujuh. Gigi susu. Copot hari Senin. Tolong jangan sampai hilang. Dari Bumi."

Anselm laughed so hard that he had to sit on the floor. Piet laughed too. The laugh was loud in the empty building.

Anselm tertawa begitu keras sampai harus duduk di lantai. Piet ikut tertawa. Tawa itu nyaring di gedung yang kosong.

"I thought it was a message from another world," said Anselm. He wiped his eyes.

"Kukira ini pesan dari dunia lain," kata Anselm. Ia menyeka matanya.

"It is," said Piet. "From my daughter's world. It is almost the same thing."

"Memang," kata Piet. "Dari dunia putriku. Hampir sama saja."

"Why was it at the bottom of the pool?"

"Kenapa bisa ada di dasar kolam?"

"She took it to show her friends. Then it fell out of her swim bag. She wraps everything in tape so it stays dry. She does that with all her treasures." Piet shook his head. "Her mother says she cried for an hour."

"Dia membawanya untuk menunjukkannya kepada teman-temannya. Lalu benda itu jatuh dari tas renangnya. Dia membungkus semuanya dengan selotip supaya tetap kering. Dia melakukan itu pada semua hartanya." Piet menggeleng. "Kata ibunya, dia menangis satu jam."

Anselm stood up and looked at the tooth. It was so small. It looked like a grain of rice.

Anselm berdiri dan memandang gigi itu. Begitu kecil. Seperti sebutir beras.

"There is one more thing," Piet said. "She also wants it for the other visitor."

"Ada satu hal lagi," kata Piet. "Dia juga menginginkannya untuk pengunjung yang lain."

"Which other visitor?"

"Pengunjung yang mana?"

"The one who brings a coin for a tooth," said Piet.

"Yang membawa koin untuk sebuah gigi," kata Piet.

Anselm smiled. He understood now. For her, the space game and the tooth game were one game. In her head, both visitors came at night.

Anselm tersenyum. Sekarang ia mengerti. Bagi anak itu, permainan luar angkasa dan permainan gigi adalah satu permainan. Dalam kepalanya, kedua pengunjung itu datang pada malam hari.

He gave the envelope back to Piet. Piet closed it with new tape. He put it in his shirt pocket. He patted the pocket twice.

Ia mengembalikan amplop itu kepada Piet. Piet menutupnya dengan selotip baru. Ia memasukkannya ke saku kemejanya. Ia menepuk saku itu dua kali.

"Go home," said Anselm. "I will turn off the lights and lock the door."

"Pulanglah," kata Anselm. "Aku yang mematikan lampu dan mengunci pintu."

"Thank you, Anselm. I owe you a coffee."

"Terima kasih, Anselm. Aku berutang kopi padamu."

"You owe me a story. About your daughter and the alien."

"Kamu berutang cerita padaku. Tentang putrimu dan alien itu."

Piet laughed again and left with his mop and his bucket. His steps went down the hall and then the door closed.

Piet tertawa lagi dan pergi membawa pel dan embernya. Langkahnya menyusuri lorong lalu pintu menutup.

Anselm walked to the edge of the pool for the last time. He turned off the big lights one by one. The deep end was dark now. The water looked like black glass.

Anselm berjalan ke tepi kolam untuk terakhir kalinya. Ia mematikan lampu-lampu besar satu per satu. Bagian dalam kini gelap. Airnya tampak seperti kaca hitam.

He stood there for a moment and listened. The pump hummed. Then, from somewhere under the surface, came one small sound.

Ia berdiri di sana sejenak dan mendengarkan. Pompa berdengung. Lalu, dari suatu tempat di bawah permukaan, terdengar satu bunyi kecil.

Blup.

Blup.