The Canoe at Dusk

Isla had wanted to paddle out to the island one more time before camp ended. Colm had agreed almost too easily, the way he agreed to most things she suggested. Neither of them had checked how quickly the light faded once the sun dropped behind the ridge.

Isla ingin sekali lagi mendayung ke pulau itu sebelum perkemahan berakhir. Colm menyetujuinya nyaris terlalu mudah, seperti caranya menyetujui hampir semua usul Isla. Tak satu pun dari mereka memeriksa betapa cepatnya cahaya memudar setelah matahari turun di balik punggung bukit.

"We should've turned back twenty minutes ago," Colm said, squinting at the shoreline, which had become a dark smudge against darker water. "I can barely tell where the dock is anymore."

"Seharusnya kita putar balik dua puluh menit yang lalu," kata Colm sambil menyipitkan mata ke arah tepi danau, yang kini hanya tampak seperti noda gelap di atas air yang lebih gelap. "Aku hampir tidak bisa melihat di mana dermaganya."

"I know. I got us into this," Isla admitted. "If I'd checked the time before we left, we wouldn't be out here now."

"Aku tahu. Ini salahku," Isla mengaku. "Kalau tadi aku memeriksa jam sebelum berangkat, kita tidak akan terjebak di sini."

A gust caught the canoe broadside, and for a moment it tipped further than either of them liked. Colm leaned hard the other way, and the boat settled, though his heart was pounding.

Embusan angin menghantam kano dari samping, dan sesaat perahu itu miring lebih jauh daripada yang mereka inginkan. Colm menyandarkan tubuhnya kuat-kuat ke arah sebaliknya, dan perahu pun kembali stabil, meski jantungnya berdegup kencang.

"Sit low, and let's paddle together, not against each other," Isla said, forcing calm into her voice that she didn't entirely feel. "One, two, one, two — match my count."

"Duduk yang rendah, dan ayo mendayung bersama, jangan saling melawan," kata Isla, memaksakan ketenangan dalam suaranya yang sebenarnya tidak sepenuhnya ia rasakan. "Satu, dua, satu, dua, ikuti hitunganku."

They fell into rhythm, the canoe cutting straighter through the chop than it had when each of them paddled at their own pace. The wind was pushing them slightly off course, toward the rocky south end of the lake instead of the dock.

Mereka menemukan iramanya, dan kano itu membelah ombak kecil lebih lurus daripada saat mereka mendayung sendiri-sendiri. Angin mendorong mereka sedikit keluar jalur, ke arah ujung selatan danau yang berbatu, bukan ke dermaga.

"We're drifting," Colm said. "Should we correct now or wait until we're closer?"

"Kita hanyut," kata Colm. "Kita koreksi sekarang atau tunggu sampai lebih dekat?"

"Now. If we wait, we'll be fighting the wind and the rocks both," Isla said, angling her paddle to steer them back on line.

"Sekarang. Kalau menunggu, kita harus melawan angin dan batu sekaligus," kata Isla sambil memiringkan dayungnya untuk mengarahkan perahu kembali ke jalur.

They paddled in silence after that, both of them focused entirely on the count and the rhythm. Far ahead, the dock light flickered on, switched on by someone back at camp.

Setelah itu mereka mendayung dalam diam, keduanya sepenuhnya fokus pada hitungan dan irama. Jauh di depan, lampu dermaga menyala, dinyalakan oleh seseorang di perkemahan.

By the time the bow scraped against the dock's floating edge, neither of them spoke for a moment, just breathing hard in the sudden stillness.

Ketika haluan perahu menyentuh tepi dermaga yang mengapung, untuk sesaat tak seorang pun bicara, mereka hanya terengah-engah di tengah keheningan yang mendadak.

"Never again without checking the time," Colm said eventually, managing a shaky laugh.

"Tidak akan lagi tanpa memeriksa jam," kata Colm akhirnya, sambil tertawa dengan suara bergetar.

"Never again," Isla agreed, though she was already, quietly, thinking about how good it had felt to get them both back safely.

"Tidak akan lagi," Isla setuju, meski diam-diam ia sudah memikirkan betapa leganya bisa membawa mereka berdua kembali dengan selamat.