The Chalk Marks on the Driveway

Every morning, Xiomara found new chalk marks on the shared driveway. Numbers and letters covered the gray stone. They disappeared by the next afternoon.

Setiap pagi, Xiomara menemukan coretan kapur baru di jalan masuk yang digunakan bersama. Angka dan huruf memenuhi batu abu-abu itu. Semuanya menghilang pada sore hari berikutnya.

At first, she thought the rain washed them away. But some mornings were dry, and the marks still vanished.

Awalnya ia mengira hujan yang menghapusnya. Namun beberapa pagi cuacanya kering, dan coretan itu tetap lenyap.

One Saturday, Xiomara decided to check early, before school. She walked outside at seven. A small boy sat on the driveway with a box of chalk.

Suatu hari Sabtu, Xiomara memutuskan memeriksanya pagi-pagi, sebelum berangkat sekolah. Ia keluar rumah pukul tujuh. Seorang anak laki-laki kecil duduk di jalan masuk dengan sekotak kapur.

"Good morning," she said. "Are you the person with all these chalk numbers?"

"Selamat pagi," katanya. "Kamu yang menulis semua angka kapur ini?"

The boy looked up, a little shy. "I'm Rio," he said. "I practice my numbers before school. My mom washes the driveway every afternoon."

Anak itu mendongak, agak malu. "Aku Rio," katanya. "Aku latihan menulis angka sebelum sekolah. Ibuku mencuci jalan ini setiap sore."

"That explains it," Xiomara said. She sat down next to him. "Can I see your numbers?"

"Pantas saja," kata Xiomara. Ia duduk di sebelahnya. "Boleh aku lihat angka-angkamu?"

Rio showed her rows of numbers, from one to twenty. They looked a little crooked but clear.

Rio menunjukkan deretan angka dari satu sampai dua puluh. Tulisannya agak miring, tetapi jelas.

"These are good," Xiomara said. "Do you want help with the next ten?"

"Ini bagus," kata Xiomara. "Mau kubantu untuk sepuluh angka berikutnya?"

Rio nodded and handed her a piece of chalk. They sat together and wrote numbers all the way to fifty.

Rio mengangguk dan menyerahkan sepotong kapur kepadanya. Mereka duduk bersama dan menulis angka sampai lima puluh.

The next morning, new marks covered the driveway again. Numbers from one to fifty looked neat and proud.

Keesokan paginya, coretan baru kembali memenuhi jalan masuk. Angka satu sampai lima puluh tampak rapi dan membanggakan.

Xiomara smiled when she saw them on her way to school.

Xiomara tersenyum saat melihatnya dalam perjalanan ke sekolah.